“I saw birthday candles stuck in a homemade cake, blinking out ‘Thank you for existing.’ And in that moment I understood what a gift it was to breathe.” Poetry is a celebration of life. It gives the audience a glimpse of the world from the poet’s eyes while providing the poet a perfect outlet for self-expression. I used this medium to share messages of hope during the Covid-19 pandemic, delivering my spoken word performance at the 2021 TEDxWhitney to hundreds of people. “There's something thick in the air today. It weighs bitter and heavy on my tongue. It smells like a quiet classroom on edge, The moment before an outburst of accusations and raucous laughter. Warm tendrils of putrid rot invade my sinuses. Ah, a fart.” Shakespeare, Poe, Dickinson…they are unquestionably some of the greatest story-tellers to grace the earth, but they don’t make my friends laugh the way I do, and that’s all the validation I need. “You can only be a princess, healer, sweetheart, laundry basket, china bowl, punching bag. Look, look how lucky you are. You have so many choices when you are born a girl.” Poetic activism is my bullhorn to spread awareness for issues I’m passionate about, from suffocating gender roles, to mental health, to the mistreatment of migrant workers. Spoken word poetry is how I express my creativity and how I will inspire my audiences to bring positive change to the world.