PASCO COUNTY, Fla. — April is National Poetry Month, and there is a teacher in Pasco County who not only loves reading and writing poetry but also credits it with saving her life.
She hopes to be a voice in the community about how powerful it can be.
ABC Action News first introduced you to Kimberly Phinney last year when she was a recipient of the National Society of High School Scholars Educator of the Year Award, despite spending half the year teaching from a hospital bed.
“After we saw each other, I was on Good Morning America, they picked up our story, and about a week later, I collapsed in my classroom, and I had this horrific episode, and my body shut down; we found out the disease was back. It had moved to other organs," said Phinney.
All Phinney ever wanted to do was teach English, but Stage 4 Endometriosis just kept getting in the way.
“I did not go back to work but maybe once or twice to say goodbye to my seniors, and it was just a temporary visit,” said Phinney. “I probably mourned losing my classroom just as hard as losing our fertility.”
It was the darkest point of Phinney’s life. So she turned to the only thing she had left: faith, family, and poetry.
“Sometimes my family would be sound asleep but I couldn’t sleep because of the pain and I would get on the phone or get a little book light and I would just start writing and writing as my husband slept beside me so I could make it through the night,” said Phinney.
Before she knew it, the wife and mother had compiled an entire book.
“So I sent it off to a few places and actually had three or four people say they wanted to publish it, which shocked me,” said Phinney.
Inspired by the garden where she did most of her writing, she called the book "Of Wings & Dirt."
“I never set out to write a book, but it was the poetry I wrote to stay alive,” said Phinney. “And here it is coming out during National Poetry Month so you can’t make it up, it’s pretty amazing with the timing.”
The poetry even led to a renewed teaching career, this time online, with a group called The Way Back to Ourselves.
“And we call ourselves faithful creatives and leaders, and the biggest thing or the biggest arm of it is creative writing and the creative arts, creative endeavors, poetry, writing, painting,” said Phinney.
She’s even maintained relationships with past students. Phinney may no longer be in their classroom, but she is always in their hearts.
“She was the best teacher I ever had so I’m really happy that she gets to share her wisdom with other people and other kids,” said former student Penelope Guzzo. “She was made to do that, she was made to share the kindness and the love.”
Phinney is also happy to report that she is now in remission and it’s the best she’s felt in the past four years.
“We are so glad that ABC Action News is telling our story because poetry matters, community matters, connection matters, and it’s important for us to remember that and to give back to each other as well,” said Phinney.
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