This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

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The ReEntry Lab is an organization working to connect writers and other artists leaving incarceration to a community that’s ready to receive them.

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Light refreshments will be served; masks are required at @moonpalacebooks.bsky.social and are available on-site. This is a free event.

Better Things is a series of events sponsored by the ReEntry Lab, in partnership with the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop (MPWW) and Moon Palace Books….

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🎤

Please join us on Tuesday, May 5th, at 7:00pm, at Moon Palace Books, for our next 5×5 Reading, featuring five fantastic artists: Jennifer Landretti, Sana Wazwaz, Andre Anderson, Armand McCoy, and Sabrin Nur, followed by an open mic.

Both reading and open mic will feature ASL interpretation.

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Photograph of Jennifer Landretti, a white woman with medium-short graying brown hair. In this photo, she's wearing a blue sleeveless top, a blue gaiter around her neck, and dark sunglasses, and is standing in dunes behind an ocean shore.

Slide containing text with biographical information (duplicated in post).

Text slide bearing words "For more: follow @reentrylab. better-things.org. reentrylab.org" and logos for the Minnesota State Arts Board, Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, and the Clean Water, Land & Legacy Amendment.

Flyer with text reading: “Better Things - a 5x5 reading for social change - the reading everybody will be talking about the next day. Moon Palace Books, 3032 Minnehaha Avenue, May 5th, 2026, 7 pm.” Small photos of each of five readers, labeled by name: Jennifer Landretti, Sana Wazwaz, Andre Anderson, Armand McCoy, Sabrin Nur.

Jennifer Marysia Landretti (she/her) writes poetry and essays. Her themes are nature, place, and spirit—and in recent years, gender, which has served as a vector to explore the former three.  Over the years her work has appeared in various literary publications, most regularly Orion magazine…

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, thanks to legislative appropriations from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

#BetterThings #TCPoetry

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…in partnership with the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop (MPWW) and Moon Palace Books. The ReEntry Lab is an organization working to connect writers and other artists leaving incarceration to a community that’s ready to receive them.

4/5

…both reading and open mic will feature ASL interpretation.

Light refreshments will be served; masks are required at Moon Palace Books and are available on-site. This is a free event.

Better Things is a series of events sponsored by the ReEntry Lab, …

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…there will be a short break for refreshments, followed by an open mic period. All are welcome to show up and participate in the open mic! (List is first come, first serve.) This reading, and the open mic afterward, will be hosted by @davigray.com and Erin Sharkey; …

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Flyer with text reading: “Better Things - a 5x5 reading for social change - the reading everybody will be talking about the next day. Moon Palace Books, 3032 Minnehaha Avenue, May 5th, 2026, 7 pm.” Small photos of each of five readers, labeled by name: Jennifer Landretti, Sana Wazwaz, Andre Anderson, Armand McCoy, Sabrin Nur.

Please join us on Tuesday, May 5th, at 7:00pm, at Moon Palace Books, for our next 5×5 Reading, featuring five fantastic artists: Jennifer Landretti, Sana Wazwaz, Andre Anderson, Armand McCoy, and Sabrin Nur.

Each featured artist will take five minutes to share work. After the main reading, …

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Flyer with text reading: “Better Things - a 5x5 reading for social change - the reading everybody will be talking about the next day. Moon Palace Books, 3032 Minnehaha Avenue, April 7th, 2026, 7 pm.” Small photos of each of five readers, labeled by name: Sagirah Shahid, Suzanne Locke, Isavela Lopez, Ben Westlie, and Nick Metcalf.

Come join us *tonight* at Better Things - 7pm - @moonpalacebooks.bsky.social—we'd love to see you there!

Featuring Sagirah Shahid, Suzanne Locke, Isavela Lopez, Ben Westlie, and Nick Metcalf.

ASL interpretation; masks required at Moon Palace Books & available on-site.
There Will Be Snacks 😁

…to a community that’s ready to receive them. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

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Better Things is a series of events sponsored by the ReEntry Lab, in partnership with the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop (MPWW) and Moon Palace Books. The ReEntry Lab is an organization working to connect writers and other artists leaving incarceration…

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The reading and open mic will be hosted by Erin Sharkey and Davi Gray, and both will feature ASL interpretation.

Light refreshments will be served; masks are required at Moon Palace Books and are available on-site. This is a free event.

