Greetings everyone that has found themselves here within this little oasis of mine. My name is Michael Angelo Abreu. I’m a Dominican American poet currently residing in Philadelphia. I was the first in my family to be born in the United States, and I grew up in the rough neighborhoods of South Bronx New York. Considering my roots, coming from a poor Caribbean nation only to grow up in the ghettos of another, I would say that I have a particularly unique perspective on American life—and, perhaps, life in general. You’ll find a diverse range of experiences, emotions, and ruminations throughout the poetry I share. My hope is that the contradictory nature of my own being paints a more expansive picture for you of the ambiguous nature of the human condition. My greater hope is that this facilitates compassion within you, not for me, not even so much for others, but for your own unique place within the margins of what is considered “regular” human life.

In being a human, a struggler, and a poet, I have created this space as a way to fully embrace what I’ve discovered to be my purpose and joy in life. Poetry has saved me, rescued me from depths of hardships and traumas stemming from childhood to adulthood. Poetry is a ship for me, a way of navigating the often turbulent, often stale and flat, often star-sparkling waters of the day to day. My ambition for this space is to create a refuge that accepts your humanity in full—the humanity that you too often have to hide in order to get-on with the demands of the day. This is a place for your mistakes, your secret passions, your unspoken reflections, your private joys, and more. I intend to nourish your levity, your capacity to remain buoyant on the ocean that is your immense life. It is what poetry has done for me, so I will use this gift to do the same for you.

As mentioned, in this website my poetry (and other forms of writing) will range from the sublime to the concrete dirtiness of daily realities, all written observations made from the tiny window that is this poet’s inner eye. My poems may at times sound different from one another, the poetic voices will conflict, and you may find that the sublime becomes the dirty and the dirty the sublime. That is the point—to view the world and its particulars across various refracted lenses.

If you enjoy what you read here, if you find the things I share meaningful, please support the site. The modern world doesn’t place much value in what has become my dream; it’s a struggle to maintain the course without compromising the very thing that makes me who I am. We trade our time and passions for money because that’s what sustains the growling monster of the world we have created. This trade off, while tolerable to many, contributes to the silent deaths that occur every day—an experience I know firsthand. Again, poetry saved my life. I know you understand. This being said, I have dedicated my entire being to doing this exact thing: writing, for you, for me, for the regular spectacular individual. So please, consider this space your own, and if you appreciate the relief you find within its open atmosphere, support it and support the poetry.

Thank you.