@Kina Brown thank you so much for that and trust me there have been a lot of tears it has been hard my favorite piece of furniture is the office desk and chair my old desk was my dad's and his chair but they were old and warn down. The hardest thing I lost was I had boxes of poems from college that all got burned in the fire. All of my first wife's thing she passed away 7 years ago unexpectedly. But we are surviving and keeping our heads up . Thank you again for your kind words

@Kina Brown oh yes I'm the founder of The Art of Poetry Community I have been writing about this experience since the fire happened and thank you again your words mean so.much

Some founders swear by free, some charge from the start, some build giant businesses, some build straight from the heart. And honestly? I don’t think either one is wrong, if the soul of the community is steady and strong. Because free can build family, a place people grow, where strangers become friends and encouragement flows. But paid creates commitment, it sharpens the flame, because people show up different when they invest in the game. Free says: “Come on in.” Paid says: “Let’s get serious.” Free builds reach. Paid builds intention. And somewhere in the middle… is balance and vision. The mistake isn’t charging. The mistake isn’t free. The mistake is forgetting what your community is supposed to be. Because people can feel it when passion turns fake, when every conversation starts feeling like bait. Build something real. Something honest and alive. A place people look forward to after surviving a hard night. Then choose the model that fits YOUR mission best. Not trends. Not pressure. Not what worked for the rest. Because the strongest communities aren’t built from subscriptions alone… They’re built from people who finally found a place By Jason Strickland The Art of Poetry Community that feels like home.

@Jennie Sikes this is a poem I wrote that got turned into a song about how to getore members

@Corinna Smith this is a poem I wrote that @Donny Baker made

Retirement