Latinx Low IQ Haiku
Take back your language
and give us our unmourned tongues
more precious than gold.
– dimitrireyespoet.com
Hey MVP’s, this blog will be brief and less informal than my usual semi-informal blogs. I just wanted to share my happiness with whoever was reading this because this passed month I had a breakthrough with my poetry.
To make you aware of the importance of a breakthrough, it’s important to the artist because this means that they’re improving! For any artisan that is in constant conversation with their craft, they should always be listening to themselves and learning from the world around them because that’s what allows them to continue advancing their skill set. This is easier said than done since creating itself isn’t linear, and this is more so with poetry as we are artists of words, so we can’t witness ourselves perfecting the way we work the way a painter can detect their progress in texture or perspective. Well, we can, but that takes a lot of metacognitive work and stepping away from the page in a way that’s hard for me to, as I sometimes hold myself too close to my work.
But anyway, yes, the breakthrough! My partner is an absolute DOLL with the way she supports me and wants me to be the best literary advocate I can be. In turn, she is also one step away from dressing me up in a toddler dress and tiara. SHE’S TOUGH! An artist herself, we often participate in one another’s artistic passions which would include reading poetry. She’s really into the performance side of poetry, particularly the heart displayed by the performers. I’ve had the chance to learn and be associated with one of the best as well, a Mr. reg e gaines. If you don’t know his work you can look at this video below.
His style is built upon many things, but one part of his poetry philosophy hits hard and I heard it in his workshop and from another poet who had studied under him. It’s the concept of knowing your poems by heart and this was the breakthrough!
Making it a secondary point to be able to recite my poem on cue without a paper has been on my to-do, but I blame a busy schedule and a lack of serious planning for not making recitation a priority. Regardless, there are a few poems I favor at every reading and little by little I’ve been able to spit several stanzas without having to look at my paper.
The video below takes place at a show I was hosting during the Newark Arts Festival. During the show, hosts sometimes recite poems and get the crowd to participate in order to shake off the cobwebs at different points throughout the set. This was what I was planning to do when all of a sudden– unplanned– I felt like I had one poem in the pocket and I began reciting it without ever skipping a beat. It was invigorating and gave me confidence to practice training my memory.
This is bringing my work to a whole different level and I look forward to how I can implement this newfound skill at venues and online.
Teespring
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