Meet the poet who is using social media to keep spoken word art alive and relevant.
Fatima Elmusbahi’s poetry is personal and explores themes of beauty within daily life. She can well be described as part of the changing face of poetry.
She said, “Poets are everyone and anyone. Poetry is expressing thoughts that circulate within a mind’s eyes onto paper. Those who have courage to pick up a pen rather than a sword will create more impact.
"There will always be an audience for those who seek this form of mediation.”
Social media has reinvigorated the lifeblood of the poetry genre which is now resonating with the younger generation.
Last year, poetry book sales in the UK increased by £1.3m with two-thirds of buyers found to be under 34-years-old.
Fatima has been writing creatively since she was 7-years-old and recently segued her passion for writing into poetry.
“My words are life in a pinnacle moment. Everything that passes is temporary, yet the lessons that pass remain.
"I find the written word a beautiful form of expression- like art on canvas, it is art. For every reader that reads, they articulate it and understand it differently to the next. They mould it to what is relevant to their current life journey.
"Writing allows me to access the trails of thoughts that circulate in people’s minds and in some ways, provoke a deeper intellectual progression.
“Writing advocates self-healing to me as the writer and you as the reader. It’s a beautiful connection.”
Pictures: www.fatimaelmusbahi.com
A Nutritional Science graduate, Fatima hails from a mixed ethnicity, a combination of Arab/North African, Bengali and white roots.
The various cultures she associates herself with have inspired her to raise awareness of mental health in the community.
“Mental Health is very much neglected in the East. Healing of the mind is indeed complex and cannot be resolved by access to a pill of remedy. The human body’s function and efficiency is dependent on the resilience and discipline of the human mind.
"However, this is not an easy objective, so what I am currently doing about it, I guess, is being vocal on my Instagram to address and discuss how it is not a weakness to suddenly feel depressed or suffer from anxiety.”
You can follow Fatima on Instagram @fatimaelmusbahi (Picture by Shamia Ahmed)
Fatima also uses her social media platform to share her take on modest fashion. “I want to advocate and express modest fashion in my own unique style and format.
"The blessing I have received in reaching more people comes with great responsibility so I cannot say the way I style my hijab and outfits are absolutely perfect. There is great room for improvement.
“Yet I am here to reach out to women, to empower them. I want them to understand that good hijab is completely a definition of how they make it.
"It’s a fluidity and movement that we all can share and learn from one another and by no means is it an objective definition.
“Every day I learn, grow and wield a greater energy and courage to express myself, to which I hope my audience prolong this journey with me, learning more about themselves also in this process.
“The modest fashion community should grow together and never be in conflict- no two flowers compete against one another, but merely bloom earnestly of sun and moon.”
This article is featured in the April issue of Asian Life here
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