Making New Friends
At An Evening with Maria Aponte and Friends

Thursday, July 19th I was one of the featured poets at The East Harlem Café hosted by my friend and fellow writer Maria Aponte, the author of Transitions of a Nuyorican Cinderella. The other featured artists for the evening included the beautiful and extremely gifted singer A. Lyric, and court officer by day and up and coming poet by night Mr. Peach Mcclory. The event also included an open mic component with brilliant artists like Jorgie Viento, Jaime The Maestro Emeric, and Intrest Borges.

The East Harlem Café was filled with some familiar faces, like Latanya DeVaughn, Nelson Host Santiago, Reina Miranda, and Audrey Aybar, but there were also a group of new people I had the pleasure of meeting. As the evening progressed, my books went home with mothers, daughter, friends, aspiring poets, and visual artists.

I sold every book I carried that evening, and then something beautiful happened. A young woman I never met before was very disappointed that she couldn’t purchase a book. She offered to pay me in advance if I mailed it to her the following day. I assured her that I would place her book in the mail the following morning. This led to a few more mail orders. People that had just met me, and some who only knew me as a performer on stage, trusted me enough to have me mail them a book. The cycle of abundance and prosperity had opened and I had to complete it by mailing books the next morning. This cycle began a few months back when a young woman I met named Angela wanted to purchase a book but didn’t have the money at that moment. I felt that she was trust worthy so I gave her a copy and told her she could pay me next time we saw each other. A few months later she showed up at an event I was featuring in and gave me this wonderful card with a touching message and payment for the book.

As The East Harlem Café closed its doors, the crowd was ushered out to the sidewalk to continue the chatter and goodbye hugs. One young woman, whose name I won’t disclose, approached me and asked if she could ask me some questions. She was a friend of a fellow poet whose abuela had just passed and she was now going to inherit numerous saints her abuela had prayed to for many years. She was shaky as reluctant tears flowed down her face. After sharing an intimate conversation for a brief moment and exchanging cell numbers, I gave her the warmest hug I could give a soul in need of direction. It was genuine, just like the words I offered her. She contacted me the next morning and stated that it was the first time since her abuela’s death that she was able to smile.

Meeting her was no coincidence. Again the cycle of abundance and prosperity opened up and I must continue it by sharing with this young woman what I learned from my bisabuelas, abuelas, mother, lessons from my warrior women. I was reminded that by sharing what I know, with people who really need it and desire direction, I will receive the gift of love, trust, compassion, guidance, direction, and prosperity.

I am grateful to an evening with Maria Aponte and Friends for allowing me to find new friends…Ashé…