A Poet’s Dream Comes True

Story By Wil Crews

Photos By Wil Crews and Contributed to LIVE Lee

Auburn resident Robert Wilson has always dreamed of getting his poems published. That dream has now become a reality.

Since Wilson sat down and wrote his first poem in 1968, he has amassed a collection of over 400 short stories. About 90% of his poems “can be read from behind the pulpit,” Wilson said, as many of his poems carry a religious theme throughout.

“It’s best you go in the bathroom and lock the door,” Wilson said about the other 10% of his poems.

Always a poet at heart, Wilson hasn’t always been a poet in reality. From 1956 to 1960, Wilson was a gunner in the U.S. Navy.

“I am wearing a Navy hat, but I am an Alabama fan,” he joked.

Wilson’s time in the service took him overseas, where he experienced cultures “that no black man had seen” at that time.

“I enjoyed [my time in the Navy], but I didn’t like it enough to stay in,” Wilson said. “I got to see the world, see a lot of places I wouldn’t have seen, met a lot people I wouldn’t have met.”

Deciding that he did not want to spend his entire career in the service, Wilson traveled to New York City shortly after exiting the Navy in 1960. It was there that he worked for NBC Studios at the famous Rockefeller Plaza for eight years.

Following his time in the Big Apple, Wilson moved to Opelika and got a job at Uniroyal Tire Company.

“That was the highest paying job around here at that time,” Wilson said.

He would spend the better part of 25 years there before retiring. With no job and extra free time, Wilson really began to dig into his poetry.

Wilson said his first poem was about traveling through outer space. It was short, he said. But his overall collection of poems range from one verse to 130.

“After that, I started writing about different things,” Wilson said.

Today, Wilson typically writes his poem at night, as the world stills around him.

“I can be lying in bed at night, thinking, and get up and write two or three stories,” he said.

Having his poems published would “mean a lot,” to Wilson, he said. But what he told Maegan Hamner, employee at Monarch Estates — the assisted living center where Wilson lives — more accurately expresses the heart of the poet’s excitement.

“After I told Mr. Wilson that his poems might be featured in a newspaper or magazine, he said, ‘I’m going to be famous,’” Hamner said.

Trinity's Drama Club put on its first full-length Broadway musical over the first weekend in February. The show included a live orchestra, directed by Thomas Smith. All three of the performances were delivered to a sold-out audience.

The director, Drury Bell, said, “It has been a blessing to work with these students and watch them grow over the past few months. Throughout the process, I have been impressed over and over again by their effort, talents and ideas as we have put the show together.”

Musical director, Carolyn Boone said, “I am so incredibly grateful for a very talented group of students. The Lord has blessed us with the opportunity to share their gifts to our community.”

Mr. Crab

Emily Cordon is one of the world’s newest authors. This past fall, she debuted her first children’s book — “Mr. Crab’s Dream Island.”

Cordon is originally from Daphne, Alabama, and is an Auburn University alumna (joining the ranks of many other accomplished alumni).

Cordon was not one of those children who dreamed of publishing a book. In fact, at Auburn, she originally studied fashion design. She decided to go into English education, though eventually, she hopes to be an art teacher.

However, it was one well-placed high school assignment that was enough to bring Mr. Crab to life.

“It was an art project my senior year of high school,” she said “I’ve always kept it; my mom always wanted me to keep it. I never really liked it that much, and of course, my mom was like. ‘You need to publish it.’ But of course, your parents are always biased.”

Cordon moved from Auburn to Fairhope, Alabama, to be near her parents, after teaching at Beauregard High School and Auburn Junior High. Since the move, Cordon has been working with the Baldwin County School System, teaching English and serving as a substitute.

Cordon heard about Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing, and that is how she decided to publish “Mr. Crab’s Dream Island.” Since she already had the book, all she had to do was type the book and take pictures of her art. The process took all of one week.

“Because it was more of a simple, self-publishing thing, I have other pieces that I have written that I would also like to publish in the future as well,” she said.

Cordon said she’d like to publish some of her poems, one of which is about the ever-famous Kick-Six.

The new author said she has sold several copies of the children’s book on Amazon, as well as many personally to people.

“I’ve done two book signings and book readings at Barnes & Noble in Spanish Fort,” she said. “… And those went really well.”

She also participated in a book signing at Page and Palette and will be participating in an author showcase at Fantasy Toy Island in Fairhope.

Cordon received her art teaching certificate in 2021, so she’s on her way to her dream of being an art teacher — and perhaps more publishing.

She may continue Mr. Crab’s adventure too, though.

Cordon said that she has received a lot of support from the Auburn community.

“… I’ve had a lot of good support.”

The book is also now available in the Auburn University Bookstore.

“It’s definitely full circle,” she said. “It’s really awesome, very humbling … it’s definitely very surreal for me that that is happening. It’s definitely like a dream come true.”

Her mom, Grace Cordon, has been very supportive — just as she was when Cordon was in high school.

“As Emily’s mother, I’ve always known ‘Mr. Crab’s Dream Island’ should be published,” her mom said. “Now, I’m so excited about the book. Watching children looking at the pictures and taking an interest in it makes me so happy. I knew it was a winner.”

Overall, Cordon has done with this book what she does with teaching — encourage children. In fact, she left the back pages of “Mr. Crab’s Dream Island” blank so that children could draw their own fantasies.

“Success for me means that this book is in some little way impacting a child’s life and encouraging a child that all dreams are possible,” Cordon said. “Just reading this book to children and being able to share this book with family members and friends is a dream come true to me.”

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