High school senior Trayshun Holmes-Gournaris spent the first seven years of his life in silence. Born deaf, he didn鈥檛 have any formal way of communicating with his peers.
鈥淚 would have classes and I would fail my classes because I have no way of understanding what was going on,鈥� he says, through his interpreter Edwin Cancel. 鈥淧eople would say, 鈥楢re you a dummy or something?鈥� And I didn鈥檛 know what they were saying!鈥�
Then in the 2nd grade, he moved to Oregon, his adoptive parents taught him American Sign Language, and he enrolled in the .
鈥淚 would be kind of shy, wanted to stay behind my mom, and they would encourage me. And then after 11 years, I鈥檝e picked up the dexterity and the fluidity that I鈥檝e picked up in sign,鈥� he says.
Now, he鈥檚 a statewide poetry champion and will compete for a larger audience at Poetry Out Loud.
is a national competition where high school students are judged based on how well they recite selected poems.
Gayle Robertson is a teacher at OSD and has been active in Poetry Out Loud since 2009. She鈥檚 been encouraging Trayshun to compete since his freshman year.
鈥淗e鈥檚 student body government president, he wears a tie to school because he wants to look good,鈥� she laughs. 鈥淗e鈥檚 just one of those kids that you can see standing on a national stage and doing really well there.鈥�
At first, Trayshun wasn鈥檛 sure if he would even like poetry. He was more interested in telling funny stories and jokes.
But with Robertson鈥檚 coaching, Trayshun competed in 2021 as a junior. He came in third. Even so, the experience gave him the confidence to try again.
鈥淚 said, okay, I owe this to myself my senior year to come in here guns blazing,鈥� he says.
As he heads into the homestretch of his senior year, Trayshun has picked three powerful and challenging poems, 鈥溾�� by W.E.B. Du Bois, 鈥溾�� by Thomas Hood and 鈥�,鈥� by Maya Angelou.
All three works reflect Trayshun鈥檚 feelings about being a young black man in America.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a hard life being a young black person. And so I started looking for authors who were black and who knew the black experience and I wanted to be able to convey a serious subject like this yet in my way of a performance.鈥�
Of the three poems, 鈥淐aged Bird鈥� is his favorite.
鈥淎 cage bird has no movement, the wings are clipped and it feels like the black experience. We鈥檙e not free to do whatever. It feels like we are in a cage.鈥�
But how do you translate a poem meant to be read aloud into a visual language, let alone memorize it?
鈥淚 look up the information on the internet,鈥� he explains. 鈥淎nd I start translating summaries of the different stanzas. Instead of going word for word, I take the meaning of each stanza. And then I start getting into the process of memorizing it.鈥�
He also needed to make sure that he accurately adapted the poems鈥� message in ASL without overdramatizing the meaning.
鈥淚 have to have facial expressions that match what is happening in the poem,鈥� he says.
Trayshun was one of 11 students who made it to the final round of the statewide competition. The Oregon Arts Commission announced the winner on March 1st.
Normally, the students must recite their poems in front of a live audience. But because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Trayshun had to pre-record his performances.
In his taped performance of Trayshun stands alone in his classroom, dressed in a long sleeve shirt and wool vest. The only sound heard at the beginning is a voiceover, introducing the poem. Then he starts signing. The room remains silent, but his hand movements and facial expressions speak volumes.
Once all three poems were recorded and sent off for judging, it was time to wait for the live zoom meeting that announced the winner.
Trayshun was completely shocked when he heard his name.
鈥淢y heart was beating really fast too. I don鈥檛 know if that could be seen visibly, but inside I was very excited!鈥�
Competition judge and Oregon Arts commissioner Subashini Ganesan-Forbes was immediately impressed with his poise and authenticity.
鈥淭rayshun was very good at really cutting through expectations and saying, this is my presentation. This is how I鈥檓 grounded, view the poem through me,鈥� she says.
Trayshun is only the second deaf student to win Oregon鈥檚 Poetry Out Loud contest. , who was also coached by Gale Robertson, won in 2009.
Trayshun competes this in the national semifinal round. If he succeeds, he鈥檒l advance to the final round in June.
鈥淚 can be a winner. From being a deaf baby, with no ability to communicate, to being a state champion now. So if I can do it, people can do it too.鈥�
Copyright 2022 Oregon Public Broadcasting. To see more, visit .