ENROLLING NOW AT:
JOIN GINI AND ME!
IMAGINE, CREATE, WRITE AND HAVE FUN!
Tuesday, May 30, 2023
Monday, April 17, 2023
FOR THE EARTH WEEK INSIDE THE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
THE BIG BREAK-UP
Copyright©2019 by Sheryl J. Bize-Boutte
You named me
Mother Earth
And in my last days
I look back and wonder
If you had believed
I was a man
Would you have
Respected me more
Would you have treated me
Like the devoted caregiver
Taken for granted
Thinking I would always be here
Because Mama always got you
Even when you
Slowly and deliberately
Break her heart
💔
I have come to know you
As the indifferent children you are
Greedy and uncaring
Where those among you
With the loudest voice
And the biggest bag of coin
Silence those who want to save me
You shake my core
Producing unnatural fire
My heat does not subside
My tears evaporate
I only imagine I can cry
Gone are my seas
Of clear aqua calm
Debris clouds reflection
Of the exploding stars
Melting in my fever
Freezing in my chill
I am starving
Seeking the sweet breath
That is no longer there
I choke on my dryness
I drown in my wetness
My greens are dust
My browns are mold
I am toxic to life
My rancid smell repels
I cannot control my bowel
💦
As I spill over
into the unknown
and places where
my wardrobe no longer fits
I am naked and alone
Stripped of my riches
As flames rage across my belly
With misplaced rain
Steaming from my head
Poison droplets swipe right
Across my chest
Landing at my center
I give birth sporadically
In strange places
Where some things do not belong
There was an order here
There was a freedom
There was a love
Openings for new beginnings
The portal is closing
My feet are missing
My soul is heavy
Movement is an elusive dream
I have grown tired
I must rest my soul
By leaving you
If enough are left
Who really love me
You may find my hiding places
While the sun continues to reveal
And the moon lights the empty dark
Thursday, April 13, 2023
Monday, April 10, 2023
APRIL IS NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
JOIN US AS WE CELEBRATE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH
WITH
NO POETRY NO PEACE™
FEATURING POETRY READINGS BY
DR. JEANNE POWELL
KARLA BRUNDAGE
SANDRA WASSILLIE
TERRY TIERNEY
AND OF COURSE, YOURS TRULY
THESE POETS ARE ALL HAPPENING AT THE MECHANICS INSTITUTE LIBRARY
ON APRIL 12, 2023 AT 6:00 PM
ZOOM ON IN!
REGISTER HERE: https://www.milibrary.org/events/no-poetry-no-peace-reading-and-celebration-human-expression-and-peace-apr-12-2023
OH, YES, NO POETRY NO PEACE IS ALSO A BOOK I CO-WROTE WITH MY DAUGHTER ANGELA
HERE'S WHAT A RECENT READER HAD TO SAY:
"Sheryl Bize-Boutte writes her poetry with the edge of sardonic humor that is serious. Angela is more straight up, "this is how it is" in her writing. Both show a lot of love of family as their one collaboration, "A Tapestry of Memories" shows: "From that chance meeting on Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley / You could tell that he truly loved the mademoiselle." Another family chronicle that I have read several times is "The 40 Paradox" which is a personal family journey that is also a cultural journey across our country, where shadows of old attitudes of superiority exist. The book closes with the delightful title poem, and should be read by every writer to know what poets suffer."
Get a copy here:
Tuesday, March 7, 2023
COMING UP AT MECHANICS INSTITUTE: WRITERS LUNCHES, POETRY AND MORE!
AS WE SAUNTER INTO SPRING
WRITERS LUNCH VIBRANT DISCUSSIONS
READINGS FROM STELLAR POETS
AND MORE
AT THE MECHANICS INSTITUTE
HOSTED BY TARYN EDWARDS
ALL ON ZOOM
COMING UP:
MARCH 17: WRITERS LUNCH
STARTING AND MANAGING A CRITIQUE GROUP
APRIL 12: NO POETRY NO PEACE™
APRIL 21: THE BIRTH OF A POEM
https://www.milibrary.org/events/writers-lunch-birth-poem-apr-21-2023
SEE MORE ABOUT ME AND MY WORK AT:
SEE MORE ABOUT THE MECHANICS INSTITUTE LIBRARY AT:
Saturday, January 7, 2023
MECHANICS INSTITUTE LIBRARY OF SAN FRANCISCO
The Writers' Lunch: Journal Writing for the New Year; How Journal Writing Can Support Your Writing Practice
moderated by Sheryl J. Bize-Boutte
Friday, January 20, 2023 - 12:00pm to 1:00pm
This event will be conducted via Zoom. Register and you will be emailed the Zoom credentials.
