… and consider yourself an honorary Miamian!
Did you know that in addition to providing readings and residencies at The Betsy Hotel on South Beach and publishing a poem every weekday, SWWIM is very active in Miami? We partner with O, Miami; Miami Book Fair; Books & Books; the creative writing departments at regional universities; a variety of museums, galleries, and visual arts curators; and other local stakeholders to cement Miami's reputation as a home and a source for transformative literature. Helping to shape the future of our city is something that we care deeply about, and we understand this to be part of our organization's mission and legacy.
To that end, we offer you a poem by one of our very first contributors, who was also our guardian angel and patron, the beloved Maureen Seaton, who transitioned this past August.
Among Us, Divine I parted my own sea and you came to me: sort of unscripted, sort of splendid. A loose bolt in the imagination—the very one that got me in trouble sipping lilac wine (stolen from you five minutes ago). Remember? You were breaking in your ukulele. All those tiny hand movements. I glued myself into a collage and you flew. There was something old school about us. Or scientifically unsound. We made faces at Czars. My eyes were browning then, and yours were shaped like starfish. You never know who you’ll run into as you sweep the sea with a slender stalk. I’ve carried my life inside me for so long now, never knowing where it would take me, so irretrievable, so stark raving mine.
We know that Maureen is cheering us on as we participate in Give Miami Day, one of the largest annual giving events in the nation. Before her passing, she requested that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in her name to various literary organizations, including SWWIM. If your situation allows, we would be extremely thankful if you'd consider doing just that.
No gift is too small; every dollar we receive moves us closer to our goal of $5,000.00, which will be matched by an anonymous donor. Early giving started on Monday, November 13, and continues through Give Miami Day on Thursday, November 16th. So please, if you can, consider a gift to help us SWWIM strong into a bigger and brighter future.
With So Much Gratitude,
The SWWIM Team