Upcycle It!

Every new year, I see a chance to make some commitments to living a better life that come in the form of resolutions. A chance to say to myself: How do I improve the life I’m currently living? More often than not, my New Year’s resolutions have focused primarily on personal improvements- working out more, eating a little less cheese and chocolate, reading more books, completing that unfinished painting, etc. But this year I’m determined to reimagine my resolutions, reflecting on and improving upon not only myself but also on the community I’m a part of.

In my quest to find ways to improve the community, I’ve had Sustain Dane to thank for giving me a helpful push toward understanding that making a difference means getting involved on a variety of levels. I began to understand that if I wanted to “improve my community” I’d need to connect with my community. As my elementary school librarian once told me, “Start by reading books before attempting to write them.” I believe that was a message beyond book writing that is easily extended to many aspects of life and learning. It also provides a perfect introduction to the beginning of my new year’s involvement resolutions in the form of a community experience I chose for January: an event at Pinney Library called Upcycle It! Recycled Book Crafts.

Pinney Library is located on the Cottage Grove Road, near where it meets up with Atwood Avenue. It is set back from the street in a little strip mall. Although the space may seem small, there are plenty of chances to get lost in a book while you’re there. However, my visit was a bit of an unusual one. I wasn’t reading books at the library, I was reimagining the book form entirely as I learned how to repurpose it in all sorts of neat ways: pretty old book page paper flowers, many folded pages forming bookish hedgehogs, books taking their original form as trees, and a mountain of creative ideas beyond that.

In a meeting room in the back of the library there were tables set up with a lot of creative, crafty individuals seated at them. In the full room, I managed to spot at a table and was joined by three younger girls. Two of them folded pages upon pages of a book to eventually form a hedgehog while I worked on accordion folding pages of old books and gluing them together to form flower shapes. One of the library helpers was a girl I went to college with, which made for a wonderful surprise reunion. I laughed at hedgehog jokes made by the librarian and I learned a little about what school is like for a 5th grader these days. We helped each other out as we traded projects and ideas and at the end of two hours that passed in what seemed like five minutes we all had some great folded book projects to take home.

The library is a place I don’t visit nearly enough. Beyond the books (which are worlds within themselves), libraries across town feature films, speakers on all kinds of topics, and great projects. All of these events are free and positively perfect ways to meet new people and connect with the community in a thoughtful and not always-so-quiet space. Plus, librarians are probably some of the smartest and most underestimated group of cool people in town that will always be able to point you in the 'write’ direction.

This post was originally posted on Sustain Dane's Live Forward blog.

Love Poetry for Every Age @ Mystery to Me Bookstore

In recognition of Valentine’s Day, a love poetry reading was held at the Mystery to Me bookstore on Monroe Street. In a quaint meeting space in the back of the bookstore, chairs were unfolded in a semicircle around a raised podium where the readers rested their poetry for recitation.

Those who came to read their love poems were brave souls with true passions for writing. I admired their willingness to bare their feelings to a crowd of mixed associations. Sprinkled among fellow poets from their community poetry group were strangers like myself squeezing into a space too small to accommodate all of the people who had come to listen.
The bulk of the poetry was a showcase of love poems written by a man whose love for his wife, Carol, is deeply profound and romantic. She was transformed into a princess, her house a castle, and her life lived with a noble cause. The scenes he painted with his poetry were drawn directly from a fairy tale come true in the form of this woman.

The author of these poems had asked a woman with a soft, low, buttery voice to read a subset of the Carol-centric poetry. She reminded me of my elementary school librarian as the smooth lulling sounds of syllables rolled off of her tongue. Sitting there in my chair I closed my eyes and flashed back to a time long ago. My flashback took me back to a time where I sat cross-legged on the floor listening to children’s stories, admiring the colorful pictures, and feeling an indescribable comfort every time the pages crinkled as they were turned.
Between readings centered on Carol, one particular younger poet stood out to me (apart from the man who recited his deepest affections for figs, of course!). The young poet recited his poem in a nearly spoken word type of way. Before I knew it, I had boarded a roller coaster of thrilling, lust-filled passions of his affections for a woman he once knew. The poem began cool and collected and with a crescendo of his voice and the carefully composed compilation of words, it grew intense, peaking with a shout and then plummeting into complete silence. A silence so perfectly positioned in time and duration. And then just as the poem began, it ended in a cool low collected composure.

I wondered as I listened if after this session I’d ever be able to see a romantic gesture or perform one the same ever again. I may not be as prolific a writer as the poets at the reading but I know when I am touched by the words of others. This Valentine’s Day, for me, became a reminder to rediscover my love for poetry and deep appreciation for writers who share their work. 

This post was originally posted on Sustain Dane's Live Forward blog.