Earlier this month, Mahmood, a member of the MRCF Blog Team, interviewed a fellow blog team member. Aissata and Mahmood are also participants in the MRCF mentoring programme. This interview is to help us get to know Aissata a little bit better…
A: I was born in Guinea in 1975.Q: Where was your first school?
A: My first school was in France.
Q: Are you studying now?
A: I am not currently studying.
Q: When you started writing poetry? What initiated you into writing?
A: I started writing poems after high-school. That’s when my boy-friend at the time travelled to England. I was sad, so I decided to fill his absence with written words.
Q: Tell us about your poem “The Wrestlers”?
A: “The Wrestlers” is about pride and shame: sometimes, not knowing when to display pride can lead to embarassment. It’s about two men, not really bright, fighting over something very foolish.
Q: Tell us about your poem “The tears of my mother”?
A: “The Tears of My Mother” is about immigration, the need for young people to leave their families and their country for a better life in Europe, and the dangers they face when traveling from one continent to another. It’s about a mother waiting to receive news from her son who left years ago for an unknown place. The truth could be that he died during his journey, trying to reach Europe. I am just exploring the pain it can be for a mother to wait years and years for a son that will never come back.
Q: Who is your favourite poet?
A: My favourite poet is Guy Tirolien, a French caribbean.
Q: What are your future plans?
A: All of my plans are on hold at the moment. I only have dreams that cannot be shared at this particular time.
Q: When you first knew about English Pen?
A: I first knew about English Pen during the creative writing workshop at MRCF. From what I can see, they (English Pen, MRCF as well) do a great job in helping people from different background to be more proficient in English.
Q: What does “Life” mean to you?
A: Life means experience, love, friendship, good things and also bad things; learning from mistakes, learning from others.
