April was a tough one for me. On my other website, The Backwords Writer, you’ll find posts about trigeminal neuralgia, a chronic illness I’ve had for most of my life. In late March, a nerve pain flare-up began, and I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to participate in National Poetry Month. Fortunately, though, I managed to take part in the events, and everything went well.
April 15 was my first time participating in a poetry panel. The panel took place at St. Augustine Poet Fest. It was a wonderful opportunity.
On April 22 I joined fellow FIU Gulf Stream literary magazine editors at Books & Books in Coral Gables for a “Meet a Poet” event. I am honored to have served as poetry editor for Gulf Stream for the past year. This event was part of O, Miami’s poetry month events. Of course, I brought my favorite typewriter, a Remington Portable.
Additionally, for National Library Week at the end of the month, I presented on the history of North Palm Beach Library as part of an event for Overdue in Paradise: The Library History of Palm Beach County, an anthology I contributed to that was published in 2017.
And finally, to top off a fabulous National Poetry Month, I was given the FIU Academy of American Poets Award at a Writers on the Bay event on campus.
I had a hard time getting through the pain this month, but I am ever so grateful for these opportunities to meet other writers, experience the world, and make new friends.