The Future

So I got this email from one of my three favorite teachers in the entire universe

(Side Note: I truly lucked out at Peddie, for the three years that I was there I had four of the best English teachers that exist in the world, Rodrigue, Hiebert, Onion, and LeighWood. I still keep in more touch with all of them than I do with almost everyone in the class of '08. Rodrigue was the one who told me that I overextend myself too much and that keeps me from greatness, Hiebert taught me how to appreciate every single word of a book AND he's kind of the coolest person alive but in such a way where he can be like 'Hey, I'm awesome, but I think you're awesome too, and I'm just as dedicated to being more awesome and I am to you being more awesome." And Onion kicked my ass senior year by telling me when he knew I was coasting in class and pointing out what he knew I put h&s into. LWood made me want to write and then go back and rewrite it. THAT is impressive.)

Anyways, Hiebs sent me this email:

> Great news, Tayarisha!
>
> I'm looking forward to checking it out.
>
> Other musical things of note:
>
> 1. Working on getting a show for PUC.
> 2. Working on getting the Blue Scholars back this spring.
> 3. If/when #2 is happening, think you might be interested in doing some
> spoken word stuff to open?
>
> Be well,
>
> Nick


Sure, he sent this a few weeks ago but I didn't remember about it until yesterday when I was vimeoing all of Zia Mohajerjasbi's videos

(Side Note: CLICK THIS BUSINESS. Mockumentary, short, called Manoj, directed by Zia M. and written (and starring) Hari Kondabalu. Hilarity.)

and rereading the BlueScholars Tour of Queens with Hari K. blog thing: CLICK

friggin genius.

And then just listening to the Blue Scholars in general and that got me thinking about how cool it is that Sabzi's brother makes their videos and they do their thing and then they work within their community to make stuff better and they go around and perform and all this stuff. Right. So then I started thinking about how they're doing what they want to do, and Sabzi's brother (that's Zia) is doing what he wants to do, and how that's brilliant. Then I remembered how the Blue Scholars came to Peddie my junior year and how I wish I'd been

a) cooler
b) less awestruck (so that I'd say morrrre)

at the time. BUT THAT is when I remembered the email.

See, the Blue Scholars (and really, the whole Mass Line Media crew) and thinking about them has made me remember that I used to stand strong for some things, and that I used to not be as cynical and disillusioned about the world. My beliefs in what humans can do weren't as strongly shaken by what humans have done. I didn't realize how selfish my world-views were becoming until I reread that Blue Scholars Tour of Queens thing, then it was sorta this wave of understanding what I've been doing (and not doing).

See, Neil Gaiman said this thing about there being alllll of these tiny worlds within every single person, no matter how big or small, exciting or dull, we all had so much inside of us. Which means that everyone has the ability to change something. I used to wanna change stuff, then I just wanted to get into college, now I just wanna write this essay about this play and this other essay about Psycho so that I can not think about them anymore. And Mark Twain said this other thing 'I never let school get in the way of my education'. I've never been big on sitting on a street corner, sandwich boarded up, nor blind protesting, but it's be a mistake to think that that's what changing means.

The world's a big place. Props to the Blue Scholars for doin their part.