originally written for The Emory Wheel: Arts & Living(www.emorywheel.com)
The first poem I ever performed in public, I performed at Café Unity. I was dragged by an upperclassman friend during the fall of my sophomore year. He offered to accompany me on the harmonica as I read. It was too close to Dylan-ness for me to refuse.
We arrived that Thursday evening, and like any first-time performer, I was nervous. But as the evening began, I got my first glimpse of our campus’ creative collective. Alum Anirudh “Eka” Dhullipalla wowed me with his wordplay. Now junior, then freshman Daniel Weingarten taught me about the power of “Virgin Swag” through his poem of the same name. Current senior and Café Unity President Ariel Wolpe strummed softly on her guitar, playing sweet melodies that were stuck in my head all week.
They were casual, comfortable. It wasn’t so much a performance with any of them, but a conversation, a sharing of who they were and what they really think about the world. Everyone was genuine. So by the time I stepped to the mic in front of those dozen or so people to read, I wasn’t nervous anymore. It felt like sharing with friends; I’d gotten to know so much about them as the evening progressed.
Two years later, the friends have turned into family. For the creative-conscious on this campus, Café Unity isn’t just about performing their work, it’s about monthly family reunions.
Your people get busy. The performers get bogged down by academics. There’s the EMT class, the labs, the midterms, the meetings. It’s often hard to reconnect with everyone’s artistic side. That’s why when we ask fellow regulars if they’ll be at Café Unity, it’s not so much said as an event, but as a Sunday dinner, a time for the family to reconnect.
For me, Café Unity was where I found this family. Before my first performance, I had barely begun to explore the artistic outlets on this campus (there was no Chalk Girl). Café Unity showed me the creative consciousness that exists on our campus, and though it’s not always the most visible piece of Emory, it’s such an inspiring collection of people that have truly changed who I am.
When I first walked into Common Grounds for Café Unity, this collection was relatively small. Fifteen to 20 people sat in the couches and pulled up a few chairs from the tables. This year as I walked up to read that same poem I did my first night, I saw so many more faces waiting for me to start. About 30 people now fill Common Grounds for Café Unity, with chairs lined up to the back wall. It’s growing, and I say that not with egotistical ambitions, but in the way parents look with pride at teenagers, excited about how they’ve evolved. It’s also always expanding. There were 15 scheduled performers last Thursday; some were the regulars, but most of them were first-timers. The family is always open to newcomers.
We arrived that Thursday evening, and like any first-time performer, I was nervous. But as the evening began, I got my first glimpse of our campus’ creative collective. Alum Anirudh “Eka” Dhullipalla wowed me with his wordplay. Now junior, then freshman Daniel Weingarten taught me about the power of “Virgin Swag” through his poem of the same name. Current senior and Café Unity President Ariel Wolpe strummed softly on her guitar, playing sweet melodies that were stuck in my head all week.
They were casual, comfortable. It wasn’t so much a performance with any of them, but a conversation, a sharing of who they were and what they really think about the world. Everyone was genuine. So by the time I stepped to the mic in front of those dozen or so people to read, I wasn’t nervous anymore. It felt like sharing with friends; I’d gotten to know so much about them as the evening progressed.
Two years later, the friends have turned into family. For the creative-conscious on this campus, Café Unity isn’t just about performing their work, it’s about monthly family reunions.
Your people get busy. The performers get bogged down by academics. There’s the EMT class, the labs, the midterms, the meetings. It’s often hard to reconnect with everyone’s artistic side. That’s why when we ask fellow regulars if they’ll be at Café Unity, it’s not so much said as an event, but as a Sunday dinner, a time for the family to reconnect.
For me, Café Unity was where I found this family. Before my first performance, I had barely begun to explore the artistic outlets on this campus (there was no Chalk Girl). Café Unity showed me the creative consciousness that exists on our campus, and though it’s not always the most visible piece of Emory, it’s such an inspiring collection of people that have truly changed who I am.
When I first walked into Common Grounds for Café Unity, this collection was relatively small. Fifteen to 20 people sat in the couches and pulled up a few chairs from the tables. This year as I walked up to read that same poem I did my first night, I saw so many more faces waiting for me to start. About 30 people now fill Common Grounds for Café Unity, with chairs lined up to the back wall. It’s growing, and I say that not with egotistical ambitions, but in the way parents look with pride at teenagers, excited about how they’ve evolved. It’s also always expanding. There were 15 scheduled performers last Thursday; some were the regulars, but most of them were first-timers. The family is always open to newcomers.
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