teaching gold-mah how to heal herself
I'm so excited to post this book review because it was written by Bilphena Yahwon, who encouraged me to start this blog back in May. Thanks to her encouraging words and helpful tips, I built up the courage to start Orig1nal, and now here we are months later, and she has published her first book.
Without sounding completely biased, I honestly enjoyed reading this book. It was the perfect literary snack I needed this semester. Bilphena speaks up about her the process of healing herself, her experience wrestling with poetry, and her aggravation with the lack of social justice. She also addressed the common culture conformity issues immigrant children face. I felt like I was reading my life story through a more self aware perspective. This book is a compilation of different poems and without giving too much away, I will post a few of my favorite quotes.
“How many skins have you shed to become this you?”
“black boy, black boy
every insult you make on my kinky hair
pull it from your mother’s scalp first”
“how many times will we set out black skin on fire, hoping to receive water from white hands?”
“realize your english is not superior. your english does not equate to intelligence. do not compliment me on how well i have accepted colonization. i do not want your pat on the back.”
Check out her website and get a copy of this book
