In the Shadow of the Forest, There Lies My Youth...

The Jānis Akuraters Museum invites you on September 19 at 3:00 PM to the Poetry Day event “In the Shadow of the Forest, There Lies My Youth...” at the Ābeļi Community Hall (Aldaunes Street 13, Brodi, Ābeļi Parish, Jēkabpils Municipality).

In the beautiful wooded area of Ābeļi Parish lies the birthplace of the poet Jānis Akuraters (1876–1937), the house “Jaunzemji”. Therefore, each year the locals organize events dedicated to Jānis Akuraters' birthday on January 13, as well as celebrating his creative legacy during Poetry Days. This year, the event is organized by the Ābeļi Library of Jēkabpils Municipality together with the Jānis Akuraters Museum.

The event will feature two short films created by the Jānis Akuraters Museum this spring – “Mother's Wedding” and “The Cherry Tree”. Both films are directed by Aldis Šēnbergs and Ināra Čakste.

The short film “Mother's Wedding” is based on an unpublished manuscript by Jānis Akuraters, preserved in the collection of the Latvian National Museum of Literature and Music (LNRMM). In it, the poet has recorded stories about his parents' wedding. Jānis Akuraters' father, Juris Akuraters (1842–1922), was a forest ranger. He married Dārta Spuļģe (1851–1926) from the “Spuldzenieki” house. The wedding took place on February 11, 1872, in the Birži Church.

The script for the other short film “The Cherry Tree” is based on one of the last writings by Jānis Akuraters, published in the spring of 1937, bearing the same title. In it, the writer tells about his grandfather and his special, mighty cherry tree.

The event will also feature readings of Jānis Akuraters' poetry and correspondence with his parents. These letters, preserved in the LNRMM, reveal both the mutual care among family members and serve as a testimony to the harsh era they lived through, with refugee experiences during World War I and the subsequent return to their destroyed homes, where they had to rebuild from scratch, initially living in a dugout.

The event will be attended by the director of the Jānis Akuraters Museum, Maira Valtere, and museum specialist and poet Aivars Eipurs.

On January 13, 2026, it will be Jānis Akuraters' 150th anniversary. This year's Poetry Day event in Ābeļi will serve as an introduction to this occasion.