Attention DC — I have something to say

ABEL PUTU Artist/Vendor

I want to make a special request, and I need the help of all readers. I want you to spread the word.

We need more wheelchair basketball teams. How is it possible that we don't have as many places to play?

My dream is to play in the NBA. They are all my friends, but I would like them to open a space for me, a team for wheelchair players.

I'm a Wizards fan, and I'm very proud of everything they do in D.C., but they also need to open space for people who play in wheelchairs.

I could lead that team because my DNA is full of family members who love sports. Since I was little, I have liked sports, and until I was 19 years old, I was able to play, and since then, I have been a professional.

Please, D.C., open more spaces for wheelchair basketball.

My cousin is Kobe Bryant. Since I saw him I knew he was my cousin because those things are felt.

He puts his foot in a way that I also put it, and I am very sad about his departure.

That is why I like playing basketball.

Playing by the rules

JEN MCLAUGHLIN

Artist/Vendor

There are people on this earth that don’t play by the rules. The outcome is that breaking rules will catch up with you.

This art thine by which I dine!

LEVESTER GREEN

Artist/Vendor

You make your moves three at a time. That’s two behind that’s left on the line routed and primed. My will is thine! To the king and divine! I’m highly inclined like the inseam of a very well-written rhyme like intricate did the trick, like a sneaky move sis! We’re at the end of the list. Can’t see you next time if it no longer exists. So be grateful and thankful for your gifts. Now uplift and heal your rifts with a kiss!

I believe

CHON GOTTI Artist/Vendor

I believe… I believe that someday over the rainbow, the great waters will rise up over the Earth and create the nutrients we all need to cure sickness and disease.

I believe… I believe that we as the kings and queens of the earth shall inherit the vines of truth, the pillars of dignity, the statues of honor and the wealth of wisdom. I believe… I believe that we as fortune 500 world cruises shall someday reign supreme, so that we would never have to struggle for pennies ever again.

I believe… I believe that I am the chosen one that will make a difference in people's lives and that my journey to success starts today. This is the hour that I have been waiting for. Let me prepare to seize this moment. Now is the time. I believe… I believe that you should sit back and just relax. Patience is a virtue. Just remember it's one thing to say I believe, but it’s another to pronounce that I am.

So take 10 steps forward and a few steps back for I am the king. The lion growls back. I am the truth, the light, the almighty fortress of the living truth and a great force to be reckoned with.

I am the almighty Chon Gotti!

What do these words mean?

DANIEL BALL

Artist/Vendor

Daniel asks you, what do the words “high volume” mean?

Daniel asks you, what does the word “poem” mean?

Daniel asks Amina, what does the word “sleep” mean?

Daniel asks Thomas, what does the word “submission” mean?

Daniel asks Maria, what does the word “Mexico” mean?

Daniel asks Sybil, what does the words “last name” mean?

Daniel asks Rabbit, what do the words “New Year resolutions” mean?

Daniel ask Derek, what does the word “app” mean?

And Daniel's last words were to Will, what does “the writers group” mean?

Glass ceilings are meant to be broken

ERICA DOWNING

Artist/Vendor

“You can’t do that”

“You can’t go there”

“We don’t do that”

“You can’t show emotion”

“Be humble”

“Know your place”

“Don’t take handouts”

“You have to be better than the best just be seen as average”

The pressure builds as life is guided by the fears and expectations of others. Those fears and expectations become yours and keep you in line, “on the right track”.

“Money doesn’t grow on trees”

“Do I look like an ATM”

“You have to move away to be successful”

“A good job should be held until retirement”

There’s more to life when these fears are challenged and your own expectations are realized. When the courage to question arouses your intellect and ignites your ambition, a new world is revealed minus the hamster wheel. A world of never-ending challenges that allow you to grow and accomplish new goals and build a life you only thought of in your imagination. You are enough to shatter that glass ceiling that everybody else has treated as though made of steel.