Tula [“City life is a whirl of poetry readings”]

City life is a whirl of poetry readings and forbidden tertulias, gatherings where young and old, rich and poor, male and female, dark and light— runaway slaves and freed ones, former masters and former servants—all take turns sharing secret verses rooted in startling new ideas. Each evening, I go home with a mind that glows in the light of words, which leap like flames...