Poem for the Hollabacks--love you all very much!

I spent the last 6 Fridays of my summer facilitating writing workshops for the Mural Arts Program's Big Picture Summer Camp at the Wissahickon Charter School site, working with kids ages 8-14. I fell in love with these kids the very first day. Every week they made me laugh and smile, cheer and clap. I'm going to miss them all so much.

I wrote a poem for them. They wanted it to rhyme; I wanted to give each his/her own spotlight in the piece. Hope yall enjoy it.

Special thanks to Lisa, Rodney, Erin, Sebastian, and Lindo for all your support and hard work. Most of all, much love to the Wissahickon Hollaback crew.

Peace and poetry,
Michelle


Walk a Mile in My Shoes:
For the Wissahickon Hollabacks, Summer 2009
By Michelle Myers

Envision a walk-a-mile-in-my shoes mission
and listen to how on that first day I almost went missin’
searchin’ for the Big Picture in Wissahickon—
and I’m admittin’ I was distracted by my conditions—
cars zippin’ and hissin’—
so I wasn’t fixin’ on the little details like
sweet lemon sun drops a’glistenin’
from the mosaic mural garden,
but once I did, I knew I wasn’t far then,
went in to get the workshop started
but to love these kids so fast was sumpin I hadn’t bargained.
Beggin’ your pardon, I didn’t know my spirit was starvin’
to hear your laughter
as you became real superheroes each week, chapter-by-chapter,
and even when all the boys were whinin’, “Do we really hafta?”
I knew I could win you back by letting you role play as
the dopest MC’s and rappers on this side of Philly
and, yes, I really did love it how yall acted so silly
telling me your goofy stories so you could hear me say, “Really?”
And, really, it was OK for Zyon to try-n razz on my poetry lines—
“I drink oop. It makes me wanna poop”—
although his lines were clear proof that some rhymes
are just dookie you need to scoop.
And speakin’ of dookie, Matthew,
I really wouldn’t put it past you
to spread dookie galore and dare everybody to match you
then make sure they couldn’t catch you
as you jumped aboard that “Bang bang choo choo train”
to show us all your “dookie stain.”
But while the boys had dookie on the brain,
the girls went all in wit the poetry and really stepped up the game.
From your super powers to your superhero names,
each week you did somethin’ that made me so glad that I came.
From Addie’s excited whispers about her superhero sisters—
Gosh, I’m really gonna miss her—to Maya and Tyler,
true best friends supporting each other to reach higher and higher
and Joy’s sun poem caught fire as her words shined
bright and beautiful from the pages of her journal—
my hope is that you all take one kernel
of fun and love from this summer to help you fly over any hurdles.
Remember, it’s your world from your own imaginations uncurled
beautiful as a girl with a pearl in the clapping palms of dancing Charletta—
betta try not to be enamored by her stomp stomp clamor
just try to capture her glamour quick with a Minolta camera
while Nate gets his jam on doing “Billie Jean” like Michael Jackson
and it’s a fact, son, that Catherine sees beauty person-to-person
celebrating color-full-boldness b/c we ALL want happiness, she told us.
And not mindin’ the coldness
Nasim, I noticed, wants to explore the arctic and other areas uncharted.
I admire his adventurous spirit and for being brave-hearted—
not just a man in the making but already started.
And Anwar, at first, seemed to be guarded but
get him talkin’ ‘bout his comic book hero who wages battle in the shadow
-n- all his ideas shoot from out his mouth so fast you think you can hear his tongue rattle.
Then, Keenan, one week wanted to rabble-
rouse so proud he had found a way to kill off his superhero
even after I had raised my brows and said,
“Killin’ superheroes just ain’t allowed.”
And not to be left out of the crowd,
Montrel without fail cast a magic spell with his warm smile
Every time his love for fast cars he’d show-n-tell.
And it was so crazy when Micah’s ice cream snatcher broke outta jail—
Good thing he could shape shift into a big ol’ bear.
As you can hear, for these kids I really do care
and want to tell yall with fondness a promise made by Thomas
to stop all this nonsense destroying his neighborhood calmness—
from violence to empty buildings—no, he wants not this
but peace in the world and I’m so inspired for real
that I feel the need to appeal to the sun
as it rises like a vision over Wissahickon
to light the way towards fulfillin’ our walk-a-mile-in-my-shoes mission.
Thank you to Erin, Lindo, Sebastian, and the Hollaback crew and
as I say good-bye I want you to listen:
Whether you walk a mile single file or in style,
Always make sure you do it with a bright, sun-shiny smile. :-)


I love you!