Redondaa Turns One!
It’s been a year today since I launched by website Redondaa.com. And it’s been quite a ride. I was scared hitting the “live” button so my site could go public. It was even scarier to share it with people who knew me. Would they get it? Would they support it? Would they understand why I needed it? I don’t know. But I’m glad I did it anyway.
See, I’ve been a creative since I was a little girl. For my kindergarten graduation ceremony, I was part of a musical performance where we played lullabies like “Mary had a little Lamb” with bells. I wrote screen plays on Saturday afternoons instead of playing with my dolls. I made dragons out of clay in fifth grade. I went to an arts middle school and performed in a play every year. I went to high school for creative writing and theater. But one day it all stopped. My ideas and imagination didn’t, but my work stopped. For thirteen years, I kept my dreams to a low whisper. Until they only roamed in my head. And after a while, I thought that part of me was dead. My creative spirit had been silenced. And I had been its silencer. But what is, is, and will always find a way. That calling began to itch away at me and gnaw at my soul. It knocked on my door at every turn, so loudly, that I couldn’t suppress it anymore. So, I did the unthinkable, I decided that my life wouldn’t be defined by all the “what ifs”. It would be defined by the “I dids”. And that’s where I’m at today. It’s been almost three years in the making, but I’m still standing. Fighting for myself cost me fear and doubt. And in it I gained confidence.
I introduce myself as Pryscilla Balladares, writer, creative, artist. Do you know what it takes to tell people that? To own who you are and present it to the world? It takes everything that’s in you. So, you better be tough. That’s why I’m proud of myself, and most importantly, the commitment and the investment I made in myself. If there’s anything you can bet on, bet on yourself.
Since launching Redondaa, I joined, and helped form with my sisters, the women’s performing arts collective Heard Space. We’ve been performing all over the city and we even did a show for Summerfest this July. I’ve written, directed, and acted. I’ve sold my vintage jewelry at vending events. I’ve submitted my writing to contests, journals, and online magazines. My poem “What Do You Want for Thirty” was featured on Poletry in Motion (@poletryinmotion on instagram) for their new beginnings theme on instagram. I share a YouTube channel with my friend Erika called FrenAmigas where we share our millennial perspectives. My partner and I launched Miltown Vicious (@miltownvicious on instagram) a Milwaukee pride t-shirt brand. I’m the head of marketing and distribution, and social media manager for it. This past fall, I worked with a non-profit from New York, Art Start, to coordinate their Portrait Project opening exhibition, a year long project that asks our minority youth who they are and how they want people to see them. Currently, I’m the Production Coordinator for Bembe Drum and Dance. I’m coordinating their performances and writing for the theatre component of their shows. In addition, I’ve published my poems onto my site and have added visual components to my pieces.
This Redondaa baby has grown. I stuck with it. I didn’t give up. I took breaks when I needed to, and I spoke up and vouched for myself when I needed to. I’m proud of myself. Cheers Redondaa baby!
Look at what a year can do.