UPDATED: April 3, 2019 at 9:15 p.m.

Thanks to T.S. Eliot’s poem “The Waste Land,” April has been notoriously known as the “cruelest month of the year.” But his infamous words have also given April another title: National Poetry Month. To begin the month-long celebration of poetry on campus, here are three student poets who have found themselves through the power of words.  

While some of the students  admire famous poets and slam poets such as Sylvia Plath and Sarah Kay, each of them have found their own voice and told their own stories with poetry as their guiding medium.  

Growing up the Philippines, Lianza Reyes would often visit her friends’ ancestral home, a house that has been passed down in a family through generations. Usually, this home served as the go-to for family events — but more importantly, it became a piece of family history and heritage. While growing up, Reyes’ family did not have an ancestral home of their own. So, Reyes decided to build one out of poetry. 

Earlier this year, Reyes self-published an audio book titled, “Ancestral Home,” which explores themes of self-love, anxiety, depression, self-esteem and PTSD. The 16-track audiobook describes a journey to self-acceptance through her adolescent years. “Ancestral Home” is currently on sale for $8 on Bandcamp, and 10% of the proceeds will go to the Committee to Protect Journalists, a nonprofit organization. The remainder of the profits will partially fund Reyes’ senior year at Syracuse University.  

“There are so many places that I call home, but there is not one significant place that I really saw as the ancestral home that came from my family line,” Reyes said. “The idea was that I had to create my own ancestral home.” 

The junior broadcast and digital journalism major said she first began writing poetry in elementary school as a coping mechanism against school bullies. During high school, poetry became essential to Reyes as she transferred schools and struggled with self-esteem and love throughout her adolescence. At age 17, she compiled all of her writings from age 14 into her first book, “An Inaccurate Self-Portrait.” The self-published book helped fund her first year at SU.  

Last year, Reyes worked as a residential adviser for the former Poets Learning Community. She hosted writing sessions and listened to the work of the 12 students who were part of the residential community.  

Through her experiences, Reyes said she has found inspiration in those around her, adding that she is inspired by the college women that she has met over the years. Despite their varying backgrounds, Reyes admires one thing they all have in common. 

“Despite their difference in identity and despite their vast difference in experience, they always seem to be similar in how they carry themselves. They always seem to want to continue to do their passion no matter what,” she said. “That is my main inspiration in my poetry today and how I carry myself. They’re growing, and they’re inspiring me to grow as well.” 

Danielle Guerrier always found writing to be a solitary activity. But it wasn’t until she found a community of poets at SU that she realized the importance of incorporating others into the process. 

Guerrier is a graduate student in the department of cultural foundations of education in the School of Education at SU. She said that poetry has been a means for her to process the world around her, incorporating themes of race, education and mass incarceration into her work.  

Guerrier attended Cornell University for her undergraduate degree and volunteered in the Cornell Prison Education Program, where she learned about topics such as prison reform, education and re-entry. Through her graduate studies at SU, she is continuing to research and write about prison reform and education within the United States. 

“My poetry is a way for me to process the work that I am doing and the information that I’m learning in regard to this work,” Guerrier said. 

Although she is navigating heavy topics in her writing now, Guerrier began writing early on, describing her middle school writing process as just being between her and the paper. At SU, she is a member of Verbal Blend, a poetry program organized through the Office of Multicultural Affairs. She no longer finds writing to be a solitary activity, instead making it an experience she shares with her peers.  

Verbal Blend, created in 2007, aims to highlight student writing as well as hosting a seven-week writers workshop, open mics and poetry slams. Verbal Blend’s annual “Take the Mic” poetry slam will take place on April 11 in Schine Underground. The slam will also feature Tai Allen, a Brooklyn-based poet and musician. Students will also participate in an open mic at Paine Branch Library on April 29.  

“I think that Verbal Blend offers a community to students and is a place where they can write but write with other people, and share different issues and things that are affecting them in a very personal way,” Guerrier said. “I think that poetry allows students to focus on being vulnerable with each other.” 

Cedric Bolton, coordinator of student engagement in the Office of Multicultural Affairs and founder of Verbal Blend, built that sense of community through poetry over the years. As a slam poet himself, Bolton said he finds that spaces for students on campus to share their work is crucial for the development of young poets.   

“Through the spoken word poetry, you’re building a community,” he said. “Students are trusting the friends that they built in those communities and are also vulnerable to sharing things that they normally wouldn’t tell within a classroom.” 

Guerrier also described the lasting impressions this organization has left on other who came before her. This past year, several alumni of the Verbal Blend program returned to campus to speak with current members. During that time, Guerrier said she felt the support of this poetry community grow.  

“Something that I think about is Verbal Blend’s legacy and the people who have been a part of the program before me,” she said, “And I know there will be a lot of people who will be a part of the program after me. I really appreciate being a part of this family and being a part of this legacy and to see the ways in which poetry has kind of connected all of us.” 

Sophomore Julia Catalano has always admired the people of Washington Square Park who sit alongside park benches and offer up their talents. Last summer, she joined a selected bunch with a simple sign that read: “Ask me for personalized poems.”  

She had begun the summer with plans to perform an original play with a few friends in public spaces such as Washington Square Park. When plans fell through, she found that she wanted to perform in a space near her home in Staten Island. Catalano, a theater management major, realized she could make a pretty decent amount of money off of tips from strangers, and returned to the park multiple times over the summer to pen poems for strangers.  

At first, Catalano’s mother, Deborah, was concerned to have her daughter camp out in Washington Square Park, but later eased into the idea. 

“At first, I was nervous about it because I went to NYU,” Deborah said. “Back in the 80s, it was a little more sketchy. Once I went with her and saw it for myself, I was on board with it.” 

“It helped me hone my craft and really held me accountable to my writing,” Catalano said. “It made me a quicker thinker and less of doubting myself or holding myself back.” 

One poem Catalano remembers writing was about a couple who met on an airplane. They were spending the one-year anniversary of their engagement where the proposal occurred: Washington Square Park. They told Catalano the story of how they met, when the woman was working as a flight attendant on a delayed plane the man was aboard.  

Other times, she would sit by the playground and write poetry about the children she met. With her little pieces of art, she earned about an average of $80 a day.  

 “It was a really healing experience,” Catalano said. “Just being able to give your art to people and share it with people.” 

Deborah remembers Catalano’s knack for writing from a young age.  

“She had clear writing talent since she was very young,” Deborah said. “I remember back in elementary school her teachers would always tell me that she is a very gifted writer.” 

This past semester, Catalano has produced and compiled some of her work into a chapbook, a DIY short book that is common among poets. She is selling the chapbook, titled “The Children” for $5 starting April 20.  

 “I think it is just a good way to process my feelings,” Catalano said. “Whatever is going on, if I can write something that I am proud of about it, it’s good to let it out that way.” 

 Catalano is also a member of Verbal Blend, and said Bolton has been a huge influence on her writing and an important mentor to her in her poetry journey. She also said the space that Verbal Blend has created for poets to share their work has become a fundamental part of her college experience and for others.  

 “I think spoken word poetry is just a really powerful tool to have in your life,” Catalano said. “Writing poetry in general really is so cathartic and lets you take in the world and your experience and have a voice about it.”

CLARIFICATION: In a previous version of this post, the home that Reyes’ family did not have was unclear. They did not have an ancestral home. 

Published on April 3, 2019 at 12:37 am

Contact Amy: abnakamu@syr.edu