Welcome To The Monastery

Hey guys, welcome to The Monastery! I’m Matthew Harvey, the blogger of this community and I’m super excited to start this journey with you all!

I’ve been a poet for five years and have been evolving into a dynamic and powerful individual each day because of what the art has done for me over the years. I started writing during a vulnerable and sensitive time in my life where I was surrounded people who were willing to support me through my difficulties, but being the independent–minded (and really just freakin’ stubborn) person I am, I pretended there was no one there; no one to help. And so, over time my mental health declined, and it got to a point where simple hurdles and minor downfalls felt like the universe was against me and my world was falling apart. For many years (and quite honestly even now) I went through periods of depression, happiness, anxiety, regret, anger, success, failure, and the list goes on. With each experience I became weaker, angrier and detached myself more and more from reality – I became numb. I forced myself from feeling and being sensitive and prevented myself from being human. I started writing because after going through several urges of committing suicide, of hurting others and of dealing with huge bouts of mood swings, I decided to give myself a chance at finding a coping mechanism.

Because I felt like I deserved it – and we all do, quite frankly.

Writing poetry gave me enough room to put my emotions. It allowed me to lay my burdens onto a stronger being ­– blank paper (or to be honest, the notes app on my iPhone, haha! but you get the picture). I realized overtime, I was less inclined to contemplate ending my life and compelled to just…write! This led me into writing about so many themes and even unlocked parts of my mind I didn’t know I had. Poetry has been the most effective tool for me to establish some peace within my soul and some order to my days and I’m now convinced that it can do this for anyone.

So, I created The Monastery.

The Monastery was created from reading to the walls in my room whenever I’d write my pieces. I pretended that the walls, the floor and even my closet, were my readers and I’d always give them a show. And then it dawned on me – what if I tried to create a community of real readers? And so I started brainstorming ways in which I could get people to hear the good news of writing; how I could get young men and women who often feel alone in their struggles to know that there is help and strength in your fingers and in your five senses; to let my society know that it’s oppression will never destroy vulnerable souls once their writing.

And then a blog came to mind!

The Monastery blog, according to the homepage, will serve as a platform for young Jamaican poets to showcase their work and to keep on writing. Also, to provide an avenue for readers who may be weak, depressed, anxious, suicidal, lonely and discouraged, to find strength and encouragement through poetry. However, if you’re not Jamaican and you would love to share your work, please feel free to reach out. A poet is a poet, regardless of national boundaries. The community loves the art and we do not discriminate against any race, sexuality or religious preferences.

For poets planning to submit pieces, I would prefer if they are copyrighted before submitting. I started out writing without any intention of publishing and fast forward five years later, I’m in the process of putting out my first book. So, I encourage that you legally organize the rights to your work before sharing with the world. However, if you don’t mind people using it for personal or commercial purposes, you can just submit. The blog will share pieces from a variety of themes namely “Encouragement”, “Romance”, “Fantasy”, “Dark” and one I’m most excited about, “I Am Woman”. This last category will be dedicated solely to women empowerment. Some pieces may incorporate a little of two or more themes, but you get the idea. I aim to appeal to a wide range of poets and readers to become a part of the movement and to make themselves and each other aware of significant issues affecting societies all over the world.

Cheers!