Who Am I

I am a St. Martin writer  and poet focused on Caribbean independence and identity.
Faizah Tabasamu (Rochelle Ward)  is a poet, blogger and teacher. She started writing poetry while attending the St. Maarten Academy. She now teaches English and Literature at the same school. Faizah holds a BA in English and Communications from Pace University, where she received the Hilary Becker Poetry Award.  She has taken MFA-level creative writing course at the University of the West Indies, Trinidad. 
Over the last eight years, Tabasamu has recited her poetry at Axum and Summer Speaks slams, at the St. Martin Book Fair, the Marigot massacre commemoration, and the Anguilla Literary Festival. Her poetry appears in  the anthology Where I See the Sun--Contemporary Poetry in St. Martin (2013), published by House of Nehesi Publishers. According to Tabasamu, "Poetry is my way of seeing." Faizah is one of the island's few consistent and quality bloggers, at rochelleward.com and saltfishandlace.com. She is also the owner of Don't Break the Comb, St. Martin's first natural hair group. 

Sample my poetry.

Publication
Small as we are we have things to say, a body of us have things to share. In every society, there are those who document the life and culture of a people through songs, stories and poems. I happen to be one of those people, but with the hiccups between talent, hard work and poor time management and even procrastination, I often times fail at my calling. Expect honesty and expect persistence. I will become my best creative self.