When I taught high school creative writing in Detroit, one of the poems that my students liked most was Khalil Gibran's famous verse, "A Tear and a Smile."
I would not exchange the sorrows of my heart
For the joys of the multitude.
And I would not have the tears that sadness makes
To flow from my every part turn into laughter.
I would that my life remain a tear and a smile.
A tear to purify my heart and give me understanding
Of life's secrets and hidden things.
A smile to draw me nigh to the sons of my kind and
To be a symbol of my glorification of the gods.
A tear to unite me with those of broken heart;
A smile to be a sign of my joy in existence.
For a long time, I have felt called and compelled to gather my musings about African American children's and young adult literature in particular, and my chosen fields of language and literature in general, in one place. For a long time, I was stumped about what the name of such a blog should be. I thought through all of my favorite quotes from African American childlit and YA lit, and came up short.
Then I remembered Gibran's poem, and thought that it was appropriate. The African American story is, so to speak, both a tear and a smile. One of my Wayne State University professors, Bill Harris, reminded me of this when I attended a talk for his wonderful new book, Birth of a Notion: Or, The Half Ain't Been Told this fall. Through all the horror, there has always been hope. Through all the tragedy, comedy. This is not to trivialize our experiences; rather, it is to celebrate our resilience.
As one of my favorite children's and young adult literature authors, Virginia Hamilton, once observed: "I call myself a writer, as I have since my college days. Not a children's book writer, not a woman writer, not an American writer, not a black writer. Not a black American woman children's writer. But a writer." Hamilton is exactly right. We write, think, and live in and through our identities, but our experiences are wonderfully, "beautifully human" (Jill Scott). Since we are all human, our stories and self-representations have the power and potential to speak to all people.
My chief preoccupations these days intersect with all areas of my life: Detroit, Black America, social justice, children's and young adult literature, literacy teaching, and English education. I expect that my postings here will focus on these areas. Although I won't be able to update every single day (after all, I'm on the tenure track!) I hope that those interested in these issues and other matters various and sundry will engage in the dance of this virtual venue. Let me know if you have a blog that you'd like for me to link; also, if you have technical skills that can dress this place up, I'd greatly appreciate it.
May your life ever remain a "tear and a smile." More soon.
