Saturday, September 21, 2019

The People I Met At Komura Zine Fair

I went as a writer/vendor selling the first volume of my poetry zine. And this is an appreciation post to everything that had transpired...
 
Really funny that we kinda wrapped the table with blue and green cartolina instead of just bringing one of my scarves to serve as table cloth. Why Emina. Why?! But it came out nicely I guess. We turned it into a winter table.

On the vendor's briefing, my clumsiness took over. There was a socket blocking the way and I almost trip because of it. I did manage to find my balance but was not able to survive the next attack by a wire. I really fell over this time. A nearby guy got alarmed and he was about to catch me but the bouncy sofa caught my fall first. HAHAHAHA TF!

There's this reader who bought items from all vendors and of course he bought mine too. If I got a lot of money, I could probably be like him. He is my first buyer and I didn't have change for the 1k he had. I just told him to pay later once he got smaller bills. He was passing when he almost tripped because of my chair and was sorta reminded of the credit he had with me. Lol. People who got involved with me were stumbling all over the place. 

My attempts at photography caught attention. Aside from my zine, I also displayed separate prints of the pictures featured inside. My seatmate and new photographer/interior designer friend, asked if she could have one of them later. It then gave me the idea to just give away those prints once the event is about to finish for free. From then on, there were buyers who reserved these pictures. One of them is a fellow vendor who really looked like someone I ended up knowing. Their resemblance is shocking and if she turned out to be the same person, FATE IS MAKING ONE OF THE GREATEST COSMIC JOKE EVERRR! 

There's a doctor who bought my poetry zine. My course is Biology. Almost everyone keeps on complaining why I didn't become a doctor. That's why by meeting this reader it made me think that on another lifetime where I studied medicine, it's good to know I could be like her. Someone in the field of science and yet could find time to be in love with literature. Drama kept aside, I ended up having a check up with her about my persisting cough. Check up with a doctor in a zine fair? Who would have thought? Conclusion is I need to go back to a nearby doctor to have another check up as advised by this doctor I met at the event. 

A foreigner guy bought my poetry zine! He just left a mark because he made me glad that with the line of work I have right now, speaking in English is no longer an extremely awkward experience. I was explaining the themes of my zine when I mentioned, "This first volume is dark but would be lighter as it goes on.." he replied by saying,

"Life gets better, huh?"

Life is better when you do things you love indeed.

I also roamed searching for zines I'll be buying when I met great fellow vendors. It made me realized every artists (vendor or visitors) in there had one purpose,

We are looking for souls who have the same passion, and with this similarity we shared, we can inspire and help each other.

Others might call this science, but for me, it's both science and magic...that moment of crossing-paths with people you are meant to meet all this time because you are fated to influence each other lives for the better. Always for the better though the means are sometimes bitter.

There are most likely other readers who bought my zine but I was not able to mention, but if they are reading this, know that I'm also sincerely grateful to you. This comes with the hope that all of you would find the help and boost you need by reading my work to survive and live your life.

I'll close this by mentioning three people. Somewhere at the center, I saw someone reading my work. This made me anxious. So anxious that I got the urge to move around to make my anxiety disappear. 

But this person approached my booth. My booth on the sideline. She wanted to buy a copy and my signature on it. She said smiling,

"I really like your work. I find it very relatable."

Unexpectedly.
Real.
Raw. 

The story of my life, after all, have the best author, God. 

Memories might make me forget but by writing all of these down, by publishing my works online or through physical copies...

Words will always make me remember.

Lastly but definitely not the least, to my closest friends who have came over, my first fair as a writer wouldn't be this great without you guys. Pat and Alyssa, may we continue rattling the stars. I'll try my best to be the friend you need when it is your turn. 







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