A Stroll Down Memory Lane

30-30-30 challenge (30 poems from the past 30 years for 30 days)

National Poetry Month is here, and I had this wild idea to record and post a daily video reciting a poem written within the past thirty years. However, I didn’t fully think this through, and during the first couple of days, I experienced difficulties I hadn't anticipated, like not having enough storage space on my phone to pull this off. But as days went by, I gradually decluttered my phone and did not use the setback as an excuse to not move forward with my plan. Instead of panicking or becoming frustrated, I pivoted and managed to keep my word to myself and to anyone who may have been looking forward to me finally sharing my highly coveted content. If there's one thing I've learned from discipline and accountability, it is that the show must go on with grace and maybe even some style.

As a work-from-home Mom with additional roles, tasks, and projects, I don’t have much time in the day to learn and put into practice all the social media technicalities. The goal isn't to go viral or become some sort of social media influencer. The goal is to just SHOW UP without giving it too much thought. I am just trying to challenge myself to get out of my head and into my work. At the very least, I believed I could start creating more Reels on IG or posting more videos on my fifteen-subscriber YouTube channel. But, if you know me, I would much rather hide behind a [video] camera than be in front of it. And as much as I love an [intimate] audience, I don’t feel comfortable promoting myself via videos or Lives. However, I am learning that self-promotion comes with the gig, so I must get with the program or give up. And THAT we will NOT do.

So here I am, taking this GIANT leap in the name of poetry, accountability, and growth.

What I have noticed is that I've loved challenges even when I thought I didn’t. Because if that were the case, as a kid, I wouldn’t have succumbed to the routine and discipline required to be in modeling + ballet + dance shows, purchased gym memberships for fitness classes as a teen, or even pledged a militant sorority in college. Now, however, I love partaking in writing and yoga challenges or any challenge that may or may not have an end date attached to it. I've learned a lot about discipline from sticking to consistent and daily challenges. It finally took off when I started participating in Yoga with Adriene's Thirty-Day New Year's Day Yoga Challenges. At first, showing up everyday sucked, and I wouldn’t follow through. Most times, I dragged my feet, only to quit before reaching the finish line, as I was accustomed to doing when the going got tough.

But then, in 2020, I tried the November Novel Writing Month Thirty-Day writing challenge, also known as NANOWRIMO. I stuck with it the entire month, and while it wasn’t easy, it taught me a lot about the importance of showing up. About staying committed and seeing it all the way through. Not for an external reward but for an inner one. The satisfaction, pride, and joy that comes with proving something to yourself and maybe even to the alleged “haters” that live in your head that push you to greatness, unbeknownst to them.

After “winning” the NANOWRIMO challenge that year, I started taking the yoga challenges (Read about my 500+ days of yoga challenge) and my writing practice more seriously, especially after I started noticing the benefits that come with consistent practice. The benefits that surely arrive when you don't give up. Like a stronger core, a more toned body, a calmer nervous system, or more writing material at your disposal to be used for call-for-submissions or even a manuscript. I’ve learned that there’s power and magic when you say to yourself, “Let's see what happens if I don't give up.” What I've learned is the secret sauce to accomplishing my personal and professional goals. The sauce has been proven to produce results. Hence, why I want to challenge myself by honoring my God-given gift. I want to celebrate and pay respects to the craft that has blessed me with so much. That has given me an outlet and a platform for self-expression. In addition to celebrating National Poetry Month, I also want to celebrate the last couple of months in my thirties and the bittersweetness that comes with the month since April 5th is the day my deceased brother and husband share a birthday.

And while we’re on the topic of birthdays, I was thinking that if your forties are the years when you start giving less f*%$, then I want to get a head start by getting out my dusty journals and sharing those humble little poems I have created and collected along the way. Because at the end of the day, this isn't about me, but about the craft that has lived within me since the first grade, when I read and ultimately memorized the poem, Caracol, from a McMillan/McGraw-Hill reading textbook. It was then that I first fell in love with words that rhymed. I’ve never forgotten the poem, and I recite it to myself every so often.

So, I’m not sure how I’ll pull this off, but stay tuned as I intend to walk you down memory lane and reflect on how I have processed life through poetry these past three decades. I have no idea what I will find, but I am curious. And I am willing to do that publicly, mainly for accountability purposes but also for fun- to shake things up and claim some depth-filled space on this world wide web.

Therefore, if you don’t already follow me on IG please do! (Days 1-5 have already been posted. Go check them out.) You can also check out my very basic YouTube channel and show love by subscribing to the channel.

And let’s see what happens if I don't give up!