Every day is a day that is good to write poetry; especially if you are a poetess like me. But, today seems like an even more extra special day because it is Tuesday and Tuesday is designated as Poetry Tuesday and so, poetry is the game. Here are a few of the latest poems that have been seeping through my pores. I hope you enjoy.
I Write
I was born as a poem written in a Fifth grader’s marble
notebook
My lines were enhanced by a sword and shield and I turned into
an epic
I started this romantic relationship slaying dragons and I was
transformed into a song
The main soldier in the story became me when my song became
a full-length production
You can watch it at a theatre near you and hear the words to
me, the anthem
But wherever I am and whenever life spans, the poetry never
dies
I still remain vivid and sonorous within the lines
And the words that breathe through are just fine
Because they are mine
I write
Full
Hearted
Three pages to get you connected with your own id
Ego surpasses everything that went in
To the scribing times and writing blinds to get to this place
They told me not to read it back or edit, so I cannot erase
All I can do is let it out like a cry when losing face
I thought why not
Seemed like a good idea to give it a taste
And so one day I am there releasing
And other times, not in the mood
But they say to feed the hunger to use my thoughts for food
So I’ve been doing the program to release the artist within
And I’m reaching my hand like a back brush to reach the past
of when a kid
And all I know it has rained forty days from when I first
had started
Almost more tears than the bubbles of all the times I’ve farted
And I am doing it like a professional trash person; hurts
discarded
So I can affirm my truths; I know them full hearted.
Open Book
She said what she felt like she never did before
She let out her muse and it happened more and more
She was open like a book and the test was happening
She was telling all the answers that nobody was asking
She thought it was the thing that was supposed to go on
She spelled out every word to each one of her songs
And never held in anything that could be kept as hush
She probably never considered the fact that she had talked
too much
She went from writing her thoughts to a book to sharing them
with an ear
She went from using her pencil to release her mind to becoming
a mountaineer
She thought using her ropes was the answer to the journey
she’d been on
She thought that maybe he had been the clear to her life-long
thicket of fog
She never thought that is was wrong because she never had it
once
She just started living life and gaining scars and cuts
She knew her wrongs and detours, falls and things that kept
her from her climb
These were the things that made her block the world from her
reminds
And though she fell into this ditch where she just simply
lied
Each knee jerk reaction was another shock to come alive
She stood back up on her two feet again at 7:10
To a new light of inspiration and a melodic beat and it all
happened when
She got the thread to gauge his eye to sew up her hem
He was the needle that poked her back to life again
I heart music and every day is a great day to immerse myself into the sounds of music. I love to listen, perform, sing, and write songs, a lot.
And so, it brings me great pleasure to invite you to check out my newest song. It is entitled "More Than Enough."
It is a song written to empower individuals who might need to be reminded about the greatness that God has placed in them. It is soulful and bop worthy. All lyrics and music by Stephanie Jeannot. Mixed by Shawn Keys for Just Awesome Music.
Hopefully, you will want to bop to it and let the sounds ring through your speakers. Here is the link: https://youtu.be/3J7sUlrzyOM
Thank you for checking out my tune and my blog and for supporting my musical journey. God bless you all.
At this moment, my heart is fixated on the entire idea of
summer. I feel empowered simply because the sun is beaming outside and it gives
me vibes that I am on a winning path, which is why I came back to this
atmosphere of respect to share my smiles and confidence with you.
The boundless love of God has brought us here to the month
of July and there are so many unique stories to share about things that
happened in the first half of the year; some that are nothing new under the sun
and some that added an entire new palette of colors to my daily hustle and bustle.
In a nutshell, 2023 stands out from the pack of years that have leaped into my
existence.
I am excited about the summer and started this robust and
thoughtful conversation to wish you a happy and safe July, Independence Day,
and summer, as well as to share with you some of the upcoming live music events
that I will be a part of and hope that you will come to share in the joys of harmonious
sound.
