On a recent summer weekend, more than a dozen people showed up for a Queer Joy Poetry Picnic hosted by Poets House at Teardrop Park in Lower Manhattan.
Jade Mapp, 32, Poets House youth programs and access services coordinator, who came up with the idea, said she wanted the event to affirm community.
“No shade,” Mapp said, “But a lot of Pride events revolve around nightlife, clubs, and bars, and we wanted to do something that was just as fun and that would bring the vibes.” And, she added, “We wanted to do something in our own backyard.”
Teardrop Park is right behind Poets House, a poetry library in Battery Park City that has been around since 1986 but had only recently re-opened in late January after a years-long closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic and critical structural repairs being made on the space after it suffered flooding from a ruptured supply line in 2021.
The Poets House performance space on the ground floor opens onto the park, a lush little oasis surrounded by residential towers. The day of the picnic, low flying black birds swooped in on the breeze as other birds perched in the trees sung about the joy of just being alive.
As a newer member of the Poets House staff, Mapp said she’s thrilled by the ability to bring her full self to work — “my Kali tattoo and glitter included,” she said. She spoke about “taking up space” and affirming who she is in a place where she spends so much of her time. And she pointed out that there are so many other work places that do not know what true allyship means.
Mapp called the event a team effort, organized and supported by other queer members of the staff who arranged a table displaying Pride Flags; buttons; a library of queer poetry books for browsing that came from the personal collection of Nick Buffon, Poets House operational manager; as well as freebie postcards with poems from Jorie Graham, Joy Harjo, and Lucille Clifton.
A 12-page booklet of writing prompts featured a diverse approach to poetry, exploring the senses, and extending the idea of pride beyond one month out of the year.
The gorgeous weather and the call for community brought out a number of people.
Naomi, 26, a queer trans woman from Long Island, said she’d heard about Poets House from her brother and when she saw the picnic mentioned on the website, she knew she had to attend.
At the picnic, she wrote and shared some of her work aloud.
“Talking in front of people always makes me a bit nervous,” Naomi said afterward. “But something about being outside. Maybe it’s the beautiful day. Or the greenery. Maybe it’s all of it — it just felt good.”
One poet, who goes by the name Jah, short for Joshua, and who identifies as Afro-Latino, the words “La fuerza de familia” tattooed on one forearm, said he’d written poetry in high school, had self-published some of his work, and attended open mics. He’d come out to the picnic from Ocean Hill, Brooklyn, primarily because the event was being held in the park.
“I love being in nature,” he said, adding, “self-expression brings me joy. I feel that does a lot for the community.”
Mapp led writing exercises, mindful of using prompts that allowed participants to explore their vulnerabilities while making it safe and comfortable enough for them to share.
A self-described “bubble blower,” Mapp blew iridescent bubbles as participants wrote and a chill, lo-fi instrumental soundtrack played on an old portable speaker that flashed rainbow colors.
Mapp finds joy in bringing people together. “A lot of people are burnt out. There’s a lot trying to keep us apart and separated from one another,” she noted. “But seeing people gather. They chose to be here on a Saturday, to be amongst community.”
Born and raised in Sacramento, California, Mapp now lives in North New Jersey, where she paints and writes and gardens. She mentioned the rainstorm that had blown through the city the day before and then recalled the double rainbow she’d seen in the sky on the drive home. She nodded and smiled.
“A lot of folks said this was their first time at Poets House and that brings me joy, too,” Mapp said.
