Hey fam! It's Amanda, one of the organizers, along with Evelyn, of the silent auction for East Meets Words' 9th anniversary open mic.
Since this was our first time organizing this fundraiser, Evelyn and I were a little nervous but we soon found out that we really did not need to worry. When we asked the community to show up and donate their time and resources to the space, the community came OUT! We auctioned off beautiful prints and artwork by Jeffrey, Rich, and Christopher Huang; poetry and cypher 101 workshops by artist in residence Kai; flavor Bible culinary lessons by Evelyn; DJ and photography lessons by Kongo, and much, much more.
As the night continued with poetry and music, hilarious and heartfelt messages from folks attending in spirit, and origin stories and future plans for the bookstore, I reflected upon how much this monthly open mic means to me. As a young person trying to make sense of this world, I'm coming to understand how rare it is to find community and creative spaces centered around Asian American experiences. It's not every day that we can come into a space that invites us to be vulnerable, to be real. This is a space that I hope we continue to nurture and care for, just as how it has nurtured and cared for us.
Shout out and love to all those who came to support us with their generosity, creativity, and conscious energy. I hope to see you in many future months.
