Sunday, July 31, 2016

A Far Azore

I am a playwright and artist.

I can say this because not only do I write and paint, but I also bring my work into the world of audiences.  (Which is sometimes harder or easier than you or i might think)

Lately, I have been working on a play about an African American woman, who was a contemporary of Thoreau.  She has a lot of amazing letters and the foundation which adores her wants to make her a hero.  I'm in full support of this.

One problem I keep hitting my head against is my strong Portuguese heritage.

Knowing that the Portuguese transported slaves.  Somehow, i feel not directly responsible because of the Azores.  Far enough out of the way to be guiltless, and never benefitting directly from the Slave Trade.  The farmers and fishermen were generally forgotten after Columbus.

Henry David Thoreau wrote the above line, "A Far Azore", far from everything indeed....

(I think it should be the name of a book in my future....)