AFRICAN CARIBBEAN POETRY HONOURING

 POETRY IN THE PARK

AFRICAN CARIBBEAN POETRY HONOURING 

On a sun kissed saturday afternoon,

in the green tree lined surrounds

of Spinney Hill Park,

we gathered around.

As children played,

and people went about their days.

To remember, to share,

to let the words and music

of the heart

fill the summer air.

 

Technical difficulties meant

there was no mic. But no fear

that never stopped

the rhymes, rhythms

and memories sweeping

through the atmosphere.

 

Hearts aligned,

we heard stories of ancestry,

honouring those that set the path,

such as Jean Binta Breeze,

Oscar Frank

and so many others

we have lost along the way.

They live on

in the words on the winds,

the green grass,

the air that we breathe.

 

Taking the theoretical mic

we had Carolyn Turner,

giving a heartfelt look at her ancestors,

a dive through her family tree.

We saw Bobba Cass, Harmony, Jasia, Lydia Towsey.

Tyrone Haughton, Carol Leeming, and many more,

each sharing special memories,

 moments of poetry that lift you,

as only poetry can do.

Touching on the subject of roots,

giving us a different lens

to view the world through.

Everyone's story unique,

filled with history

and given a beautiful embrace

like the roots of a tree, entangled,

we all find connections

and ways to expand, evolve

and move forward, growing new saplings

whilst never forgetting the past.

 

A big thank you

to Kamisha Hawkins

for putting on this annual event,

in such a beautiful place,

on such a fine summers day.

A truly fitting memorial.

 

 

Please support local poetry/writers groups etc,

and help us to keep sharing our art and passion.

Peace, Love and Poetry

Kyle