About Me — Shirley Jones Luke
Let me Introduce myself.
My story begins a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…uhhh wait no that’s someone else’s origin story. Ok, I was born in a log cabin, my parents were farmers…wait…no that’s definitely someone else’s story! How about this? I was born in the last twentieth century to Black parents who never realized their dreams. Yes! That’s definitely my origin story!
I’m Shirley, an African American/Afro Caribbean mother, educator, and writer. I live in Boston, Massachusetts. Because of my family history, I never developed the famed Boston accent. It’s more a mix of Southern twang and Caribbean lilt. My grandmother was from the West Indies and spoke fluent French. My mother was born in South Carolina and grew up in Brooklyn, New York. My father was born in Georgia.
When my parents met in New York City, my mother had just graduated from high school. My father never made it past the fourth grade and had at least a decade on my mother. They fell in love (or at least my mother did) and moved to Boston. Soon after, I was born. Three years later, my brother entered the world. Our family was complete.
After a brief stint in the South End section of the city, we moved into a three-story house in the neighborhood of Dorchester. We lived on the first floor. My childhood and teen years were spent in that house. We had a large backyard where flowers grew and stray cats sat in the tall grass. My brother and I ran down the long hallway of our home, playing tag, learning how to roller skate and skateboard, and running races. We had our own rooms (though my brother invaded mine every chance he got), a large sun-filled living room, and a kitchen with a pantry.
Our home was full of love and laughter. But it was also full of fear and despair. My father, at some point in our young lives, decided that being a loving husband and a caring dad was no longer a part of his agenda. Instead, he became an abusive tyrant, beating my mother and yelling at me and my brother. Whenever our dad was around, we were as quiet as a church. When he was away (which was months at a time), our home was a haven again.
It was within the walls of our Quincy Street home that my writing talents were born. I loved watching tv and making up different endings for my favorite shows. I would spend hours in my room reading and writing stories. I created my own notebooks from construction paper, loose-leaf paper, and string. If mom had extra money, I’d buy notebooks and fill up the pages.
For one birthday, my mother surprised me with a typewriter (yes, those things still exist! I saw one in Staples a few weeks ago.). I taught myself how to type and was soon banging out stories. When I was a teen, I used money from my first summer job to buy an electric typewriter. It was my first real purchase. That typewriter was used throughout high school and when I went off to college.
Since my typewriter days, I’ve moved on to desktop computers, laptops, and an IPad. I love technology, especially if it can help me with my writing. I’m a freelance writer and have freelanced since 2005. In addition to writing, I’m a poet. I love poetry and how poetry can make abstract concepts concrete. I’ve been published in several journals and magazines. I won my first major poetry contest in 2020.
I joined Medium in 2018. I had heard of the platform but didn’t know much about it. I published a couple of stories, but life got in the way and I became distracted by other things. Now, as I return to essay writing, I see Medium in a new light. I’ve been reading the pieces of many writers on the platform. The articles have been informative and provided a foundation for me. I want to explore my life through essays and create a collection.
Well, that’s a little about me! Follow me @shirleyjonesluke and read some of my work. Thank you! Happy writing!
