Bethel

BETHEL

THE SKY ABOVE GROUND
©Hannah Lipman, Bethel Poet Laureate 2026

We wake on the same morning—
The sun rises without choosing sides,
light touches every roof
on every street in Bethel.

No home is skipped.

And yet—
we gather in separate circles,
holding signs like shields.

I feel it too—
the pull to stand tall in mud and lotus flowers,
to name what matters,
to not look away.

And somewhere between conviction
and connection,
something fragile whispers -
Because I know you.
Not your slogan—
You.

The wave from your car
in the Caraluzzi’s parking lot,
your dog leaning into your leg
as we pause to chat, in passing,
on Greenwood Ave.

The way you showed up
when my ankle shattered on black ice—
with soup and a warm smile,
never asking who I voted for.

We are not strangers, no matter how much
the frigid wind blows us apart.

Our children flew down hills together
on toboggans after
that first winter storm. Remember?

We searched long after midnight
for a neighbor’s deaf dog
who slipped out into the dark.

Yes, there is a divide.

I can feel it—
a crack in the frozen ice
on Putnam Park Lake,
thin,
dangerous if ignored.

And we are still standing
on the same sheet of ice.

And I refuse—
from the center of my soul—
to let us all sink
while we argue over the fracture.

Our democracy was crafted against autocracy.
We fought for this.
We know this.

My father, in a foxhole
on the sands of Iwo Jima,
enlisted at nineteen to fight fascism.
Took to his grave blown up Japanese souls.

No enemies here.
Not in this town
that has held our birthdays,
our losses,
our walks in the woods,
and quiet afternoons at the library.
Let us be fierce in what we believe,
and just as fierce
in remembering one another.
Let us stand—
As neighbors and friends,
who will see each other tomorrow
in line for coffee,
under the same sky,
on the same shared ground.

I care deeply
about your wellbeing—
about you being well
in these challenging times.

Take good care of yourselves,
And of each other.


CONSIDER THE CAPITAL LETTER B
On the occasion of the inauguration of the newly elected and reelected officials in Bethel, December 6, 2021

by Cortney Davis, Bethel Poet Laureate, 2019-2021

B is a bold letter, first letter of the word Bethel,
which means House of God, a good house, our town

settled in 1700, carved from the forests and fields
of Fairfield County, incorporated in 1855, and guided

by visionaries and dreamers, realists and activists,
like those here tonight, those we have chosen to lead us

with wisdom and strength. We honor them and ask them
to consider the capital letter B, its strong backbone,

how it reaches up while standing firm. We ask them
to consider the two curved lines that reach forward from its spine,

then turn to join midway in the suggestion of an embrace,
creating space for hope and possibility. We ask them

to be bold, to aim high at the same time remaining resolute
in what is right, moral and possible. We ask them

to open their hearts as well as their minds, to differ
when they must, but also to turn and meet again, leaving room

for change and compromise, choosing what is best
for the citizens they've been called to represent. Tonight,

we applaud their achievements and offer our gratitude,
our promise to stand ready to support them. We charge them

to be brave in their duties, to build and not tear down,
to hold fast to the knowledge that Bethel is blessed

with a sweet and beautiful democracy which they now hold
in their hands. We ask them to cherish this precious yet fragile gift,

to tend it well. And, always, we wish for them?for all of you?
peace, good health, and happiness through all the days to come.


CCPL is a group of state and local poets laureate in Connecticut.
The mission of the Connecticut Council of Poets Laureate (CCPL) is to promote the enjoyment of poetry and be a resource for communities.