Make Me Rain: Poems and Prose by Nikki Giovanni
You cannot read Nikki Giovanni’s poetry and prose without being grateful to be a part of her life. She’s mentored us through poems like Nikki Rosa [“Black love is Black wealth and they’ll…..probably talk about my hard childhood…..and never understand that…..all the while I was quite happy”] and Ego Tripping (there may be a reason why) [“I am so perfect so divine so ethereal so surreal…..I cannot be comprehended. except by my permission…..I mean …I …can fly…..like a bird in the sky…”] She has gifted us with her experiences and those of her ancestors [e.g., Dreams and Knoxville, Tennessee]. She has taught us the beauty of ink, how to make meaning out of art, how to let it be productive, and how to let it speak and challenge. In her work we hear about revolution and action, we learn about the black arts movement, and civil rights and black power. We hear about family and how we treat each other and this world we’re in.
But back in 1968, as Ms. Giovanni has stated in her website’s biography “no one was much interested in a Black girl writing what was called “militant” poetry. I thought of it as good poetry but we all have our own ideas. Since no one wanted to publish me I formed a company and published myself. That was a lot easier to do in the old days…..Now I had a goal. I wanted to be a writer who dreams or maybe a dreamer who writes but I knew one book does not a writer make. I started on my second book which garnered a lot of attention because I launched it at Birdland–the jazz club in NYC.”
From 1968, when she self-published her first volume of poetry Black Feeling Black Talk until her most recent publication of poetry and prose titled Make Me Rain (2020), Ms. Giovanni has continued to write and, through her award-winning works, to reaffirm the importance of history and storytelling. For at least a month now, I’ve been savoring and celebrating this most recent publication, a testament to the singular manner in which Ms. Giovanni voices her concerns while simultaneously promoting love, community, and the power of language. In Silence she beautifully describes quiet love formed over time, while in the poem Raise Your Hand (in favor of immigrants) she spotlights the contributions of immigrants to our communities. Contributions are also honored in poems such as The First Students of Color at Virginia Tech (where the author is a University Distinguished Professor), Sister Althea (a former teacher), and Quilts in which the author states that: “America is a quilt…..made up of different…..folk…..we came together to build…..something warm…..and good…” The power of language is emphasized in the essay We Write, from which this quote is taken; a quote that reminds us of the commitment Ms. Giovanni has made to literature and to the impact she has made on all of us.
We write because we have evolved to another century. We write to be sure the words to the songs, and for those who understand, the notes to the music, get written down. We write because we are lonely and scared and we need to keep our hearts open. Black Ink, or as my student Jordan Holmes writes, Black Mail, comes to all of us because that’s who we are and what we do it with. By definition. Black Mail is what we receive. And I am so glad that I do. I like those folks on the ship who created that moan that became the Spirituals that turned into Jazz and Blues and everything all the way up to Rap and whatever will come next. We who do words are doing what we do. We are not trying to get folk who are frightened of us to be calm around us. We are reminding folk who love us that this is a good thing. Black Ink should be a soup or a drink or something we can embrace with pride. Black Lives Matter. Black Ink reminds us of why. [Kindle Version, p. 57]
