getting plastered

on wednsdays i

volunteer at

a community arts

program, quite a few

participants are mentally

handicapped, disabled.

every one of them

so smart and

so kind. one participant

enjoys art for it is

the opposite

of mathematics; there

is no right or

wrong answer, and no

right or wrong way

to solve the blank

page...

one week we

were working with

plaster, making masks

or sculpting from our 

bodies or anything

of choice. i was helping one

girl model her hand-

   the same girl who

      told me to take my

   earring out from

      my nose-

and as i was positioning

the wet

plaster on her hand, she

told me

i was gentle

with her. and i, not exactly

sure what to

say, said; "well,

i'm gentle with

everybody," and

everybody kept

on.

Reviews

[Adrian K. Smith]

It has the feel that it is mean to be told rather than read. The writing is that comfortable. After a long day at work, sitting around with some friends... tada, there it is. Giving such spoken qualities in such a natural form is a true talent.

[G Garcia]

Chad - this is another beautiful poem. Its overt simplicity covers a depth that touched me because it speaks volumes about both subject and narrator. I really loved the line "it is the opposite of mathematics; there is no right or wrong answer, and no right or wrong way to solve the blank page..."

My one criticism with this work (and a few others of yours that I've read) is the use of the word "for." In this case, it comes here: "one participant enjoys art for it is the opposite of mathematics." The complaint is perhaps minor, but the usage seems to go against the grain of your narrator's voice with the formal (almost archaic) usage of "for." I'd prefer to read "because" or some other more mundane choice in these instances.

Beautiful work overall.

[Rainbowco]

I feel the kindness for others here, though you may try to deny it. I too work with mentally disabled people, and know their joy for creating, which in itself is an artform. Your poem enchants me completly.