In her own words:
“I was exposed to books at a very young age by my parents. I remember having a whole collection of fairy tales. I found them very intriguing and then my preference slowly upgraded to fiction novels especially the romantic ones… that is where I had my first encounter with real poetry. Next thing I knew, I was looking out for anything that was poetic. Whatever would rhyme was music to my ears. The fact that I was a quiet girl also made me grow my skill in the art. I wasn’t the type of girl to openly express my feelings. Whenever I was hurt by anyone, I would pick up my pen and notebook and vent in writing. When I was happy about something but thought no one would really get me, my notebook always understood me, when I had a crush on someone…. I turned into Shakespeare… although most of these remained locked away in my notebook, I always felt some sense of satisfaction, comfort, relief. When my High school Literature teacher Mr. Chole discovered my interest in poetry, he didn’t just encourage me to write more he pushed me to do so. And the more I read and wrote, the more my love for poetry grew. Then I discovered that my grandfather didn’t only have a thing for Shakespeare but for poetry as well. That’s when I came to the conclusion that maybe this whole thing was just in my blood. All I know is it has made my life a whole lot better and helped me look at life and the world from a totally different perspective… a poetic one.”
Her calm composer must be result of solitary years spent in conversation with characters in story books. It earned students’ respect for Mercy enough to crown her their head girl. She was very active in several creative activities like poetry and drama and held attention in her circle of friends and peers.
She is an avid reader of novels and writer of short stories and poems. She loves watching movies, listening to music, and trying out new things “… as long as they don’t get me in trouble.” She is a high school teacher of literature and English language. She is also trying her hands at entrepreneurship.
Her creative mind and experience in poetry has been invaluable resource as a second eye for the editor in reviewing the poems for the anthology.
What about her future in poetry? She hopes to produce a work of poetry that everyone can relate to. “Probably publishing the most unconventional anthology in the history of poetry with a title like ‘A collection of what looks like poetry’,” Stated Nambuba Mercy. “Something that someone who has the least interest in poetry wouldn’t find trouble reading.”
Time will tell.
