Wirt County Poet

By Katie Deem
Wirt County native Jesse D. Carpenter offers readers a glimpse into his tumultuous life through the poems “The Wall” and “A seed in the wind.” Carpenter’s writing is poignant, almost mournful. He shares that “a lot of people get to a dark place in their life” and his poetry uncovers that place. It elucidates the grief of a young man, and the hope he finds within himself.

At the age of 14, Carpenter moved out of his home, bidding farewell to a wearisome situation with his mother. He had no place to go, no family with whom to stay, no friends willing to take him in. He comments, “There are two types of people in this world, victims and survivors. Ultimately you get to choose one road.” (His sentiment is inspired by his favorite poem The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost.) Therefore, he worked on a farm in return for room and board, and became a soldier at the age of 18. He served as a military medic. He received a medical discharge soon after doctors found he suffered from Crohn’s disease. He previously lived in Georgia and worked in a Winn-Dixie grocery store before returning to West Virginia to pursue his degree in nursing at West Virginia University at Parkersburg.

He is currently working on a book entitled The Phoenix. He shares that the book is “like [a] Harry Potter [book with a lead character who is] half angel and half sorcerer.” This character embarks upon a journey of love and war to “conquer himself” and obtain enlightenment.


A seed in the wind
By Jesse D. Carpenter

Life passes by like a seed in the wind.
Where it lands its journey begins.

Magic then sparked, by the hands of God, laid true.
As this seed grows a plant peaks through.

Summers come and winters go,
But inside this plant exists a hope.

It is a hope not seen by man today.
It is a hope that comes from near yet far away.

It does not worry, toil nor weep.
It simply grows one more day for it to keep.

The wind blows cold as it grows old,
Still this plant it will not unfold.

It does not worry about its destiny,
Nor about what others might see.
It only wonders what its next day may bring.

As the days come, the leaves go,
But something great comes that few will ever know.

A seed is then dropped into the wind,
As our lives pass us by again, and again…


The Wall
By Jesse D. Carpenter

This wall I see in front of me stands so lonely, tall, and gray.
I fear the feeling taking over me, that I may never get away.

The Dark pierces through my soul,
Reminding me of a wound that I received long ago.
I think this pain it is returning, so I block it out knowing it’s familiar yearning.

I miss her touch so gently,
Or is it the power of her kiss.
I miss the way she used to laugh,
Or was it just little moments like this.

She turned away without goodbye,
And left me feeling every day I should die.

I stand here now, just this wall and me, Saying,
“Love won’t you just let me be?”

How could one be so vicious?
Yet in my mind, some of those memories were Delicious.

I dare not speak her name.
For I Mae A little Fear too much that pain.
Maybe someday I will find a way.
Just not today, cause that Wall it is too Lonely, Tall, and Gray.