Monday, 27th May 2013 (The Valley, Anguilla)—Following Sunday night’s performance of We refused to be silenced by, The Underground poets, I had the opportunity to chat with one young man, Mikael Mussington (aka Poetic Nature), who is the nephew of Mr Timothy A. Hodge, Director of the Anguilla Social Security Board. Mr Hodge is himself a poet and mentors Mikael in writing his poetry.
The young poet Mussington recited a poem at The Underground that he was inspired to compose whilst attending the Anguilla Lit Fest on Friday and Saturday, May 24th and 25th. His poem was a tribute to the speakers who were headlined at the literary festival which included such distinguished persons such as poet Nikki Giovanni, author and MSNBC host Touré; author/boat builder/historian David Carty; poet/teacher Hyacinth Hughes; poet Vanessa Croft Thompson; author Gillian Royes and many others. Mikael’s poetry was so impressive that I told him I would like to have his poem published in The Anguillian newspaper.
So Mikael and I met to have a chat on Monday afternoon, May 27th, in one of the rooms at the library of the Teachers’ Resource Centre. We spoke about various topics during our brief conversation. Besides us talking, I managed to download onto my flash drive a copy of his poem Speaking On (which appears below) along with photos of Mikael with two of the authors at the Lit Fest. Then, I did a spontaneous interview with Poetic Nature (the artistic name that Mikael uses as his pen name) in order to uncover more of the background of this gifted young poet who resides in our local community.
Interviewer’s question: At what age did you start writing poetry?
Poetic Nature’s response: I started rapping (was a rapper) around age 9. That contributed to where I am today at a young, young age. [It’s]what I did in the world before I came to Christ.
Interviewer’s question: When did you come to Christ?
Poetic Nature’s response: I came at a young age, but didn’t have a mentor to keep me steady in the faith. God pulled me in and I got serious about age 17. Experiences do that to you.
Interviewer’s question: What experiences pulled you into Christ?
Poetic Nature’s response: Primarily, it was financial. Ambition wasn’t there. God kept me by myself for a while. It was like God kept me in a cocoon and that’s when I began to write poems. The poems were like light bulbs that would bring out something in me that I never knew was there. What was once dormant in me is now being expressed in poetry.
Interviewer’s question: What would you say about your poetry as an expression of yourself?
Poetic Nature’s response: It’s my soul, my most intimate self. For example, I wrote about suicide – a little niche was in a poem about suicide. I wondered, “Did I think about suicide?” Many people have thought about suicide…“Nobody understands me, so why go on.” For me within these moments, I find God allows us to be ruffled, to be shaken, to be broken so that when the change makes known you can look back and say, if it wasn’t for those experiences I wouldn’t be able to relate to people.
Interviewer’s comment and question: You have such wisdom for someone at a young age. Do you mind my asking how old you are?
Poetic Nature’s response: I’m 19 years old. I’m just an open book ready to unveil to whom is deserving.
Interviewer’s question: Who is it you perceive to be “deserving”?
Poetic Nature’s response: The Word says, “Do not cast pearls before swine”. If I give you something that you are not going to use, why should I give it to you? And if the trust isn’t there, it makes no sense for me to present you with something of such significance.
Interviewer’s question: So do you expect to continue writing poetry?
Poetic Nature’s response: Yes, of course.
Interviewer’s question: How often do you write poems?
Poetic Nature’s response: Depending on how available I am, I write about 14 poems a day. Right now, I’m out of a job, so I write poems. The Word talks about your gift making you and now looking at me just speaking, presenting my poems, opportunity became visible. I wrote a poem about opportunity for La Vue. (It’s called) “My Girl, Opportunity”.
This young man has a deep understanding of life at an early age that even some mature adults don’t quite comprehend. I wonder what experiences he has had in life and who were the teachers who taught him such important life lessons. It just goes to show that we have some really gifted young people in our midst, who we need to nurture and encourage utilising their talents. If I were an employer, I would definitely consider hiring Mikael Mussington to work in my establishment because I have the firm conviction that he is an honest and honourable young man of Christian faith who would make an exceptional employee in any business or with whichever organisation.
Kay M. Ferguson, a creative professional writer, is contemplating the possibility of publishing a book of poetry representing Anguilla’s resident poets. If you have a poem to share, please email your submission to Kay at anguillawriter@gmail.com.
Speaking On…
by:
Mikael Mussington(aka Poetic Nature)
With immense emotion,
He captivates the audience,
Body gestures,
Punctuated words,
Pelting onward like a spear,
Then with subtle emotion she persuades,
Skillfully weaving her web, around us,
She’s speaking on the history forgotten,
“The Colossus of Rhodes monument”,
Slavery,
Racism,
Countries and their rights,
He’s also on a winning streak,
Doesn’t intend on breaking it either,
No time soon!
Yeah, this man, subtle but yet boisterous and flavorful,
He’s amazing,
Wow!
Strong, dense words of information,
The struggle to be somebody,
He’s speaking on “the rock” Anguilla,
Its pride,
Freedom,
Fortune.
She’s speaking on the importance of a nickel,
Its true worth,
Memories it carries.
She talks as if she’s always in a personal conversation,
She reads as if she’s drinking water,
She’s free with her speech,
She catapults words from her soul,
He says if you don’t write you’re wrong
Your pen is mightier than the gun
He’s speaking on the nightingale,
How beautifully it sings,
How it flew in and defecated on a book of his,
But never shut down his dreams.
She’s speaking on school days,
Its negatives,
Positives,
Profound messages,
As well as dehumanizing experiences,
With bold,
Forceful attitude,
He brings them to the edge of their seats,
He’s speaking on “Ti ain’tnoaya”,
Because “tis only we”
He sounds pretty pissed-off at this point,
Further details……..were none,
For he thought, it would be boredom to some,
With smooth,
Somewhat graceful,
But firm,
Balanced speech,
He gives words of encouragement,
He’s speaking on black culture,
Its inheritance,
Mindsets,
Stereotypes,
Diversities,
Conflicts,
Benefits.
With moist T-shirt,
His hair widely yawns, “Good Morning” at the break of day,
Finally he’s awake, from what seems to be hibernation,
Perspiration flows as wittiness surges from his pores,
Already he’s ready with his parachute strapped to his body,
Dear God, I pray he doesn’t make that mistake again,
You!
Yes You!
Please hear me!
Next time around don’t even think about looking down,
In your attempt to glimpse the other side.
You’ve come too far,
You have plenty more to accomplish,
And you have yet to help promote aspiring poets,
After that,
You could tip your head and spin a thousand times,
Just as long as you’re upright before the 9 seconds are up.
Tribute to Speakers at the 2nd Anguilla Lit Fest, May 2013
