Sonia Sanchez: Belated Birthday Shout Out!

"... in order to be a true revolutionary, you must understand love. Love, sacrifice, and death."

i cry out for the
company of women de
liberate with blood



September 9, 1934
Poet, playwright, activist, educator, lecturer

To say I love Sanchez's work is an understatement. I own more poetry than any other genre and among my collections, I proudly count several volumes of Sanchez. I heard her speak a few times. On one occasion, among the things she said, the one that stood out was about poetry forms. She said,"[poetry] forms won't deform you." Her students were put through a pretty rigorous course of study. They were required to write in twelve different forms during the class. If you know anything about the craft, you know this is pretty challenging.

I am more reader than poet. Yes, at one time I passionately wanted to write and I have a few modest writing credits to my name. Sanchez is one of less than a handful of poets I looked to for guidance and inspiration. From her, I learned to pay close attention to sound and brevity.

Happy Birthday, Ms. Sanchez!
from like the singing coming off the drums. Beacon Press, bluestreak. 1998.

Poetry Friday is a weekly meme. This week is hosted by Elaine at Wild Rose Reader.