Fireflies
January 9, 2023
Jericho’s Story
Fifteen-year-old Jericho had suffered a debilitating injury playing in the Harlem streets and had been confined to a wheelchair. Unable to stand, he pushed his chair every day to the Horizon Art Studio at the Harlem Hospital. Upon entering the art program, he had taken an interest in painting and had developed his own characteristic style. Jericho’s work had gotten him some notice and into one of the galleries downtown. Director Bill Richards told me how Jericho would always begin paintings at the bottom of the painting and work his way gradually to the top. His progress toward recovery had plateaued, however, for months, and Jericho had become despondent. One day Bill started him on a new canvas, larger than his customary size. Bill described how Jericho had mixed a beautiful cobalt blue, his favorite hue for the sky and was approaching the top of the dark building cityscape. Jericho had to reach to complete it. As he strained ever higher to the unaccustomed large canvas he just couldn’t reach high enough from his heavy chair. So he stood up to complete the painting.
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Adapted from my Chaos & Ash,
Pelekinesis Press, 2020
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Amidst narratives of despair, we must refocus on the small points of light all around. I’m a former trauma therapist and on-scene disaster consultant, a teacher, a painter, and now a writer. Last year I found hope in gathering stories of individuals persevering against all odds to overcome despair. Fireflies Against Darkness was my first collection of such stories, and More Fireflies, just released, the second. As current events become the spectacle of darkness for another year, I find myself working on s third collection. I want to share them with you.
Adapted from
Fireflies Against Darkness
Arroyo Seco Press