REGISTER HERE: https://www.milibrary.org/events/writers-lunch-journal-writing-new-year-how-journal-writing-can-support-your-writing-practice
Join us in the new year for a discussion about how journal writing can support your writing practice and encourage a life of wellness, creativity, and purpose. Dr. Eric Maisel and Lynda Monk will present their new book The Great Book of Journaling: How Journal Writing Can Support a Life of Wellness, Creativity, Meaning and Purpose and discuss how journaling can enhance your writing endeavors. Moderated by Sheryl Bize-Boutte.
Dr. Eric Maisel is a retired family therapist and active creativity coach, is the author of 50+ books. He is the developer of the philosophy of life known as Kirism and widely regarded as America’s foremost creativity coach. He has also written extensively on the challenges of the creative life. His books in this area include Fearless Creating, Coaching the Artist Within, Creative Recovery, The Van Gogh Blues, and Mastering Creative Anxiety. His books specifically for writers include Deep Writing, Write Mind, Living the Writer’s Life, A Writer’s Space, A Writer’s Paris, and A Writer’s San Francisco. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, trains creativity coaches, and maintains a worldwide creativity coaching practice. You can visit Dr. Maisel at www.ericmaisel.com, contact him at ericmaisel@hotmail.com, subscribe to his weekly newsletter at https://ericmaisel.com/newsletter/, and be automatically notified about his new blog posts at https://authory.com/ericmaisel
Lynda Monk, MSW, RSW, CPCC is a Registered Social Worker, Certified Life Coach, and the Director of the International Association for Journal Writing – IAJW.org. Lynda is co-editor of two books including Transformational Journaling for Coaches, Therapists, and Clients: A Complete Guide to the Benefits of Personal Writing and The Great Book of Journaling: How Journal Writing Can Support a Life of Wellness, Creativity, Meaning and Purpose. She is the co-author of Writing Alone Together: Journaling in a Circle of Women for Creativity, Compassion and Connection. She developed Life Source Writing: A Reflective Journaling Practice for Self-Discovery, Self-Care, Wellness and Creativity. Lynda regularly teaches, writes, and speaks on the healing and transformational power of journaling and expressive writing. She lives with her family on Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, Canada. Find out more at https://IAJW.org
Award-winning author and Pushcart Prize nominee Sheryl J. Bize-Boutte is an Oakland multidisciplinary writer whose autobiographical and fictional short story collections, along with her lyrical and stunning poetry, artfully succeed in getting across deeper meanings about the politics of race and economics without breaking out of the narrative. Her writing has been variously described as “rich in vivid imagery,” “incredible,” and “great contributions to literature.” Her first novel, Betrayal on the Bayou, was published in June 2020 and a poetry collection she has written with her daughter Dr. Angela M. Boutte, titled No Poetry No Peace™, was published in August 2020 and is the namesake of the No Poetry No Peace™ series at the Mechanics Institute of San Francisco. Her in progress novel first chapter, “The Burden Keeper,” was the 2021 fiction category winner for the San Francisco Writers Conference writing contest anthology. An inaugural Oakland Poet Laureate runner-up, she is also a popular, teacher, literary reader, presenter, storyteller, curator, and emcee/host for literary and poetry events. Find out more at www.sheryljbize-boutte.com/
The Writers' Lunch is a casual brown-bag lunch activity on the 3rd Friday of each month. Look forward to craft discussion, informal presentations on all forms of writing, and excellent conversation. Please contact Taryn Edwards if you have any questions or if you would like to be a panelist - tedwards@milibrary.org
Join us, share and learn!
Saturday, November 19, 2022
MECHANICS INSTITUTE WRITERS LUNCH DECEMBER 16, 2022
JOIN ME AND THE MECHANICS INSTITUTE'S OWN
TARYN EDWARDS
ON FRIDAY DECEMBER 16
12:00 PM-1:00 PM
FOR
THE WRITERS LUNCH
This event will be conducted via Zoom. Register and you will be emailed the Zoom credentials.
REGISTER HERE FOR THIS FREE EVENT
https://www.milibrary.org/events/writers-lunch-writing-about-your-nearest-and-dearest-dec-16-2022
This month join librarian Taryn Edwards and author Sheryl J. Bize-Boutte for a discussion of a very important skill: how to write about your nearest and dearest without getting into trouble. Learn tips and tricks for telling the truth, being discrete, and mitigating the fallout.
