Route 96

This morning I strayed into another of your reflections...

Note: today’s piece is our second excerpt from Stops Along the Way, a new collaboration from painter Tabby Ivy and writer Damon Falke. The first excerpt was “In Motion, Still,” which you can find here.

Today’s poem and painting appear with eight other pairings in a new booklet, available to purchase here, which was released in conjunction with the exhibition Stops Along the Way – Tabby Ivy and Damon Falke at The 2one3 in Carlton, Oregon. If you’re nearby, the exhibit runs through November 5th, 2025.

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Vibration in Reflection, oil, 36x36 by Tabby Ivy

Route 96

This morning I strayed into another  
Of your reflections, 
With the limbs and grasses 
Doubling in my heart.  
I was driving to work at the grocery store 
When I thought about your painting.  
It was dark outside, still dark 
I should say, and I saw the stars  
Above the waiting town.  
That is the moment when your reflection  
Returned—your reflection and the stars, 
The dark outside. 
It was difficult, I admit, to keep going.

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Stops Along the Way is the second collaboration between Tabby Ivy and Damon Falke, a writer, poet and playwright living in the far north of Norway. Their first collaboration resulted in the 2022 exhibition and book, Between Artists: Life in Paintings and Prose.

Both publications are available for purchase at https://www.tabbyivy.com/books

The exhibition is on view at The 2one3 in Carlton, Oregon from Friday, September 5th through November 6th, 2025.

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Damon Falke is the author of, among other works, The Scent of a Thousand Rains, Now at the Uncertain Hour, By Way of Passing, and Koppmoll (film). He lives in northern Norway.

Tabby Ivy now lives and works in Carlton, Oregon. Her home studio is a sanctuary for working, and reading her extensive collection of art books. Learn more at www.tabbyivy.com.

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