 I teach classes at the poetry lab I'm a poet I just wrote a new book it's called here go the knives just came out from moon tide press it's about growing up with disability some of us did it this is a book about that I also am an artist I did the cover I got some art things going on here like to make paper mobiles as I said I live with disability so I spend a lot of time just right here and I like to make it an imaginative creative space to keep me motivated towards the vision of the world that I want to see which is why I think this theme of our voices is so important I don't think the Long Beach Public Library for inviting me to share some poetry and a little bit about myself I'm a Long Beach based poet I was born in Long Beach I've moved around a little bit but this is the place I've called home for the longest and yeah so I wanted to share some poems from here go the knives which sort of goes the trajectory of when I was diagnosed from around 11 years old till my mid-20s I've had nine different surgeries so that's that's what this book covers yeah so I wanted to read a couple poems to this theme of of our voices and imagining ourselves in the world how and how we want to be how we need and want to be so this one is called girl with scoliosis plays soccer she sweats like other children do runs after the ball gives chase with them grass stains her knees as she slides her body between the cleat and the ball before the ball can be shot at the goal she pushes it with the force of her slide out of bounds we see her