Do you make a living doing that?

by

Last night I hosted a radio show about the state of the arts. (Listen & Be Heard Network Radio, every Tuesday night at 8pm.) I mentioned an experience I had recently when I went to a party and someone asked me “what do you do?” My answer to that question tends to be different every time I give it a whirl. So this time around I said I was a writer, a poet. The next question was inevitable. It doesn’t seem to change no matter what my answer to the first question is: “do you make a living doing that?”

[ad#adpinion-2]
Well, I’m living. Now, I know many of you have had a similar experience. Depending on your personal history and what your “achievements” have been, your emotional response to the question “what do you do?” will shape your answer. You might feel pride, and anxiously await the next question so that you can blast your latest career triumph to the world. Because if you are an arts professional and have a successful career, possibly you should be very proud of your accomplishment. Or maybe just grateful. You might feel like maybe you are not good enough, or just embarrassed, or remember you don’t have a pension fund like the person who just asked you that probably does.
Do I make a living writing poetry? No. So do I have a lot of nerve telling people that I am a poet. Yes. It takes nerve to be a poet. It takes nerve to be who you are no matter what dollar value is placed on what you do with what you have. It is a sign of our culture and times that no one expects a poet, a musician, a painter, a playwright, to make a living.
Do you a make a living doing that? My longer, more defiant answer goes something like this: ‘I express my creativity in all sorts of ways, and I get by without anyone dictating to me what my creations should be.’ I would really like to hear from other people about their answers to these questions and how it makes them feel.
Leave your comment below or join the discussion on the bulletin board.
Wishing you Peace and Poetry
Martha Cinader Mims

Related Posts:


  • EP29-Shirley Ancheta, M. Evelina Galang

    EP29-Shirley Ancheta, M. Evelina Galang

    we feature a Manang from Manilatown, poet, Shirley Ancheta and novelist M. Evelina Galang, who has a newly published collection of short stories entitled When the Hibiscus Falls. We also feature a set of poetry celebrating John Coltrane on the occasion of his birthday, and a spoken word set that includes Dr. Maya Angelou in… Read more

  • Basketball, Bagoong and Bayanihan in Albany, Georgia

    Basketball, Bagoong and Bayanihan in Albany, Georgia

    In Albany the Filipino community is holding a basketball tournament with teams from the local Filipino league competing. The tournament is a fundraiser for children in the Philippines, children in need of school supplies. This is one of several basketball tournaments of the Filipino basketball league in the Southern part of the US that has… Read more

  • This Afternoon on WPVM Radio

    This Afternoon on WPVM Radio

    Please join host, Martha Cinader, for the Listen & Be Heard Radio Show on WPVM. We will play two interviews from Tony Robles: Shirley Ancheta and M. Evelina Galang. Also, a poetry tribute to John Coltrane on the occasion of his birthday, and as always, some spoken word. Read more

  • John Coltrane Sunday Morning

    John Coltrane Sunday Morning

    Tony Robles recites poem, John Coltrane Sunday Morning in Hamlet, North Carolina, Birthplace of John Coltrane On The Day After His Birthday Read more

  • Pilgrimage to Hamlet, North Carolina, Birthplace of John Coltrane on His Birthday

    Pilgrimage to Hamlet, North Carolina, Birthplace of John Coltrane on His Birthday

    Peggy Harris shows Listen & Be Heard Contributor Tony Robles the John Coltrane Mural in Hamlet, North Carolina. Peggy was born and raised in Hamlet and graciously guided Tony to the mural while telling stories of her birthplace and what John Coltrane means to the community. Read more

  • Think BIG. Start small.

    Think BIG. Start small.

    Have BIG plans? AWESOME! Where would you like to begin? THIS one simple question can often derail our plans before we even make a plan! When our dream is so big that we have no way to even imagine the full picture, we often have no idea how to get started moving in the direction of… Read more

%d bloggers like this: