SCFP Goes on Writer's Retreat to Charleston...Mississippi!

      The first weekend in November was a memorable experience for the SCFP. We went on our first writer's retreat to Charleston...Charleston, Mississippi that is.  About an hour away, in Tallahatchie County, the SonEdna Foundation, pioneered by Myrna Colley-Lee and her husband, Morgan Freeman, hosted an awesome afternoon and evening of events. 

   We arrived in Charleston about 3:00 that Saturday afternoon and strolled around downtown Charleston.  Like many of the small towns in the Delta, it had a rustic downtown, that really had that old, western, southern charm type feeling, or so.  We took some pictures outside the local courthouse, before we made our way to the Writer's workshop, held in an old bank which had been redesigned into an community art studio.  We were met by the SonEdna board and visiting writer's including, Ifa Bayeza, Clyde Ford, Dr. Hasna Muhammad (see picture to right with Second Year Fellow, Reggie Higgins,) and Myrna Colley Lee. It was a great event where we all got to write and explore different writing styles. We split up into different groups based on our interest and then came back together at the end to hear from the drama, narrative, poetry, and visual art groups. Here is a quote from Fifth Year Fellow, Oryan Griffin "  I wrote a narrative about a secret double-agent on a mission to destroy terrorism and make cash." I didn't know how good it was, so I was too nervous to read it. I've never had that much fun writing a story and will continue writing it when I get home."                                                        The afternoon was amazing and we had a lot of fun, a lot more than I think any of us had planned.

     From there we went to our campsite, set up our tents, and quickly changed into our "evening attire." We ate dinner in a bit of a rush, but hustled to make it to the evening's events back in Charleston.  Our plans were to attend the writer's workshop, which featured actress and writer, Victoria Rowell.  She was promoting her book, The Women Who Raised Me, but needless to say, she got a great deal of attention for her role as Druscilla in the soap opera, Young and the Restless. One of our fellows, Amberly Dennis had prepared not only a question, but also a poem which she was asked to perform as a close to the evening's events.  When Ms. Dennis finished, the crowd really went crazy, as did Ms. Rowell. It was amazing.  Check out our video clip which can be found on youtube as well:

Below is the full version of Amberly's poem. Feel free to comment and let her know what you think.

We definitely had a great time on our Writer's Retreat and I think all of us left a bit more inspired than we came.  Hopefully, after reading this poem, you'll feel inspired too. Enjoy!

Inspiration:

by Amberly Dennis

When we look at you we see

Greatness, power, and strength

A woman who overcame her troubles and conquered the impossible.

You are the inspiration for the ones who are ready to give up

The motivation for the ones who think they have no luck.

We stand strong, for we know that pain goes away

Because of you we keep moving, keep our heads up,

And live through another day.

If you made it, then we can too.

Because you’re the inspiration, the reason, for why we do the things we do.

Some people give up, they let weakness take over, they have a different point of view.

But see, you're different, you made it, and we can too.