Philadelphia 3, or This Is Why I Do It

Edit: Just got this email from one of the participants:

"Just wanted to thank you for sharing your vibrant work with us last evening at Big Blue Marble Bookstore here in Mt. Airy. The content, the narrative, and the style provided a most satisfying meal for the heart and mind. These monthly gatherings are exceptional and well looked forward to - always full of good energy. Thank you for adding to that energy. Thank you, as well, for your attentive appreciation during the open readings."

I just had the best night of my tour so far. My reading at Big Blue Marble Bookstore was a wild success: a room so packed with poetry lovers I had to perform while spinning in circles. Really! I performed poems in the round, trying to make sure no one had to stare at my backside for too long. And they loved it. They had never seen a performance poet before, and were so excited about my energy and style. They bought up my chapbooks, showered me with praise, and told me how I'd inspired their reading (an open mic followed my feature, which had lots of great work.)

Nights like this can leave me flying high for a long, long time. When someone tells me that I've changed the way they see poetry - that's why I do this. Reaching people across generations, across race, class, gender, country - this is what it's all about. I will never forget this reading, this place of such generosity and spirit. Or afterwards, when so many of them came up to tell me what an impact my work made on them. Or after that, when Mo, Rachel, Aliyah and I went out for pizza and toasted the evening. Or this whole magical week in Philly, with its gracious hosts and delicious food.

Tomorrow: Boston!