Here is the candid fun group shot of the workshop group.
The W stands for what you want it to: word, warriors, whatever, witness, writing, workin’ but for the faculty reading the night before it stood for Willie as all the workshoppers (cept for me, I had a reading at la Peña) and about 60 high school kids thru the W in the air for the man who kept the discussion movin when it came to responsibility in our chosen art, eliminating the spare parts in our poems, releasing the music in our language and trusting our voices.
In the practical department: I got three first drafts workin’ and an idea for maybe two more poems that will let us hear the sounds in the street and little bits of God in Anywhere Ave.
In the Its-About-Me department: I got to have a one-on-one talk with a poetic hero and ended up talkin pana-a-pana, two jibaros talkin life/fam/work over lunch and all that has me walkin away feelin like I’m gettin closer to the big story I want to tell.
In the Its-About-Him department: I also feel like I want to write more to that little nerd kid living in the Bronx, with all this craziness happening right outisde his door, but all he wants to do is read a book so he can do good in school and makes his mom and dad proud cuz if he ever got caught up in some shit his dad would kick his ass and his mom would cry (or the other way around) which isnt to say he really wants to get mixed up in dirt cuz hes too chicken shit to run with the tough boys and too street to hang with the nerds and that kid wherever he is is looking for a book that will speak to that.
Palabra.
More pics here
dear oscar,
i like your blog–thank you for sharing your process. interestingly, i think i’d been here before vona. what an amazing week we’ve had.
olufunke: thanks for the props on the blog. and many more thanks for sharing your story and work with everyone this last week. it was an honor sharing the space with everyone.