by Chloe Hart
Through this collective phone tree poetry project, I was interested in addressing the importance of staying connected during times of required social isolation in order to foster mental health. I was inspired by the phone tree created by my church that so effectively held our community together despite physical isolation and barriers to digital technology. Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass, also inspired me when she wrote that a gift is meant to be given away, again and again. By recording many voices from my community and editing them together, I am co-creating a collective, long-form poem, that archives reflections on the COVID-19 pandemic. What is it about the medium of the phone call that provides a coping mechanism and necessary social support and intimacy that can also spread messages of hope, strength and love like roots connecting us through a telephone wire?
Music: www.bensound.com
