{"id":53748,"date":"2016-12-06T14:50:46","date_gmt":"2016-12-07T00:50:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=53748"},"modified":"2020-01-07T10:22:45","modified_gmt":"2020-01-07T20:22:45","slug":"a-million-dollar-bill-inspires-new-poetry-book-by-eric-paul-shaffer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2016\/12\/06\/a-million-dollar-bill-inspires-new-poetry-book-by-eric-paul-shaffer\/","title":{"rendered":"A million-dollar bill inspires new poetry book by Eric Paul Shaffer"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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Eric Paul Shaffer<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Eric Paul Shaffer<\/strong>, a professor at Honolulu Community College<\/a>, recently published a collection of poems entitled A Million-Dollar Bill<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

A Million-Dollar Bill<\/em> is a poem included in the book, which Shaffer made the chosen title piece because it was well received and expressed many of the themes of the volume. The poem is based on a North Carolina Wal-Mart incident—a man attempted to purchase goods with a million dollar bill of his own design and he was arrested and charged. Intrigued and astonished, Shaffer drafted A Million-Dollar Bill<\/em> presenting a speaker in that situation trying to explain himself.<\/p>\n

“I read and write poetry because poems explain our values to us, measure out life in lines that we can examine one at a time and allow us to experience the worlds of many other people to see what they values and whether we agree,” said Shaffer. “I seek the significance in ordinary moments and try to focus the wisdom in those mementos on a page so that people can better regard and consider what they see every day.”<\/p>\n

“Because of my A Million-Dollar Bill<\/em> readings, I have met many more wonderful people who are as enthusiastic about reading and about reading poetry as I am.\u00a0One of the very best results of publishing this book has been renewing my interaction and community with my audience,” said Shaffer.<\/p>\n

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A Million-Dollar Bill<\/em> by Eric Paul Shaffer<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A Million-Dollar Bill<\/em> highlights<\/h2>\n