This week at Boston Warm was slower. Everyone seemed a little tired and unmotivated, which made it difficult to get them to feel engaged. On Monday, however, at the Suffolk House of Corrections program on art and spirituality, I had some positive interactions that gave me a glimpse of the small ways I could be a positive presence at my sites.

First, I asked if I could lead the group in a check-in to share how they felt that day by naming the weather that fit it. I was unsure how a more-involved check-in would go, but all of the women except one participated. Some offered simple answers like “cloudy”, but others shared more-detailed descriptions. I hope to be able to integrate these kinds of check-ins more and more, as I feel they help build a greater sense of community. We only spend an hour with the women, and most of that they spend individually making cards. The check-in and closings, however, provide moments of group connection, so I think emphasizing them more would be great.

Another time on Monday I sat with the women at a table and was commenting on things I had noticed in their art-making. After I had made several observations and talked with one woman about her process, she turned to me and said, “Thank you for noticing me”. This moved me and made me feel successful in my goal of having these women feel seen. I am sure that within a prison it is hard to feel recognized.

I also had a slow but good day on Friday at Boston Warm.  I got to test run doing poetry. After discussions with the other leaders about things to integrate, I got the idea that I could lead a group in writing poetry, as there are many community members who enjoy it. I suggested that we could do blackout poetry. This kind of poetry is done by taking a page of literature, reading through to find stand-out words or phrases, and then blacking out the rest of the words to reveal your poem. So this week I found a book and tore out some pages. The only people who engaged in making the poem were other volunteers, but I did have some people ask about it.  I hope that the more I do it, and the more others try it, the more inclined people will be to join in.

— Marielle Carpentier

The first of these blackout poems begins, “Angels certainly are not guests. They ain’t clergy. More’s the pity!”