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Rural life inspired poetic side of Dixon native
PUBLICATION NAME, August 8, 2006 by Malinda Osborne
Joe Parke, 50, was never one to accept defeat. Like the time when he went to Dixon High School, and asked a girl named Diana for a date three times before she said yes. The couple has now been married 33 years.
Most recently, his perseverance has won him another great achievement--a published book.
The former Dixonian, who now lives in Newman, Ga., officially released his book, "Poems From An Average Joe" on Monday.
Parke, who has no formal training in poetry writing, said he was inspired to write poems that everyone could enjoy and understand.
He said while he always had been interested in poetry, he also was frustrated by it. Sometimes he would not understand the point or what the author was trying to say. That made him, in turn, question his ability to understand deep thinking. Then he thought that poetry could be more simple and still enjoyable.
"That is where the title comes from. I'm saying that I am putting things in an easy to understand format. There is a hidden message but it's easy to understand the point of the poem," Parke said.
Parke grew up in Dixon and remembers playing with the farm kids at the home of his now deceased grandparents, Cecil and Vi Parke, who lived in the country. He also enjoyed camping near the Rock River and riding his bike everyday.
After graduating from high school in 1973, he enlisted with the Navy and served four years. He returned to Dixon for eight years but decided it was time to explore something different.
"That unrestricted lifestyle is more conducive to my happiness," Parke said. "But you get older and you pursue a career and you migrate."
Occasionally he would write poems, but mostly as a hobby.
By the spring of 2005, Parke had been working in Los Angeles for 14 years as a general manager for a Japanese manufacturing plant. While he appreciated being able to see a "whole different side of culture," as Parke put it, he could not deny the affection for his rural roots.
He and his family decided to get out of the city and return to a more simple lifestyle by moving to a country home in Georgia.
"We just picked up and moved. We were looking for a slower pace of life. To re-evaluate where we were at and where we were going," he said.
Parke's wife and son Brad moved a few months before Parke himself could. During their separation, Diana gave him a journal in which to write poetry. She said she enjoyed the poems and encouraged him to continue his hobby.
Parke started to write poems sporadically, and then more often when he moved to Georgia. He took time to enjoy the slower pace of life there and reconnected with nature on his walks to the lake. His method of creating poetry can be best described as spontaneous. He doesn't take notes, but instead, "I just kind of get consumed by the feeling of environment and everything starts flowing," he said.
Diana said when she read his writings, she was "blown away by the depth. It was so neat. It comes so easy for him. He can make a rhyme out of anything."
Parke started to gain confidence in his writing, too.
"It was mostly to bring her (Diana) some joy when I started. Then later I would go back and reread them and I felt good about them," Parke said.
So what started out as a form of personal entertainment eventually turned into a serious endeavor. Diana, a self-described optimist, pushed Joe to send his poems to a publisher. During that time, Joe was able to connect with a local writers club. A fellow member then introduced Joe to the publishing company, PublishAmerica.
"Everything started snowballing from there," Diana said. "I just cried when PublishAmerica took his book."
Now the book is released and Parke said he is happy with the result. It doesn't have a specific theme, per say, but encapsulates various moods, from spiritual to quirky. For example, one poem was inspired by a time he was out with a friend having a beer on a Saturday afternoon. The waitress asked if I wanted another one. His reply to her was, "I've got the time and no common sense." Later that night he wrote a poem describing that afternoon and used the phrase as the title.
Parke keeps busy with his new job and promotion of the book when he has time.
He has left open the possibility of returning to Dixon, maybe for a book signing.
"We have to see how things go with the book and if there is any interest from book stores, but we are looking at those avenues," he said.
For the future, he is working on an autobiography in poetry format.
About the Book (Sidebar)
The book, "Poems From An Average Joe" (PublishAmerica 2006) is available directly from www.publishamerica.com for $11.95.
Excerpts from "Poems From An Average Joe":
Fisherman's Paradise
Shimmering surface of shiny blue,
Where skipping stones is what we do,
Water bugs dance with nowhere to go,
Fearful of fish from waters below.
Fishermen too come here for fun,
Brave one's staying through noontime sun.
With Dreams of making one big catch,
Resigned to accepting a meager batch.
Gentle ripples all eventually pass,
From casting made for that special bass.
Casting and reeling they lure for fish,
In hopes to catch their supper dish.
With calm of day and peace of mind,
Fisherman leaves all troubles behind.
Pursuing for hours that elusive fun,
Of finally catching their special one.
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