If you have not visited the website TED.com, it is well worth the browse to find inspiring stories and “ideas worth spreading”. Its’ two annual conferences “bring together the world’s most fascinating thinkers and doers, who are challenged to give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes or less” (TED.com). Many of these performances are made available for free on TED.com.
One speech that I found particularly inspiring was by Sarah Kay at the March 2011 conference in Long Beach, California. Sarah Kay is a spoken word poet from New York City who began performing at the age of 14 years old at the Bowery Poetry Club. She has since competed in national poetry competitions, appeared on the HBO Def Poetry Jam, and performed internationally. She is also a published author as well as founder and co-director of Project V.O.I.C.E. (Vocal Outreach Into Creative Expression), a “national movement that celebrates and inspires youth self-expression through Spoken Word Poetry” (project-voice.net).
As Kay describes, “Spoken Word Poetry is the art of performance poetry. I tell people it involves creating poetry that just doesn’t want to sit on paper. That something about it demands it be heard out loud or witnessed in person.” Kay begins her talk with, If I Should Have a Daughter, an original poem that makes evident the influence that her own parents had on her outlook and passion for life. The message she conveys is that life should be embraced and no matter what gets thrown at you and what struggles are faced, you don’t need to be discouraged. Life is a continuous lesson and the challenges you encounter make you who you are.
Later in her talk Kay divides her “spoken word journey” into three steps. The first, was when she said, “I can do this!” The second, when she said, “I will continue”. Finally the third was when she realized she could write poems that infused the work she was doing with her own experiences. Kay uses poetry to work through what she doesn’t understand while at the same time using her knowledge and experiences or “backpack full of everywhere else that she’s been” (Ted.com).
In her work to entertain, educate, and inspire, Kay encourages students to let down their guard, be open to the world around them, share their stories and learn from each other’s experiences. In this huge world where it is easy to feel alone, “spoken word teaches that if you have the ability to express yourself and the courage to present those stories and opinions, you could be rewarded with a room full of your peers or your community who will listen” (Ted.com). Personally, Kay has reminded me that we have to continue to grow, explore, take risks, and challenge ourselves in order to truly experience life and inspire others.
