Express you. Create us.
I mean– Express yourself as an individual to create us as a community.
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I wish I had some of my stuff from back in the day – stories I wrote in third grade; music I saved on old, lost hard drives; poems I meant to write. I wish I could retrieve it all, because a lot of it I never shared.
These days, I share. I’ve got a poetry Instagram. I'm working on my first poetry book, "The Desk Drawer Chronicles" because for most of my life, they stayed in the desk drawer (so to speak).
When you create and others receive, a connection is formed, built on both self-expression and listening. We can’t build communities without open ears, eyes, mouths, and minds.
Express you — Create us.
I've always been creating. Musically, I write, record, sing, and play bass, trumpet, guitar, piano, and a little bit of drums. In Ithaca, NY, I was in a band called The Müv Grüv. Living back in Jersey, I was one fourth of an NYC hip hop band called The Sadeek Cyty Project. These days I play trumpet with the Foes of Fern and sing songs with my acoustic guitar for select audiences (mostly my beautiful wife and daughter).
My literature is mostly poems with the occasional short story or essay. Some day, I'll publish a novel. Just wait. I’ve got ideas.
Sometimes I create visual art – drawings, painting, and photography. If nothing else, it's a great way to pass time while listening to music.
I believe the arts and creativity, especially in a collective sense, represent an ultimate goal of happiness and community. In a very real way (not only in the abstract) they make the world a better place.