THESE WONDERFUL AUTHORS WILL BE JOINING US FOR THE DISCUSSION
Isidra Mencos was born and raised in Barcelona. She spent her twenties experimenting with the new freedoms afforded by the end of Franco’s dictatorship in Spain while immersing herself in books and dancing. She freelanced for prestigious publishing houses, traveled the world as a tour leader, and worked for the Olympic Committee. In 1992 she moved to the US to earn a Ph.D. in Spanish and Latin American contemporary literature at UC Berkeley, where she taught for twelve years. She also developed her own business as a writer and editor for Spanish-speaking media. After a 10 year stint in the corporate world, managing teams in several countries, she quit her job in 2016 to dedicate her time to creative writing. Since then, her pieces have been widely published in literary journals and general interest magazines, from Chicago Quarterly Review to WIRED, and she has been listed as a Notable Essayist in The Best American Essays anthology. In October 2022 she released her book Promenade of Desire—A Barcelona Memoir (She Writes Press), a sensual coming of age story tracing her journey from repressed Catholic virgin to seductive Mata Hari, as Spain transitioned from dictatorship to democracy. Today Isidra lives in Northern California with her husband and son. Find out more at www.isidramencos.com/
Joan Gelfand is a writer, coach, and activist. Her reviews, stories, essays and poetry have appeared in over 150 national and international literary journals and magazines including the Los Angeles Review of Books, San Francisco Chronicle, PANK!, the Huffington Post, Rattle, Levure Litterarie, Voice and Verse, Sycamore Review, Prairie Schooner and The Meridian Anthology of Contemporary Poetry. The recipient of numerous writing awards including two Pushcart nominations, and the Women’s National Book Association’s Effie Lee Morris Prize, Joan’s poem “The Ferlinghetti School of Poetics” was made into a short film by Dana Walden. The film featured at 20 international film festivals and was awarded “Best Poetry Movie” at the World Film Festival. You Can Be a Winning Writer: The 4 C’s of Author Success, Joan’s book for writers (Mango Press) is a #1 best seller on Amazon. Extreme, Joan’s debut novel was published by Blue Light Press in July, 2020. She also has an essay in Chicken Soup for the Soul: My Wonderful Wild Family. Joan lives in San Francisco with her husband Adam Hertz and two beatnik cats – Jack Kerouac and Lawrence Ferlinghetti. Find out more at www.joangelfand.com/
Francine Thomas Howard, born in Illinois, and a child transplant to California, is a proud product of the San Francisco Public schools. A rarity among writers, her first love was not writing, but the sciences. She received her degree in occupational therapy from San Jose State, and her Masters in Public Administration from the University of San Francisco (USF). She enjoyed a rewarding career treating children with physical disabilities, and working with their families on long term goals. Children with cerebral palsy comprised the majority of case load. She often reminds others that differently abled children are not aware their physical abilities are considered negative, until they are taught. That revelation, along with the insistent voice of her long-deceased grandmother, combined with driving love of history and genealogy demanding to be heard, may well have been the driving factors that nudged her to leave occupational therapy and start combining oral histories, family research, and DNA into written form. Find out more at www.francinethomashoward.com/
MODERATOR: Award-winning author and Pushcart Prize nominee Sheryl J. Bize-Boutte is an Oakland multidisciplinary writer whose autobiographical and fictional short story collections, along with her lyrical and stunning poetry, artfully succeed in getting across deeper meanings about the politics of race and economics without breaking out of the narrative. Her writing has been variously described as “rich in vivid imagery,” “incredible,” and “great contributions to literature.” Her first novel, Betrayal on the Bayou, was published in June 2020 and a poetry collection she has written with her daughter Dr. Angela M. Boutte, titled No Poetry No Peace™, was published in August 2020 and is the namesake of the No Poetry No Peace™ series at the Mechanics Institute of San Francisco. Her in progress novel first chapter, “The Burden Keeper,” was the 2021 fiction category winner for the San Francisco Writers Conference writing contest anthology. An inaugural Oakland Poet Laureate runner-up, she is also a popular, teacher, literary reader, presenter, storyteller, curator, and emcee/host for literary and poetry events. Find out more at www.sheryljbize-boutte.com
REGISTER HERE:
https://www.milibrary.org/events/writers-lunch-writing-about-your-nearest-and-dearest-dec-16-2022
The Writers' Lunch is a casual brown-bag lunch activity on the 3rd Friday of each month. Look forward to craft discussion, informal presentations on all forms of writing, and excellent conversation. Please contact Taryn Edwards if you have any questions or if you would like to be a panelist - tedwards@milibrary.org
Join us, share and learn!
Questions?
Taryn Edwards - 415-393-0103
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