An article from the December 28th issue of The Halifax West Clayton Park Weekly News:
By Kate Watson (email: watsons5@accesswave.ca)
Connections Clubhouse is an opportunity centre in Halifax that offers mental-health consumers a social network and an opportunity to provide leadership in the community.Photograph by Glen Canning.
Members of Connections, along with other Nova Scotian mental-health consumers, recently launched a book entitled Looking Beyond.
The book, which was produced with funds from the Nova Scotia Mental Health Foundation, contains poetry, prose and art work with a unique perspective on mental illness.
John Devlin of Dartmouth contributed two poems, The Ghost on the Mezzanine and Enigma of the Piano.
"My poetry is a way of dealing with the images that come to mind when one is mentally ill, a way to objectify them," he said. "Hopefully, that will be interesting to other people."
Devlin says that although it's wonderful to have his work published, he writes because he enjoys expressing himself through the structure of poetry.
Laura Burke of Halifax has been writing poetry for 12 years, and she welcomed the opportunity to be published with other creative artists.
"My poetry is about living your best life," she says. "It's about finding a way towards recovery from the things that hold you back.
"I really think that this collection will be enjoyed by people who appreciate art and the written word, and that it will truly give people a chance to look beyond."The book was edited by Teresa Brown (pictured, right), who says the project came about on the recommendation of the members of the clerical department of Connections.
Brown approached mental-health consumers across Nova Scotia and persuaded them to get involved.
"A big part of my job was chasing people to meet deadlines," she says, laughing. "But I'm very happy with the result, and I'm hopeful that there will be more collections in the future."
Looking Beyond sells for $15 and is available from Connections Clubhouse, 1221 Barrington Street, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada B2J 1Y2, or by calling (902) 473-8692.
