I should have written this post last week. Okay, really the
week before last. But I didn’t. Life Crap got in the way. Let me explain: Life
Crap should in no way be confused with Life Nuggets. They are cousins. Quite
distant cousins. Not in a good, cute Cousin Oliver from The Brady Bunch kind of way, but in the Fifth Cousin Once-Removed
That You Don’t Even Friend on Facebook kind of way. —
Every parent I know is familiar with Life Crap. Mine usually
come in a heap. Often, a few heaps. At one time. Full of worries, work woes,
small missing yellow kitty shoes, stress, weird-looking stuff growing on sippy
cups and more. So, yeah, the Heaps of Life Crap arrived, and I put off writing
this post.
But this post, today, now, this post needs to be passed
along.
Let me introduce you to The Community-Word Project.
The Community-Word Project, meet everyone.
Everyone, meet The Community-Word Project.
I am newish friends with The Community-Word Project. I had
not a clue what it was until Aidan Donnelley Rowley, one of my good friends (and a fabulous writer and mama of three little gals, one
of which is a BBF of my kiddo), mentioned it to me.
We were sitting in her kitchen as our daughters rehearsed
and then performed a show about a cat and a monster and some sort of magic tuna
fish named Harry (in three acts). When the finale came, Aidan
told me about this organization she was getting more involved with…my words
can’t describe it as well as those from their website can:
“The
Community-Word Project (CWP) is a New York City based arts-in-education
organization that inspires children in underserved communities to read,
interpret and respond to their world and to become active citizens through
collaborative arts residencies and teacher training programs.”
What does this mean? It means some fantastic teachers are
helping kids, right here in our city, who don’t currently have art in their life get art. It
means kids who have never held a paintbrush or made up a story (with or without
magic tuna fish) are exposed to the worlds of painting, of music, of words, of
expression–all because of the work The Community-Word Project does.
Big stuff, right? Check out one of the poems a child from The
Community-Word Project wrote:
There are more poems on the site. And murals. And tons of other info. The coolest thing: you can see this great
organization in action this Monday,
April 2 at 6:30. It’s their 12th Annual Benefit at Bonham’s (you can buy your
tickets here). There will be
food, vino and performances by some heavy-hitters like Broadway star Cheyenne
Jackson and Brooklyn Poet Laureate Tina Chang, and the heaviest hitters of all:
the kids.
And the night is called, quite appropriately, Writing Our
Future. Aidan wrote recently on her blog about the kids’ poems:
“Read them. Let the
words and hopes and fears sink into your skin. Realize. Realize how much you
have, sitting and staring at your computer screen, wherever it is you are.
Realize how much your kids have. Feel your good fortune. And think about
helping out.”
Yeah. It hits me, too.
She’s right.
Dang.
Double dang.
After I read her post, I sat my tush down and wrote this
post. Amazing thing, “this helping out” thing. Somehow, I feel as though,
today, The Community-Word Project helped me a bit more than I have them.
Sure, I’m spreading the word about a good thing, but
remember my Heaps of Life Crap?
They are smaller. Much, much smaller.
And I don’t think it had anything to do with magic, the tuna
fish variety or otherwise.
Please consider making
it a night out next Monday and joining the festivities to support Community-Word
Project. I’ll be there. Or donate or bookmark their site and see how you can
help in the future.
When not blogging for CafeMom,
working (ohsoslowly) on her book, or writing for New York Family,
Heather Chaet documents moments of motherhood, the little successes and
the epic fails here — and on Twitter (@heatherchaet).
