Poster Image
$20
Item#: 2021SYR02
Purchase Details
11x17-inches, printed on heavy weight (100-pound) Hammermill cover paper. We package each print with a piece of chipboard in a clear plastic sleeve.
You also receive…
An information page with photos of the artist and poet, and hand-written comments from each.
Medium- and large-format posters are available by custom order. Contact us for details.
Poem Inspiration Location
Bearing Hopes and Dreams
poster information
Description
Bearing hopes and dreams,
we arrived with a suitcase,
to make a new home.
I wrote this poem to celebrate the rich diversity of our town, especially the diversity brought by the New Americans who come to Syracuse from all over the globe with hopes and dreams to find refuge and to find a new home.
I have always been fascinated by what one would take if forced to leave their home quickly, with just a few belongings. I am a member of the Armenian community of Syracuse, and Syracuse has become a refuge for many Armenians over the last century, including those who fled Turkey during the genocide of 1915 and Baku in the 1980s. I have heard stories about how people left with all sorts of things in their suitcases—from handmade lace to pomegranate seeds—to start their new life.
Syracuse has so much character. We have a rich history of heroes and villains, tragedy, triumph and lives lived. I chose this haiku because it made me think immediately of our city's character. Echoing the past and imagining the future is how I believe so many arrived here. The old rail transfer station was an obvious choice not just because of its now iconic statues; it reflects on our city's history as a hub of comings and goings, beginnings and ends. I love the stark contrast of our city's many diverse people and backgrounds and our gritty determination to survive and thrive. This haiku illustrated this perfectly for me, and I tried to capture that in illustrating it for you.