DOVER - “Poetry helps people connect to common feelings,” Bachar Samawi, a longtime Dover resident, said when describing his latest venture, “SmileRise,” a short poem inspired by the connections won and lost during the pandemic that he self-published earlier this year. Samawi believes that poetry not only helps people better connect to themselves, but to others, which in turn helps people integrate into their larger community. “SmileRise” is all about connections: connections between people, larger communities, and his connections with the state of Vermont.