I am so lucky. I got an email, had a free evening, jumped in my car, took off.
This Moroccan guy spent last summer? travelling across America from poet to poet in all sorts of great cities, Boulder, Colorado etc. And there he was reading out his translations into Arabic just for us, a bunch of Oxford poetry floozies, enticed by no entry fee and even free tea/coffee. He loves chatting and meeting people, reading out his work and hanging around with anyone who is into poetry.
We asked questions and talked politics, interrupted what he was saying, let him tell us about his night not on the tiles at some grey hound bus station. We had to be told to wind it up because we were settling in for the night, and the shop does need to shut!
To finish 2 brave souls did an open mic, someone else and me. We all had photos taken of each other and swapped various facebook and email details.
Now I need his translation of something to work on. It's on YouTube. I put Arabic on hold temporarily, needing to reclaim my mind, but that's been reversed again. Nothing like being read to by a real live person.
100,000 Poets for Change
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