Wednesday, August 6, 2014

Brown Girl From Boston Lost Files: Ramblings of Cocktail Parties and Urbanology




“You must be unintimidated by your own thoughts because if you write with someone looking over you shoulder, you'll never write.” ― Nikki Giovanni
Besides being a blogger, life coach, social worker, mentor and fill in the blank, I am also a closet spoken word artist. (LOL) Whenever I feel moved to create a spoken word piece, I usually create something that is from my life experience, current events or frustration. Ramblings of Cocktails Parties and Urbanology is a piece that was created from true events. Being a Brown Girl from Boston, leaving Boston at the age of 18 and traveling back and forth to Boston for 13 years, I have experienced my fair share of limited opportunities for people of color, gentrification of the city, and oppression. I decided to write a poem about being at a networking event and  I attended in which I was one of few people of color in attendance and when the liquid courage was served this conversations came about. 
Now, I am no Nikki Giovanni, Amiri Baraka or Langston Hughes but I am Andrea C. Imafidon! I am somebody special in which I have the courage to share with my readers. I also love wordplay and rhymes, hence why I am such a Hip Hop Head and blogger. I can be free with my words and thoughts in my writings. I guess you can say, I love being completely naked and transparent with my thoughts and writings. I remember writing my first poem in middle school entitled, "A Mother and Her Womb". The poem was dedicated to my mother and I's tight knit relationship from conception to the time I wrote that poem and dedicated to her. 
Being the coach that I am, the moral to the blog post is....be you. Be authentic and free, there is no right nor wrong way to be you. If you have a hidden talent, gift or strength don't suppress it. Share it with the world so you can continue to let your light shine! Keep shining!

Ramblings of Cocktail Parties and Urbanology
You see I am the product of the Northern migration, parents first generation out of the Jim Crown era, 
segregated ruins and Black Power brewing mentality.
Boston, historically tried to cover it’s racial ties by allowing people of color opportunities by enforcing 
integration in the F’ed up, all white, all Irish, South Boston, where White Boys had your head rocking 
and rolling if you stepped foot over that Dorchester/South Boston city line.
Now while I was coming up in the 80s, my parents instilled in me great work ethics, being hard 
working is a blessing. Getting the best education and shutdown the rambling of White Americans, 
cocktail party talks.
While drinking scotch on the rocks, mouths half way cocked open, patiently awaiting the next ghetto 
sob story from the collections of their urbanology.
Bob, “which underprivileged Negro did you help out today?” 
While the drinks are flowing and the stories of the ghetto are spoken, mouths and eyes wide opened 
trying to express apathy meanwhile poking fun of the ghetto catastrophe.
We can turn the ghetto catastrophe into a gentrified masterpiece. Tear down projects, drive up the 
cost of the property market.
Change the name of the communities, we don’t want to be stigmatized by the plight of the dark, 
gloomy community.
We must keep our schools and communities free from profanity and impurities.
We created the "Land of the Free", which only applies to those few and in between
People of color you already provided enough browning to our nation.
We can use our White Privilege to bully our way through gentrification.
You should thank us for plowing through and savaging your ghetto heaven.
These are the ramblings of cocktail parties and urbanology. 

by Andrea C. Imafidon

Coaching Question: Do you contemplate about writing but feel your words, thoughts or story isn't good enough? Remember there is no right or wrong way to write. Just write and be free!

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