Thanks to The North 40 Tavern for their support. A north woods tavern somewhere in the middle of a big city. They regularly rotate tap beers, so stop in to see what’s currently flowing.
Amore Coffee is hosting a pair of events with local author Isaiah Allen. The first will focus on his children’s book A Smile and the second will be a poetry open mic to process and heal.
Why: “My book is called A Smile, and right now, more than any time, I think that’s so important for the youth,” Allen said.
Who: 25-year-old Isaiah Allen lives on the West Side and went to Garlough, Heritage, and St. Croix Lutheran. He played football for St. Thomas, has deep volunteer roots in the community, and currently works as a project coordinator for the City of Minneapolis.
- “Partnerships and fellowship and relationships have been crucial to a lot of my success, because I know I can’t do it by myself,” Allen said. “I want to be a person that is able to connect and bridge gaps for people, whether that’s in a corporate job, in the community, if I ever decide to run for something—that’s the type of leader I know I have to be.”
A Smile
Allen wrote A Smile as a senior at St. Thomas and it channels his positive energy.
“It’s about how you can not only influence the people around you, but your environment and future outcomes, by being positive,” Allen said. “I think West St. Paul does that incredibly well, and I’ll even loop in St. Paul in general, for how community oriented we are and how we love our neighbors.”
Poetry to Process
Operation Metro Surge and the ongoing impact inspired Allen to write. Poetry can be healing, and recent events have shown that community is more important than ever.
“I was going through a lot of anxiety, and my grandma told me to write a poem,” Allen said. The result is “Born in the Cold Heart of Fire,” a poem about neighbors helping one another:
We were born in the cold / But our hearts run hot.
“The environment in Minnesota is known for it’s cold, but I’ve never really felt cold here,” said Allen. “To be Minnesotan is to be warm.”
Poetry Is Fun
But it doesn’t all have to be deep: “Writing for me is supposed to be fun,” Allen said. “There can also be meaning to it, but we don’t have to stress ourselves out trying to write deep all the time.”
Allen’s favorite work is about cows with fancy hairdos.
“It’s supposed to make you laugh,” Allen said. “We need that, especially when there’s so many distractions that take us away from being ourselves and being positive and being the neighbors that we can be.”
The Events
A Smile Reading & Signing
- When: Saturday, March 14 at 3 p.m.
- What: Allen described it as “a book reading/community conversation around positivity.”
- Who: The event is geared for kids and families, but Allen also hopes to connect with teens interested in writing: “I’m a writing coach, so anybody can come to me and if they’re interested in writing a book,” Allen said. “I’ll walk them through the journey.”
- Where: Amore Coffee at 879 Smith Ave. S. in West St. Paul
Spoken Word Open Mic
- When: Saturday, April 11 at 4 p.m.
- What: Allen will host a poetry open mic, reading some of his work and sharing the space with others willing to read their work.
- Who: As a community event to share truths and process emotions, this event is open to anyone, but is not geared specifically for children.
- Where: Amore Coffee at 879 Smith Ave. S. in West St. Paul
More: Learn more about the events from Amore Coffee and visit Allen’s website for more on his work and to connect.
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