BRAVE STAR
singing like a slow scent beneath the sunArchive for January, 2008
192.
i have a lil downtime at work right now, so i’m chillin with my girl esthero in my ears. love this song:
191.
tonite, thanks to a lil thing called student discount, i saw chapel/chapter by the bill t. jones/ arnie zane dance company. i’m always nervous about dance performances but this was awesome. here’s a lil preview:
190.
toni morrison endorses obama:
Dear Senator Obama,
This letter represents a first for me–a public endorsement of a Presidential candidate. I feel driven to let you know why I am writing it. One reason is it may help gather other supporters; another is that this is one of those singular
moments that nations ignore at their peril. I will not rehearse the multiple crises facing us, but of one thing I am certain: this opportunity for a national evolution (even revolution) will not come again soon, and I am convinced you are the person to capture it.
May I describe to you my thoughts?
I have admired Senator Clinton for years. Her knowledge always seemed to me exhaustive; her negotiation of politics expert. However I am more compelled by the quality of mind (as far as I can measure it) of a candidate. I cared little for her gender as a source of my admiration, and the little I did care was based on the fact that no liberal woman has ever ruled in America. Only conservative or “new-centrist” ones are allowed into that realm. Nor do I care very much for your race[s]. I would not support you if that was all you had to offer or because it might make me “proud.”
In thinking carefully about the strengths of the candidates, I stunned myself when I came to the following conclusion: that in addition to keen intelligence, integrity and a rare authenticity, you exhibit something that has nothing to do
with age, experience, race or gender and something I don’t see in other candidates. That something is a creative imagination which coupled with brilliance equals wisdom. It is too bad if we associate it only with gray hair and old age. Or if we call searing vision naivete. Or if we believe cunning is insight. Or if we settle for finessing cures tailored for each ravaged tree in the forest while ignoring the poisonous landscape that feeds and surrounds it.
Wisdom is a gift; you can’t train for it, inherit it, learn it in a class, or earn it in the workplace–that access can foster the acquisition of knowledge, but not wisdom.
When, I wondered, was the last time this country was guided by such a leader? Someone whose moral center was un-embargoed? Someone with courage instead of mere ambition? Someone who truly thinks of his country’s citizens as “we,” not
“they”? Someone who understands what it will take to help America realize the virtues it fancies about itself, what it desperately needs to become in the world?
Our future is ripe, outrageously rich in its possibilities. Yet unleashing the glory of that future will require a difficult labor, and some may be so frightened of its birth they will refuse to abandon their nostalgia for the womb.
There have been a few prescient leaders in our past, but you are the man for this time.
Good luck to you and to us.
Toni Morrison
189.
despite the rain i was happy for most of the day. i had my second poetry class with prof. morris and practically emerged floating. i love what poetry does to my spirit. i shared my poem “elegy after the flood” and got to hear and comment on everyone else’s work. there are some poets in my class who are just mind-blowing. it’s lovely.
this evening, chauncy and i checked out the new vietnam café in west philly. i had veggie spring rolls and a delish plate of broken rice with shrimp. over dinner we were entertained by a group of older women discussing hilary and obama. what really struck me were the distinctions between the Obama supporters, who were openly endorsing him, and the Hilary supporters who bit their tongues a bit more about who they’d be voting for…let me say that these were white women. maybe that doesn’t mean too much, but it was just interesting that some of them felt more comfortable expressing their support for one candidate over the other. it is not too often that i get to overhear such a conversation.
i also had a revelation at the end of dinner: the reason why i am not dating anyone right now may have something to do with the fact that i have created a completely comfortable, satisfying single life for myself, where my date time is replaced with girl dates with my homies–such as dinner tonite with chauncy and the bill t. jones show we are seeing tomorrow. hah. i actually never even thought about it like that until i realized that the people sitting next to us at dinner thought that chauncy and i were a couple. yes, my life is funny like that.
well, i have oodles of hw to do now…
peace y’all
187.
