I closed my eyes for 3 seconds and in that momentary silence, wrapped in a pink kitenge laying on my boat shaped mattress, I knew that everything was falling into place.. This was before the July launch of 'Feeling,' the poetry book celebrating iconic Ugandan women, published by the Babishai Niwe Poetry Foundation.
I enjoy planning events. I do. I enjoy sitting with the organisers and walking through the venue weeks prior to the event. I relish asking the kitchen staff what meals they plan to prepare for the guests and taking photos with th head chef. I like listening to the General Manager of a hotel as he persuades me to bring my husband for a discounted weekend in the well furnished suites.
Planning events is like whispering into the future and imparting blessings on every guest.
When I am an emcee, I am also an assistant events coordinator. I need to breathe the same air, listening to the same conversations and walk where the event planners have walked, so that I am able to nuzzle the event with a well prepared emceeing experience. It's not just talking and directing people to the next point on the agends. It is an experience.
As the founder of the Babishai Niwe Poetry Foundation, my heart has scaled the emotional heigts of despair and experienced the elevated elations of triumph. I have walked miles to deliver invitation cards and meet journalists and sat for hours with individuals in restaurants delivering proposals.
I knew that the team shared these values of preparation with me. How did I know? I just knew. Their mannerisms reflected it.
The team members embody thoroughness. They grasped the task with such alacrity that pleasantly surprised me at every turn. Theyasked questions, reached out to the individual poets, visited the venue and inquired about the guest list.
I am grateful to the organising committee that helped pit this event together.
Beverley N Nsengiyunva
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