Wanket Spits Fire

A glimpse into Ms. Wanket’s extraordinary way with words.

As many on campus know, Ms. Maureen Wanket has got the most fire rhymes when it comes to spittin’ some bars at liturgies and in the classroom. She is known throughout CB and beyond as a poetic genius and a master with words. So where does the drive and passion that is clearly seen in her poetry come from?

“Fun.” The English teacher clearly states.

“I put pressure on myself in every other aspect; to be a good wife, mother, teacher…do I really have to put poetry in there too?” she asks. “I write poetry for one reason: fun.”

Getting her books published, organizing and teaching her three classes, and still going home at the end of the day to be an amazing wife and mother all work towards why the busy writer keeps such a relaxed attitude when it comes to writing her poetry.

“With poetry I do not care. With my stories I do, and my articles I certainly do, and my lessons and my novels…” she explained. “But with poetry, it’s stringing words together for pure enjoyment.”

And Ms. Wanket has indeed found quite the talent in her hobby of writing poetry. Her powerful use of words inspire our community and bring to awareness a plethora of themes and messages that every student and staff member can connect to on a personal level.

“Ms. Wanket just has this really cool presence and definitely spits bars,” Mary Claire Hancock (’17) states. “It’s really inspiring to hear stuff that even everyone as a community and everyone who has different views still recognizes as something really poetic and really interesting.”

Ms. Wanket’s poetry also brings a new platform to liturgies and prayer services for CB’s faith and principles to be expressed by.

“I think Ms. Wanket’s mad rhymes spice up liturgies,” Maddy Kenshol (’17) expresses. “They get the crowd pumped for mass and inspire others to write.”

Ms. Wanket uses her poetry to express what she experiences and sees in her own life. She is able to use the sound and meanings of words coherently to create poetry that speaks to everybody on the most basic human level.

“Poetry’s all about sound and language. It’s all about the musicality, what does it sound like, how does it feel in your mouth when you say it,” she explains. “The English language has a lot of words, it’s got like 764,000 words, and they’re like toys in your toy box…there’s so many ways to make a pattern out of our human experience using words, it’s so awesome.”

Now, to be such an amazing poet she must have gotten some inspiration from the writings of many others…right? Actually, that’s not the case.

“I don’t feel the need to read a bunch of poetry,” Ms. Wanket explains. “I love what I love and read about only three poets: Sharon Olds, Bob Hass, and Brenda Hillman.”

Although Ms. Wanket seems very nonchalant about her poetry, the effect it has on our community is very real. She not only inspires others to become better writers, but also inspires CB as a community to come together as one under love and acceptance. Ms. Wanket is truly a wizard with words.