Power2thePoetry is a recent development in the lives of Bethany Montgomery and “ AJ the Wordsmith ” McKinney . They have catalyzed a community of poets who have started to perform and work with Power2thePoetry which is a “ movement ” as much as a poetry organization . These young poets and organizers are working to change the world by creating an open platform for marginalized and underrepresented writers . They want to help people find their voice around social , cultural and political issues and to encourage people to inspire and ignite others to not only write but to be active in the community .
Beth and AJ met at Eastern Washington University , bonded over poetry and are now working together . Both studied for business careers at Eastern — Beth in Business Administration and AJ in Business Communication . At first blush Beth , who played basketball at Eastern , seems an unlikely poet . She did not share her work with much of anyone but her mom until after she left school . Now she is taking the same discipline and leadership she applied to basketball and applying it to the poetry she writes and to the events she is organizing . AJ is working to help foster relationships in the community for the poets . Other poets are volunteering to help in other ways , whether it is marketing events or corralling other writers to participate .
They have been participants in open mic events and slams at Boots and they coordinated a well-attended slam event at Auntie ’ s Books and at the Spokane Public Library . They are coordinating and performing with community organizations such as the NAACP , MAC ( Movement Music and Art Collective ), NOW ( National Organization for Women ), PJALS , and have been doing some work to provide motivational speaking to schools like Pride Prep through “ Soulines ,” which is their program to inspire and motivate younger writers .
My Rediscovery - By Bethany Montogomery
Honestly it ’ s a blessing to have so many people love me And it ’ s crazy because at times I don ’ t even love me When I look in the mirror what I see is so ugly
I turn around and I just start running But I can ’ t run from me because I am trapped internally I just want to be free I just want to be free
I wish I had wings so I could jump off a cliff And instead of falling to my death I could fly in the wind I ’ d soar in the skies finally feel alive no longer haunted by the thoughts of wanting to die
But what if I fly and my wings stop working I drop right out of the sky and fall on another person Even if I ’ m hurting it doesn ’ t make it OK to hurt someone else and honestly it ’ s not even justifiable to hurt myself
That ’ s why I transform this negative energy into positive creativity only good vibes to everyone in my proximity And shout out to my family thanks for always supporting me I always believed in myself but your assurance meant more to me
I know I ’ ve said some nasty things that ’ s really hurt feelings But that ’ s because I was hurting and my motives were transformed into that of a villain ’ s
I just wanted to cause pain and destruction to as many people as I could but I wasn ’ t evil I was misunderstood
I didn ’ t know how to properly channel my emotions so I spewed out poison But now I ’ ve discovered the antidote I cherish my life because there ’ s hope It gets better things do change To appreciate the good times I had to experience pain and I ’ ll never be the same
But I will always remember who I was I used to be filled with so much hate but now I realize that hate is just undiscovered love
We must rediscover ourselves because we get lost in this life We get distracted and only focus on sight We find justification in what we see it ’ s all an illusion
Because when we see things we automatically jump to conclusions But it ’ s not what we see it ’ s what we feel and love is the only way to know that it ’ s real
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