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Please join us on Tuesday, April 7th, at 7:00pm, at @moonpalacebooks.bsky.social, for our next 5×5 Reading, featuring five fantastic artists: Sagirah Shahid, Suzanne Locke, Isavela Lopez, Ben Westlie, and Nick Metcalf, followed by an open mic. …

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…Nick is a Poet and Writer. Nick is participating in the Loft’s 2024 year-long Poetry Apprenticeship with Heid E. Erdrich.

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Photograph of Nick Metcalf, a two-spirit American Indian. In this photo, they are wearing a striped collared shirt over a t-shirt and standing in front of a microphone with one hand raised.

Slide containing text with biographical information (duplicated in post).

Text slide bearing words "For more: follow @reentrylab. better-things.org. reentrylab.org" and logos for the Minnesota State Arts Board, Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, and the Clean Water, Land & Legacy Amendment.

Flyer with text reading: “Better Things - a 5x5 reading for social change - the reading everybody will be talking about the next day. Moon Palace Books, 3032 Minnehaha Avenue, April 7th, 2026, 7 pm.” Small photos of each of five readers, labeled by name: Sagirah Shahid, Suzanne Locke, Isavela Lopez, Ben Westlie, and Nick Metcalf.

Nick Metcalf (they/them) is Sicangu Oyate – Burnt Thigh People – Rosebud Sioux Tribe.  Nick has lived in the Twin Cities for 30 years where they’ve made a life filled with lots of friends, family, and community.  Nick is a proud Parent and Grandparent….

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This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

6/6

…in partnership with Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop and Moon Palace Books. The ReEntry Lab is an organization working to connect writers and other artists leaving incarceration to a community that’s ready to receive them.

5/6

Light refreshments will be served; masks are required at Moon Palace Books and are available on-site. This is a free event, hosted by Erin Sharkey and @davigray.com.

Better Things is a series of events sponsored by @reentrylab.bsky.social…

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Please join us on Tuesday, April 7th, at 7:00pm, at @moonpalacebooks.bsky.social, for our next 5×5 Reading, featuring five fantastic artists: Sagirah Shahid, Suzanne Locke, Isavela Lopez, Ben Westlie, and Nick Metcalf, followed by an open mic.

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Ben was also a selected poet for Time You Let Me In: 25 Poets Under 25, edited by Naomi Shihab Nye.

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Photograph of Ben Westlie, a young white man with dark blond hair. In this photo, he wears short hair, a short scruff of beard and mustache, a wide smile, and a crimson velour T-shirt. He's standing, arms crossed, in front of an out-of-focus grassy field.

Slide containing text with biographical information (duplicated in post).

Text slide bearing words "For more: follow @reentrylab. better-things.org. reentrylab.org" and logos for the Minnesota State Arts Board, Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, and the Clean Water, Land & Legacy Amendment.

Flyer with text reading: “Better Things - a 5x5 reading for social change - the reading everybody will be talking about the next day. Moon Palace Books, 3032 Minnehaha Avenue, April 7th, 2026, 7 pm.” Small photos of each of five readers, labeled by name: Sagirah Shahid, Suzanne Locke, Isavela Lopez, Ben Westlie, and Nick Metcalf.

Ben Westlie (he/him) is the author of Run From Your Now, a Minnesota Book Award Finalist in Poetry 2025. His poetry has appeared in DASH, The Fourth River, MUSE, Superpresent, ArLiJo, Atlas and Alice and The Talking Stick.

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Spring 2026 Writing Workshop with the ReEntry Lab Made with Tally, the simplest way to create forms.

I'm leading a Visual Poetry workshop at the Liberal Arts Engagement Hub (University of Minnesota) on Tuesday, April 21st, 6-8pm. It's FREE and open to anyone 18+; space is limited, so register here if you're interested:

(the social preview picture makes me 😂... my friend Louise)

tally.so/r/7RxPqa

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through grants from the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Metropolitan Regional Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

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…in partnership with Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop and Moon Palace Books. The ReEntry Lab is an organization working to connect writers and other artists leaving incarceration to a community that’s ready to receive them.

8/9

Light refreshments will be served; masks are required at Moon Palace Books and are available on-site. This is a free event, hosted by Erin Sharkey and @davigray.com.

Better Things is a series of events sponsored by @reentrylab.bsky.social…

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Please join us on Tuesday, April 7th, at 7:00pm, at @moonpalacebooks.bsky.social, for our next 5×5 Reading, featuring five fantastic artists: Sagirah Shahid, Suzanne Locke, Isavela Lopez, Ben Westlie, and Nick Metcalf, followed by an open mic.

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… Isavela's mission is to empower future generations by reminding them that their cultural heritage—language, ceremony, and tradition—is not only sacred, but also a source of power, beauty, and resistance.

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