me. oh. my. i really don’t know what i’ve been up to this last week. i mean, classes are back in action. so maybe i just feel a lot busier all of a sudden. and i’ve been spending a fair amount of time out of the house, which has been good and bad i guess. i’m feeling a little worn out. like i’ll have a cold in a few days, if i don’t get some rest, eat properly, and drink some water. i feel like i had way too many other drinks this weekend…but yeah, i suppose i’ve been working as hard as i’ve been playing. we had our first brave star workshop on saturday. some of the mentees didn’t show up which was disappointing, but the girls that did come, were wonderful. my mentee wasn’t there, so i was little jealous that the other mentors got to spend time with their partners. but hey, such is life. shows i need figure out a more reliable form of transportation for next time (something i didn’t think about at all.) but yeah our session was great. we did a collective sound poem, did interviews, wrote letters to ourselves about our goals, and did a rainy day exercise, where i played my thunderstorm soundtrack for 10 minutes. it was lovely. the girls are so enthusiastic and full of energy. i met them all before, but i was a little nervous about having to lead the whole thing, but after two and a half hours, i came out of the classroom filled to the seams with joy and relief. it feels great to watch my dream unfold and to have other people who are supporting me, and who want to participate. ah! even writing about it now makes me feel giddy…
in other news, i have failed once again to take a day trip to new york. i’m really trying to catch kara walker’s exhibit at the whitney, but was way too tired/lazy to make the trek today. instead chauncy and i went to brunch in northern liberties, to a place called north 3rd. it was delicious. contrary to my brief pondering of veganism, i had a spinach, provolone and sausage omelet and a tasty bloody mary. yum. brunch just might be my favorite meal…i’m still gonna try to eat more vegan food, but there are some things i’m just not ready to let go of quite yet.
hmm. that’s enough blabbering for now. nighty-night.
a
186.
so, i’ve been thinking…my birthday will be here next sunday. i’ll be 21. i should do something. i mean, of course, i’ll be celebrating with my homegirls all weekend. but i want to do something else to mark this year. i was thinking of finally getting my shen tattoo. i’ve been putting it off for three years. its really small but i’m a punk. but that actually wasn’t the big thing i had in mind. i’m thinking of going vegan. or maybe semi-vegan. i’ve been vegetarian off and on for years, but i need to take this slow. i need to wean myself off of cheese, or at least figure out my vegan cheese options before i commit myself to this sraight vegan project. but yeah, i’m ebaying several birthday presents for myself. these include a juicer, a sewing machine, and some cute vintage shoes. i feel special. like i’m upgrading myself. i really hate shopping. really really. but sometimes it’s fun to treat myself. so yeah, i’m feeling good…
185.
AH! so i just got out of my class with tracie morris where i was too geeked up to even communicate properly, but if that wasn’t enough, i go check my e-mail afterward and i find a note from SUHEIR HAMMAD. yes.
i wrote to suheir a year ago to invite her to perform at Penn, figured that my e-mail got lost in the shuffle, and pretty much forgot about it til today.
she writes:
dear aichlee
i hope you are in good health and strong light. many moons ago you took the time to send a kind note with supportive words, and i’ve held onto it all this time in order to thank you for your reach out. sorry i didn’t get a chance to visit you at upenn, but thanks so much for thinking of my work. appreciated. mucho.
as you can tell, i’m not the best at keeping up with sites or mail, but hope to put up new stuff within the season, so check back to site when you can. but most importantly, thank you for the company along the road working towards peace and justice.
be safe and in toca.
one
s
=) that made my day.
some suheir for you:
184.
so, i’m really starting the semester off right– staying up late and not doing homework despite that fact that i have class tommorrow…i can’t sleep.
i’m feeling anxious but i’m not quite sure why. well anxiety is not quite the word. i am sensing that something is about to happen. something big. but i can’t put my finger on it. whatever it is that is making me feel uneasy and excited. maybe it’s just the fact that tommorrow is coming. and after that comes another day. and that one of these days something is bound to happen…i don’t know. i feel like i have things to look forward to. i’m just eager, i guess, and ready. ready for something new and completely different. i’m feeling adventurous and rejuvenated.
183.
“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”
-MLK Jr.
Hope you all are still moving towards your dreams…