Friday, July 7, 2023
8PM to 10PM
Stephanie Jeannot with Shawn Keys and Chris Ray
Harlem Nights Bar
2361 Adam Clayton Powell Jr Blvd
New York, NY 10030
Saturday, July 8. 2023
2PM to 3:30PM
The Yaacov Mayman Super Jazz Band
Queens Central Public Library
89-11 Merrick Blvd
Jamaica, NY 11432
Sunday, July 9, 2023
8:30PM to 10:30 PM
The Yaacov Mayman Super Jazz Band
Level Restaurant & Bar
2775 Coney Island Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11235
Friday, July 14, 2023
10:30PM to 1:30AM
The Empire State Band
Prohibition Restaurant
503 Columbus Avenue
New York, NY 10024
Sunday, July 16, 2023
8:30PM to 10:30 PM
The Yaacov Mayman Super Jazz Band
Level Restaurant & Bar
2775 Coney Island Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11235
Tuesday, July 18, 2023
7PM to 8PM
The Bartlett Contemporaries
Queens College Kupferberg Center for the Arts Presents
Live at the Gantries
Gantry State Plaza Park
48-09 Center Blvd
Long Island City, NY 11109
Saturday, July 22, 2023
3PM to 8PM
The Bartlett Contemporaries
JCAL Presents
Southeast Queens Jam Fest (Battle of the Bands)
Rufus King Park
150-29 Jamaica Avenue
Queens, NY 11435
Sunday, July 23, 2023
8:30PM to 10:30 PM
The Yaacov Mayman Super Jazz Band
Level Restaurant & Bar
2775 Coney Island Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11235
Sunday, July 30, 2023
8:30PM to 10:30PM
The Yaacov Mayman Super Jazz Band
Level Restaurant & Bar
2775 Coney Island Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11235
Friday, August 4,
2023
8PM to 10PM
Stephanie Jeannot with Shawn Keys and Chris Ray
Harlem Nights Bar
2361 Adam Clayton Powell Jr Blvd
New York, NY 10030
Saturday, August 5, 2023
1:00PM to 1:30PM
Cultural Collab presents the JAMS Festival
The Jamaica Arts & Music Festival
164th Street & Jamaica Avenue
Jamaica, NY 11432
Sunday, August 6, 2023
8:30PM to 10:30PM
The Yaacov Mayman Super Jazz Band
Level Restaurant & Bar
2775 Coney Island Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11235
Sunday, August 13, 2023
8:30PM to 10:30PM
The Yaacov Mayman Super Jazz Band
Level Restaurant & Bar
2775 Coney Island Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11235
Sunday, August 20, 2023
8:30PM to 10:30PM
The Yaacov Mayman Super Jazz Band
Level Restaurant & Bar
2775 Coney Island Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11235
Friday, August 25, 2023
10:30PM to 1:30AM
The Empire State Band
Prohibition Restaurant
503 Columbus Avenue
New York, NY 10024
Sunday, August 27, 2023
8:30PM to 10:30PM
The Yaacov Mayman Super Jazz Band
Level Restaurant & Bar
2775 Coney Island Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11235
Let’s enjoy the scintillation of the summer sun together. I
hope your navigations through life directs you to at least one of these events.
Would be so lovely to see you there. But until then, Peace, love and sunbeams.
<3
Music adds great value to my life. I love what happens in
the unique cultural art spaces where musicians can vibe with each other and
enjoy the deep reckonings of jazz music; especially when you can add your own
harmonic ideas to it and make it flow. Jazz for me is a powerful driving force
and I love it a lot.
And so, as your weekend steamrolls along, I hope that perhaps
you will join me for a night of jazz music at the Jackson Room. This evening, April 29, 2023 from 7PM to 10PM at
the Jackson Room located at 192-07 Linden Blvd in St Albans, NY, I will be
featured with the Ed Jackson Quartet, singing a few songs that capture the joys
of vocalizing jazz music.
It is Jazz Appreciation Month and it’s Duke Ellington’s
birthday; a
perfect day to echo some of the best of Ellingtonian jazz pieces
and more, in a jazz club located in a place where so many of the jazz greats lived.
The night will be part instrumental, and part vocal jazz and it will be awesome.
