Bamboo Ridge and MIA

On October 15, the folks at MIA Art and Literary Series and Bamboo Ridge Press teamed up to celebrate the 100th issue of the Bamboo Ridge literary magazine. As a member of Hawaiʻi Pacific University’s Sigma Tau Delta (English) honor society, I volunteered to help set up and work behind the scenes at the event.

The room was set, and the vibe was jamming. The chairs quickly filled up, while surplus audience members filed in standing and sitting around the stage. Authors recited works that varied from pieces that were in the journal like a story of a girl who "was from here, but not really from here," to other works like the premier performance sample from a book of poems about the Nanjing Massacre.

It was a great turn out, seeing the local literary community show support to fellow local artists spreading the word and expressing their stories. The audience was attentive, and everyone was so warm–ohana definitely had a prominent presence in the festive light colored warehouse turned literary haven.