Monroe-Woodbury High School held their 23rd annual Rhythm & Rhyme show on April 19th. In my four years at the high school this was my first time performing and attending the show. In the end, I feel that the experience was essential to my high school experience, and it fed an aspect of my identity that needed some attention.

I first heard about Rhythm & Rhyme during my sophomore year when I was in Ms. Bulla’s poetry class. I remember always loving the class; the course truly gave my imagination the opportunity to soar, and I created some memorable pieces during the time. Many students in my class were already planning on performing at Rhythm & Rhyme individually, but one senior in my class had the idea of us doing a piece together. We would call ourselves “Period 5” in honor of being the only poetry class in the school. For days I helped the group plan for the show, but unfortunately I didn’t participate. Why? Because I was scared.

Poetry has been something that I’ve done for years, but prior to sophomore year I had kept it to myself; I was nervous about putting that vulnerability out even further than “Period 5”. I wasn’t sure if I would have a support system, because most of the people I knew weren’t into poetry or literature. Honestly speaking, the thought of what people were going to say and think turned me off from the idea. However, now that I’ve done it I feel that my only regret was not doing it sooner.

Those in Rhythm & Rhyme had to be at the school at least 15 minutes before the start time; in my case, because of some careless McDonalds workers, I got there three minutes before. I was a little nervous, because I had missed most of Ms. Bulla’s prep speech. However, luckily for me, I wasn’t going on until the third act–which gave me plenty of time to prepare to get on stage. I stood on the sidelines and observed the flow of things, while Ms. Bulla made sure that I and all the other performers were ready for our turns.

The environment was incredibly welcoming. Each student who went on stage was treated like a celebrity with crazed fans; their peers, including me, were chanting their names and cheering at every point. My personal favorite ritual was when a performer would say “Hi, my name is…” and everyone yelled “Hi…!” and clapped.

Now I won’t lie, by the time I went on stage I was a little ready to go. It had absolutely nothing to do with the performances, because I really did enjoy them, but after two hours of waiting for my turn I was eager when the third act performers were called to the back of the stage. At that point, my nerves were gone, and my confidence was activated.

I recited an original poem called “All That”, which was a piece that I dedicated to “Any unapologetically confident person who’s been told that they need to be apologetic for it”. It’s a poem about loving yourself in a world that likes to tear down people with that ability, which hits extremely hard for black women like myself. I was so happy with the turnout of my performance. I heard a couple of laughs and interaction during the piece, which worked out perfectly with the lines that I wanted reactions from.

When I finished the applause was almost deafening, and it felt validating to the artist in me. My fellow performers backstage cheered for me during my exit, the most distinctive one being one girl who told me “Yes, you are the sh*t!”— repeating the most popular line of my piece. Ms. Bulla made sure to hug me and praise my presentation, which made me feel even better about following through with the show. The whole thing was very endearing, and I heard compliments from students, teachers, and family members for days after; even those who weren’t “into poetry” were touched.

This experience definitely catered to a part of my identity that a lot of people didn’t even know was there. I shared an aspect of myself that people around me loved and cherished just as much as I do, which was an indescribable feeling. I finally realized that there is a whole community of people nearby who see the beauty in the arts as well.

I think that anyone who has a love for poetry, or music, or plain expression has a place at Rhythm & Rhyme, whether on the stage, backstage or in the audience. I have opened a new door to the way that I feel about my talents as a poet, and I truly have this event to thank. I know I will continue writing and tearing down stages, and I hope that those who discovered this feeling from this ritual never lose it. I also hope that it finds anyone who doesn’t realize that this is exactly what they need.