April 16 The Kindness Session Returns to Poe Cottage

The Bronx County Historical Society is presenting "The Kindness Session," a free poetry workshop on recognizing the difference between kindness and cruelty to channel that in our writing on Thursday, April 16 at 6 PM till approximately 7:45. The Poetry Workshop takes place at Poe Cottage, 2640 Grand Concourse, in the Bronx. Subways near the Visitors Center are the 4, B, and D train at the Kingsbridge stop. Buses to the Center are Bx9, Bx22, Bx28, Bx38, and BxM4 (Express bus). The Poe Visitors Center is up the Hill from the Fordham Metro North train stop. 

Led by area poet Anne Leighton, the Kindness Session will include sharing works from classic and contemporary writers including Edgar Allan Poe, Naomi Shihab Nye, the Bronx’s Peppy Castro, Charlie Iris, Mary Oliver, John Masefield, Emily Dickinson, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, as well as selected poems from attendees.

 

Once the attendees discuss poems, they’ll be encouraged to think of incidents where they recognize kindness from life experiences, friends and acquaintances, and how it affected their lives. From there, writers will be encouraged to create a first draft of poetry. Writers will read their poems, and be encouraged to revise the poem in the days, weeks, or months to come.  

 

Anne Leighton appears on the Grammy-nominated album, “Healthy Food for Thought: Good Enough to Eat,” (Audio & Video Labs) reading her poem “Feed Your Parents Well.” She’s contributed to The Indie Collaborative, The Literary Parrot, and Elephant Journal. Her poetry book “The Leighton Explosion” made enough of a profit to use her earnings to record an original song, “Got My Eye on You, Santa,” which found her a publishing deal with Sheer Music South Africa/Downtown Music, USA. Anne's performed in the Bronx at ART in the Basin, Johnny Zs, and throughout New York State including NYC's Nuyorican Poets Cafe and Peter Max's Studio. Visit workinggalrockandroll.blogspot.com.

 

For more information, please reach out to Anne at LeightonMedia@aol.com. 

BCHS Home bronxhistoricalsociety.org

 

workinggalrockandroll.blogspot.com/2024/10/bronx-historical-society-presents.html

Roger That

(Directive Affirmative!)

 

Inclusion

I reached out to the wrong person

and had to make a transition

to find humanity

a friend for my poetry

at Poe Cottage

 

He listened

first to my friend the musician

then to my never ending

idea of connecting

to create a night of poetry

at Poe Cottage 

 

He’s written

stories about our community

and organized its history

including some teaching

manifesting our right to write

at Poe Cottage

 

He waited

for the people that journeyed

to a wrong location

and directed them here

walking them to Poe Cottage

To write poetry

 

I’m thankful

He listened and gave me

this new beginning

it’s about education

gracing kindness at Poe Cottage

in our poetry.

 

-2024