Friday, March 7, 2008

Poet Laureate closes legislative session

Wyoming Poet Laureate David Romtvedt usually addresses the Wyoming House and Senate near the beginning of their deliberations.

This year, he helped them close out the 20-day budget session on its final day of business. In the Senate, there were bills to take care of before David came to the podium and read, "Oh, if you could know," a poem from the point of view of his wife Margo when she was young and in love with horses and horned toads.

He wrapped up with a Basque song on the button accordion. David married into a Johnson County Basque family, so he played a song whose original name I can't pronounce. It's used for both greetings and departures, and is played at everything from weddings to (David says) legislative sessions.

A great way to wrap up a fairly congenial and productive 2008 Legislature.