It was the Spring of 2000, and I was an ambitious sophomore at Georgia Southern University. I had survived my overwhelming and exciting freshman year, and I needed to find something to do in my spare time when I was not studying. I was eager to find an organization to be a part of… something or some place where I could socialize, meet new people, have a good time.
A friend and co-worker invited me to go to Esoterica, an open mic, spoken word event that was being held at the Jazz Club every first Wednesday of the month. Of course I agreed. What I witnessed and experienced that evening changed my life forever. I was mesmerized by the urban, smooth sounds of the various poets that blessed the mic. The whole atmosphere was intoxicating with the jazz music, the candles, the laid back lounge vibe. It was at that moment that I knew that I had to be a part of this experience.
Two of my close work associates were also into the spoken word. I will call them Z and L. Z was this neo-soul, beautiful, free spirited sista who I hit it off with from the very first time we met. I can say the same for L. We started writing and perfecting our craft and we eventually became the best of friends. It took us a while until we were comfortable enough to share our thoughts with the Esoterica audience, because compared to the really good poets, our stuff was garbage. But we listened and we learned… and eventually we began to slay the audience with our brilliant rhetoric and we soon chose to become “The Poetic Prophets”.
Those were some of the best experiences of my life. The moments that were shared, the mics that were blessed, the spirits we touched… And the bond of our friendship… which is still tight, and will never be broken… even though we are miles away from each other, we are still the best of friends and will always be there for each other.
Keep writing… Keep dreaming… Keep existing my Poetic Prophets. You inspired and continue to inspire me and empower me, and I love you.
The next few posts will be some of my spoken word. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have enjoyed writing and performing them.
James
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