JOEL WASHINGTON ATTERBURY Joel Atterbury, named after my father and grandfather. Born and raised in what was considered the Mecca for Black people in it’s heyday, Harlem USA! A town with such reverence and presence in Black people’s psyche. A rich history that is hard to deny. Just off namesake alone it evokes many cultural icons from yesteryear, style and fashion that still influences the world today. The brightest, most talented exceptional people amongst us gravitated Harlem at one point or another. The scene itself is poetry in motion. A poet, lyricist and author, my attraction and love affair for words started in my youth but unbeknownst to me, my appreciation for it would soon turn into my gift and most prized possession as well as my salvation. In the early stages my love for music had me penning raps and for every lesson and experience that life has handed down to me, I’ve been able to translate them to words as a hobby whether as poems or raps. The rigors and challenges of life naturally took me away from my gifts as I toiled through my days, going through my “Go thru’s” and everything that comes with love and life as we try to navigate our surroundings and make them make sense. As I got older, with maturity my perspective and perception of things became stronger. I was more conscious and aware and in tune with people more. I was able to reach people on a deeper level, something I noticed while maintaining a currently active 20+ year career in the healthcare