(Welcome to the past.
We're gettin' old.)
May 25, 2008
It's a day after the most
amazing experience of my life. The night my son was born was beautiful. I
only know this after the fact because I was inside for at least 18 hours
waiting for the moment he would arrive. My father-in-law took a picture of
the sky, and I can truly say that it was striking.
But
the sky that night could in no way be as inspiring as the moment I watched
my wife Amy give birth. Even though I didn't personally experience the
agony, I can easily say that women are amazing. And it is awe-inspiring
for me to realize that something so almost "super-human" is actually just
a part of nature. The moment his head came out and his body followed, I
couldn't think of a single word. I cried, as if out of instinct. Sure, I'm
a wimp. And maybe I did cry during the first five minutes of Happy Feet.
But when I cried on the morning of May 24th, it was unlike any other
emotional release I had ever experienced.
I have always loved
things. I have truly loved people and continue to truly love my students.
But the love for this baby is something new. It's overwhelming, beautiful,
truly petrifying and unbelievably good. Here he is. The light at the end
of my tunnel.
There are already a few poems I've done for Ethan
before his birth. But I'm sure there will be even more to come now that he
has held my hand and sneezed in my face. No other person in the world has
made me feel like such a deserving person. I never knew I could ever be a
part of something so good. Thank you, Ethan, for being the one to show
me.
May 16, 2008
Wow.
Slamapalooza was more than I expected it to be. With about 700 people in the audience, I felt honored and inspired by the energy of the crowd. Everyone felt it.
The students are truly amazing. Every one. Every last one. There is nothing like reaching people, reaching people who actually crave so much to be reached, given a voice, valued, loved, and enjoyed for who they are--for who they truly are. This is not only what students and teens want, but something I know I want and need. No matter how old you are, you are never too old to be reached and given a voice. This is something the students do for me every day. Every day. Something like Slamapalooza is the least I can do to return all they have already done for me.
Gabriel and I simply warmed up the stage before the students took over, all 35 of them. Each voice was distict and proud. And the audience was unlike any other audience. The energy was palpable thoughout the night, even as it went into its third hour. That's right; the event lasted three hours. Unbelievable. And although we did lose some people when we went into over time, many remained to embrace the last 45 minutes of the show.
Props to LOGIC for coming out and supporting the cause. This poet was loved by the students, who spoke about him all day this Friday. LOGIC's voice is one of power and love, and that's something the students truly appreciated at Slamapalooza.
Overall, we raised $2,000 throughout the night for our two charitable causes. This is amazing, considering the fact that this event was free and consisted primarily of students who don't have a whole lot of money to give away. So thank you for valuing family, for valuing love and relationships over self-survival and for coming out to give back to the community.
But I can say with honesty that I am freakin' exhausted. With a total of about 10 hours of sleep this week, I think it's time I get some rest. Maybe I can relive Slamaplooza in a dream.
Oh, and please continue to check back to our site because we will be posting video footage of our Slamaplaooza event rather soon.
Dang. I'm ready for bed, and it's only 8 at night. But yeah, it was more than worth it.
May 11, 2008
While Gabriel continues to run
a workshop for students at Maple Street Middle School, I (this is
Kirk) have been preparing for the upcoming Slamapalooza 2008 event at
Portage Northern High School. It is turning out to be a much larger event
than I had originally anticipated. And this is truly
exciting.
Receiving coverage from all major news
sources in the Kalamazoo area, Slamapalooza is proving to be even bigger
than any other event we have yet organized. We hope to have about 800
people in attendance and aim to raise as much money as we can for an
adopted family through the YWCA and for the WKFR-run "roof sit."
My
students are running it. They have created all the designs, and their
hearts and minds are what's keeping this thing alive. It's inspiring. It's
inspiring to see students who may have never felt much accomplishment
finally feel proud of something they've done--and deserve it. Bravo to
you, my students. You rock, hardcore.
The coolest thing about the
event is that it's free. So come show some love on May 15th, and head on
over to Portage Northern at 7:30pm for a truly memorable evening. I'm
pumped and excited to see what our students and community can do when they
share their voices, hearts and minds.
Check out the Slamapalooza
Facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=11310571447
See
you there!
April 15, 2008
Yes, we’re alive. After the pain of losing our beloved myspace page to hackers, the Kinetic Affect is back and badder than ever with a new site design and goal. Our site is not simply a place for us to share our work, but also a place to build community. We look forward to creating a space for you to become a part of the kinetic affect. And where better to begin than right here, in our new interactive blog.
Sign up, leave us a note, share a story (honestly), and we’ll be back here as often as we can to keep the conversation going.
We are deeply appreciative of all those who continue to support us and the Word Weavers show.
An especially big shout out
goes to Robert Emory for getting our new site up and running. You saved
us.
