Just up the road from the Hooksett library is a popular family-run boat dealership called Green’s Marine Inc. With anticipation for summer, the store is filled with inquiring customers, ringing phones, boats, life preservers and paddles. Sitting behind a desk in a small cubicle is Hooksett resident and business owner Arnold Green, 81, who is happy to discuss of all things – poetry.

Why poetry? Arnold Green’s poetry is often published in The Hooksett Banner. Furthermore, there is just something special about the way he writes about his wife, mother and life from his window.

When asked why he writes poetry, he said, “I write poetry to please myself. I don’t know what generates it. I always read and marveled at the way writers such as Robert Frost constructed their works. I like to read and know people. I like to look at somebody and know how they look at their life, family, problems and death. I like to really look at life and try to capture it. I try to put words together to convey what I feel about someone or something. Sometimes I honestly amaze myself because I don’t know where it comes from, yet it is a part of me.”

Green said he enjoyed poetry in high school and continued writing poetry while he served in the Navy during World War II. He was editor of his ship’s newspaper and often wrote little “jingles” for his crew. After Green got out of the Navy, his life became busy with family, and his career became focused on radio and electronics for Motorola.

Green has lived in Hooksett for 46 years. He and his wife, Mary, settled in the town in 1961, purchasing an old 10-room house and nearby land with the plan of starting a boat business with his brothers, Burt and Lenny, and their father, Alfred, to “sell fun” and be closer to his family.

“So much has changed,” Green reminisced. “Back then, this area was all fields and an old poultry business.”

Through the years, many family members were a helpful and intricate part of the success of the business. Now a second generation, his son and nephew, leads the dealership.

“They are why it all began,” said Green smiling proudly as he points to a large old photo of his children on a boat behind him.

Green and his wife have been married for 60 years, and together they have three sons, a daughter and four grandchildren.

At 81, Green said he feels very lucky to be his age and still be able to experience things and share. He explained there are only four siblings remaining out of eight and many of his friends have passed away. His mother lived to be 105 years old. Green said he is more philosophical and reflects a great deal these days. He said he thinks about his life, the loss of his loved ones, and he can’t help but feel regret. “I miss them,” he said. “I feel regret for not spending more time with them.”

Poetry seems to help stop time, added Green.

“Poetry is lasting. It is a way to make memories last. It is a part of me that I want to leave behind,” Green said.

Green is a member of the Hooksett-ites senior group and is at the library most Fridays mornings into the afternoon. He often summarizes their events for The Hooksett Banner as well. Green said he loves Hooksett and enjoys socializing and being involved with the community.

According to Green, poetry is a great way for him to get his mind off what is happening in the world. Green said he likes to pay attention to life around him and to focus on positive things. “We should slow down and take a look at what’s really around us,” he said. “You can find so much just in your back yard. There is so much to write about.”

“I’m really just a soft sentimental slob,” Green chuckled. “I guess it comes down to me really wanting to be remembered.

I want to share and bring joy to someone. Even if it is just for a moment, knowing my poetry touched someone in some way really brings me great joy. I can’t describe it, but when someone tells me something I wrote made them happy or made them remember something, it makes me feel like they understand.”