Poetry is a medium that can do many things but the most important is to communicate emotions and feelings to allow us for even a brief moment to be in another person’s skin.  Anastacia-Renée new book of poems Side Notes from the Archivist does just that in a very powerful way.  While there are some things I might have in common with the author like trying to be your authentic self when the world seems to be against it there are many ways we are different but I feel her life when I read her words and they speak of  her youth, her culture, her religion  all in a manner that is new and unique but readily understandable.  I am so glad that I was given the opportunity to read her book. It is a must check out for anyone from a marginalized community and probably even more so for those who don’t.

I love the whole book but one of my favorites passages is this

when the house is asleep 

                i write my will 

               & all my letters

put them in a place 

someone will find 

tell people all is well 

because haven’t we 

survived everything 

Isn’t pandemic

just a  long sterile word for 

history

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