My Heart is OnFire!!

Although I participate in many clubs at Rider University, the one that I enjoy the most and feel that I do the most work in is the OnFire: Literary Journal. This amazing club that was put together by a hardworking sophomore who has become a good friend of mine, Rance Robeson, allows me to express myself in the best way that I know how, Poetry. At the beginning of each meeting, we start off by listening to music that rhymes in different ways. Sometimes the song will tell a deep story that is hidden in its words, while some songs get straight to the point and focus more on making sure that each line is catchy and interesting. After we listen and discuss the song, we each write a short poem and have it edited and reviewed by our peers. At the end of the meeting, our poems are handed back and we close with a list of the events that we will be having within the month.

We have held many events throughout they year including The Poetry Special where we had Iyaba Mandingo, a famous competition winning poet, come and read some of his poems as he painted a self portrait. We have also had a writing workshop where we had a professor from Rutgers University come down and help us work on our poems and writing skills. The professor that came down was a very intelligent woman who improved my writing tremendously. The last event that we held was the Journal Premiere where I was able to present my poem and listen to my peers read their great pieces. Many people came down to see the journal premiere and it turned out to be a huge success. The best part of being an executive leader in the club is that we all bond and treat each other like family. Towards the end of the semester, the board members took a trip to New York City to see a poetry slam and since it was my first time I was greatly looking forward to it. That night was one of the best nights of my life as I listened to people read poetry in a way I had never heard of before. OnFire has improved my character greatly and helped me become more sociable with other people. This is a club that I will always hold dear to my heart and plan to be a part throughout all of my years at college.