The evening might dictate that you get engrossed in a song,
sing along, dance to the musical grooves, and simply feel the euphoric sense of
freedom that the improvisational jazz conversations embody.
I will agree that I find enjoyment in spinning the plethora
of jazz 45s in my music collection, but nothing beats the experience of live music because it allows
experiential moments that you are bound to remember vividly in your memory. And so with that in mind, I hope that you will
join us for this special night of music happening this evening, April 29th,
2023, from 7PM to 10PM at the Jackson Room located at 192-07 Linden Blvd in St Albans, NY.
You
will be amongst fellow enthusiasts in the charming, ambient corner.
One week into 2023 and here we are eight days in deep.
The year just started and it seems like an entire year
already passed by. Why you may ask?
I experienced a week full of work, a wake, a funeral, and a
death all in a week’s time.
And as we enter into the second week, I just think about all
the good times that I have experienced before this moment that just seemed to
add a bit of weight that I did not expect to have to carry into this new year,
although no one knows the day nor the hour.
As I step into this brand-new week, I think about all the blessings
that seem minor which we often overlook. It is hard to not acknowledge the gift of
oxygen that God breathes into us when we watch a person in a hospital bed with
tubes down his/her throat because they cannot breathe on their own. The ability to breathe on your own is something to not take for granted.
I think about people who get sick from the effects of a stroke that might cause them to
be unable to walk, talk or to even use the bathroom on their own. How often do we thank God for the gift of having a
voice that we can use to sing, speak up for ourselves, to talk about things
that are important to us or to just simply be in our right minds?
The older I get, the more I realize how short life really
is and how blessed I am to see another day and to be surrounded by loved ones. This is the year to tell the people you care about that you love them. Do
not ever forsake those moments of care because you never know the day or the
hour that someone’s last breath may be. Love your family. Love yourself. Pray and
bless the people that you care about and share the joys of life the way that
you would want to receive love from others.
Life is short. Tomorrow is not promised or guaranteed. The
next moment might be your Last. Live in the moment and appreciate it. May you be blessed today and
always. I dedicate my song "Enjoy Life" to you as I make my mantra for each day of 2023: blessed to see another day; because I truthfully am. https://youtu.be/alV2ULnr9z8
Enjoy
life and experience it while you still have time.
We always did
our Christmas family reunion in high fashion. It is like walking into the Academy
Awards in your best dress. Some have the most beautiful of red dresses draped
over their bodies. The men all wearing suits or their cute ugly sweaters. Santa
Claus always finds his way here in his big red suit and bag filled with
promises and toys to place under the huge pine tree that greets you when you
walk in. The walkway is sometimes a carpet of fresh, white snow, and it is usually
the most extravagant of parade ways. The hype is so high, it is a celebration
from the moment of entry.
I haven’t seen some of the
faces of my family members since last year at
this time. We converge with a kiss
on the cheek and the request to remove your shoes and to walk with just your
socks on your feet over the wooden floors. I think it is fun because when you get
into the danceable moments sponsored by my curated Spotify playlists, you can
sing along to the Christmas carols, dip, and slide across the floors with a
smile bigger than Carlton’s on the Fresh Prince of Bel Air.
I mask my winter blues like I
always do when I see them. It is like a glow of stardust washes my troubles
away and brings me sparks of joy. Seeing my family member’s eyes bring a glow
over the verge of tears that I’d been facing. The year can sometimes push me to the brink of
despair but for this family gathering, I feel like a poem of bubbling brooks
and flowers blooming.
And as they walk in the door,
the aroma of something savory is wafting from the kitchen. Every burner and
rack in the oven is occupied with a food item on its way to being ready to eat.
The counters filled with spices, desserts being decorated, and foods still being
prepped for cooking.
We cook like this is the last
supper with more food than you would probably eat in the 525,600 minutes that measure
the year. There is so much deliciousness spread out over the table that your
stomach gets filled just by looking at it. My mother put her foot into each and
every bit of the meal that is about to be shared. The turkey timer has popped
and now I can add my corn souffle into the oven so that it can be ready for the
dinner we are about to serve.
