Poems come out of wonder, not out of knowing..

—Lucille Clifton

The OctoGenarian Tour 24-25—September & November, Fort Wayne IN; March, Ithaca NY; April Boston, Framingham MA, & Cleveland OH; May Comer, GA, & Washington DC; June, Fort Wayne IN; July, the Pacific Northwest—Olympia, Tacoma, Bellingham.

Musician, Poet, Photographer, Journalist, Artist, Vince Robinson (not related) is another of Robin’s contacts. She arranged for me a promotional tour interview with Vince, who hosts both a radio & an internet broadcast. Following the interview, Ron & I had a face-to-face at Third Space Action Lab, a Black bookstore, community gathering space, & grassroots research hub, strategy & design cooperative on 105^th Street—one of the community’s vital centers.

Vince & I spoke again on his Saturday morning 360 Info Network live cast, & that evening, I caught artists at Vince’s Larchmere Arts, a gathering place for artists, their visions, & Cleveland’s conscious cultural community. First opened as a co-owned photography studio, a couple years later when Vince assumed sole ownership his vision was to create a community space that was open & accessible to healing, grounding, & uplifting cultural vibrations.

Vince in many respects is an Elder Jeli (Griot) whose roots are deep in the history of Afrika & its cultural expression in the Diaspora. Vince’s multifaceted talents & multilevel engagements —social, economic, & political— with day-to-day living give his able hands strength to stir many pots in the Cleveland stew of rebirthing community.