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A spring deluge pelting Mathews Conference Center East couldn’t dampen the spirit inside for Southwestern Michigan College’s Open Mic Night April 21.

“We always like to have one of these showcases toward the end of an academic semester,” said English Professor Hailey Sheets, mistress of ceremonies. “This is a time to celebrate our creativity and our community here.

“This is about giving you an opportunity as an SMC student to share your voice, your talents and your ideas. It takes real bravery, even in an intimate space like this, to step out in front of any kind of an audience and share something. Sharing something personal that you created can make you feel vulnerable.”

Chloe Thomas led off accompanying herself on guitar to her original song, “Skeleton in My Closet.”

“I’ve been playing guitar since I was 10 and I’ve been writing since before I knew how to spell,” Thomas said. “This is a song I wrote about two years ago.”

Undecided on a major, Thomas, who portrayed Snoopy in the spring musical, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown,” is considering either English or theatre.

Thomas, who is from the Marcellus area, said, “I don’t  often perform my own songs, but I played for several music recitals growing up, and also have performed in theatre since I was little.”

Chance Tucker read a narrative poem he wrote which begins:

I am 9 in the year of 1953.

And right now no fears can bother me.

Yes, tensions are rising across the world.

But why would I care if war unfurled?

My family of four will be just fine.

A home of steel will keep us confined.

The shelter would keep us away and protected

Till we re-enter the world, healed and unaffected.

His darkening narrative “was inspired by the video game ‘Fallout’ and its alternate 1950s style America,” Tucker said. “I thought about the story earlier this year when I wanted to write a poem with a child protagonist. I did a five-page analysis for my poetry class.”

Tucker, who played Schroeder in “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown,” is from Buchanan, where he began acting in theatre productions.

“After SMC I would like to go to a bigger college and continue my degree in English,” Tucker said. “I enjoy most types of writing. My favorite types are creative writing, poetry and, one day, I would love to try screenplay writing.”

Fallout is a 1997 franchise of post-apocalyptic role-playing video games. Tucker has been a fan of the series since he was 7.

Jonathon Wing’s ekphrastic poem was inspired by the cover of the album Hawaii: Part 2 by Miracle Musical, a pseudonym for the band Tally Hall.

“The album cover has a lot of incredible imagery that drew me to it,” said Wing, of Edwardsburg, “my favorite being the image of an anglerfish using the moon as its bulb.”
“I titled my poem ‘Eventuality’ because the poem is based on a choice that must eventually happen — the choice between safety or freedom.”

An English major, Wing mostly writes short stories, “but I also have a few work-in-progress novels. My dream is to become a published author.”

An ekphrastic poem is a vivid literary response to a work of visual art, such as a painting, sculpture or photograph. These poems go beyond mere description to interpret, analyze or reimagine the artwork’s story, injecting new meaning into a static image.

Sophia Smith gave a monologue/prose poem “Pythagoras,” based on a famous quote of the Greek philosopher known for his theorem fundamental to geometry about the relationship between sides of a right triangle.

“Pythagoras once said, 'The great science of living happily consists of living only in the present.'

“But sometimes the present is more painful, so we look to the past when things were better, when the happiness was more frequent and your smile was more vibrant, and when your laughter was not only shared but contagious,” Smith said. “And sometimes we look to the future because we hope it holds something more for us, something bigger, and much more beautiful.”

Smith grew up in Niles and is a dual-enrolled student.

“When I graduate, I plan to go on to a four-year college or university to double-major in equine science and creative writing,” she said.

Ariana Vazquez’s “Ode to My Carnation” was written in June 2024 in tribute to her mother. In part:

She is wise as she is beautiful,

my leisurely admiration

and appreciation

is gradual

I can assure you,

a carnation

like mine is

extremely hard to find

for there are few,

even though I get impatient and a little rude with things you say and things you do

regardless, I will forever love you, every day.

Just as you will me.

Vazquez, from Berrien Springs, is majoring in athletic training. “I’m working towards becoming a physical therapist,” she said. “Nonetheless, I do enjoy creative writing very much. I hope to share some pieces with the world sometime soon.”

Also attending from the Communications and Media Studies Department were Chairman Cody Miller and Leah Westfall, who teaches public speaking.