I added my two senses into cooking
as well and turn my kitchen into a canvas and the ingredients that get added
are like my paint. Art is on my mind and the ideas I sketch with the charcoal
pencils of my fingertips. The food we eat, a picture-perfect masterpiece like
those in MOMA, and all who are exposed to it are getting a piece of my heart.
The dinner call is sounded,
like a chapel bell of a 16th-century church and the whole family approaches the
table. We gather and we pray over the meal:
“Father God, thank you for the
day that you made and for the food that we eat and for the hands that prepared it
and for the family that gathered, for those who wanted to come but didn’t find
the opportunity, and for those who have become ancestors and rest in your
peaceful arms. That you might continue to bless us and to keep us and to protect
us with your grace and with your love. You are mighty and everlasting and we
love you and bless you. In the name of Jesus. Amen.”
It is cute to hear the little
ones who can barely talk say, “Bonne Appetit,” but we all do it in our little
celebration. Actually, I make sure to make them say it so that they can have
knowledge of some of the words from our Haitian culture. Those words are part
of it. Some of the foods and drinks found on the table are as well like the Kremas
which is like eggnog with rum in it or the Griot which is pork chunks that are
one of the many meat items on the table and diri a djondjon which is black rice
with dried mushrooms.
It is more than just the
eating that is involved. The stories we share of tradition and exoticism always
pique my interest. When you think about all the experiences you face in a year’s
time, it is no secret that there is so much to talk about if the right person
to talk to sits at your gate. We sip some of the best Apple Cider you can find
and chat. Maybe a sibling or cousin is the family that becomes your listening
board, or maybe it is a friend who is like family, who intently listens to the ranting
of it all without judgment or interruption. This is what makes the conversations
interesting. There is always something new being told, something different
being shared that you have yet to hear and that you are newly learning for the
first time. The laughter is like a weight being lifted off because it surely
makes you feel better.
We eat and chat and then we play
our annual Taboo game. It is always such a fun experience trying to get our
team to guess the words that we are attempting to animate so that we can win
the game. I think I laugh the most during these times because it is so much fun
just getting lost in these moments that never seem to get old. While we play, everyone is experimenting with all
the different desserts that are on the table; cakes, cookies, pies, ice cream,
jello, and candy. These are the yummy moments that are passed until we start to
distribute all the different gifts that are under the tree.
Everyone in the place is
unwrapping gifts in excitement over what someone thought was a good gift for
them. I’ll never forget the time when my next-door neighbor put a Michael
Jackson jacket in a box for me and gave it to me. I wonder if that was one of
the reasons that I became a performing artist. That was one of my favorites. The
other most memorable was an album of Miles Davis recordings, and I love Miles
Davis. What a beautiful gift to receive from a kid at that. Seems like Auntie’s
baby knows me better than I thought; made me so happy.
The night ends with everyone
packing a big foil tray filled with food to take home. Everyone scatters out
the door back onto the carpet full of snow and make their exit back to their
regularly scheduled programs. It is sad to see them all go and even sadder to
know of all the cleaning that needs to be done to bring the art of Christmas
back to a blank canvas.
I think sometimes I count five
hours of washing dishes, cleaning pots, and putting glasses and other things
back into the china for safe keeping until next year, same time, same
celebration. But to think of the reason for continuing on in this tradition for
as long as we have, a smile is ignited.
We continue on. The numbers
might decrease due to heaven calling some to its gates but it is always a
welcome celebration that will always make Christmas one of my favorite times of
the year.
And now that the year is
coming to a close, I am thankful for all these traditions and for all the good
times and bad times, and for being blessed to see this moment of time. I find
peace in it knowing that I made it through. God has been so good and it is not
a secret. May your 2023 be the most
lovely, prosperous, and powerful year that you have ever seen. I offer to you "Peace on Earth: https://youtu.be/ctlbmq9Rit8
Good tidings to
you and yours and hope to see you in the new year.
A song writter to make sure that while we are remembering to decorate for the holidays, and to sing carols, and to buy present for our loved ones, that we not forget that Jesus is the reason for the season.
%20(2).jpg)
.jpg)