The organization's workshop provides space for those experiencing houselessness and substance use to explore their passion for writing.
Established in 2018, Keeping Six is a community service providing opportunities for those experiencing houselessness and substance use. The organization aims to defend the rights of those who use drugs while giving them space to make their voices heard.
Created due to the opioid crisis in Hamilton, Keeping Six hopes to use its initiative to recruit members with lived experiences of being on the streets and using substances to overcome the city's drug crisis.
One of the ways in which Keeping Six creates opportunities is through the Keeping Six Arts Collective. The collective hosts events and various workshops for artists on the streets and drug use experience to explore their passions and improve their work.
Every Wednesday, the Arts Collective hosts a writing workshop at the Music Hall, located downtown on Main Street. The workshop is free for everyone to drop by and offers complementary snacks and supplies.
Maggie Ward, the current leader of the group moved from Fredericton, New Brunswick to Hamilton to finish her Ph.D. in English at McMaster University. Although Ward did not finish her Ph.D., she now works as a bookseller and freelance proofreader. She joined Keeping Six as a grad student and has been working with them since.
In an email statement to The Silhouette, Ward described how the workshop began as a way for the organization to create space for anyone to drop in and work on their free writing or prompts. The workshop started in 2021 at Gore Park before moving to the AIDS Network, the Hamilton Central library, the New Vision United Church and now, the Music Hall.
Ward became the pseudo-leader of the group when the peer leader and co-founder of Keeping Six was no longer able to attend the workshops. She provides writing support through prompts and feedback, helping writers flesh out and improve any creative ideas they might have. The group has free rein to work on what they would like, but a majority of the work being done goes towards the content for Keeping Six’s quarterly zine.
Ward explained Keeping Six’s purpose and the organization itself is different from anything else in Hamilton.
“We're focused on harm reduction, with a firm belief that art is harm reduction . . . The writing group and the zine are opportunities for folks to share their stories, which are rarely heard,” Ward stated.
Additionally, the group has received a consistent number of participants over the last few weeks, but not as many as when it first started. Ward hopes that the Music Hall as a new venue will encourage more people to attend since it is in the same location as the weekly art workshop Keeping Six also hosts.
Ward wants everyone who visits the workshop to leave having had a positive experience and feeling reinvigorated about their writing.
“I hope that folks who come to the group leave feeling like their stories are worth telling; that they're genuinely important. I also want them to feel less intimidated by writing. We encourage all forms of expression,” she explained.
“I hope that folks who come to the group leave feeling like their stories are worth telling; that they're genuinely important. I also want them to feel less intimidated by writing. We encourage all forms of expression,”
Maggie Ward, leader at Keeping Six Arts Collective
The workshop is also open to students if they wish to attend, as a good way to work on and receive feedback about their writing or just get to know more about the community and Keeping Six. Ward encourages anyone passionate about writing to drop by the workshop and to check out the zine to see what the Keeping Six community has to say.
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By: Michal Coret/ SHEC
University students are recommended to sleep seven to nine hours a night. Ha! That’s funny. Thanks, science. With increasing sleep debts due to schoolwork, social life and other obligations, many of us turn to caffeine as a solution to stay awake. Caffeine is the most popular substance on university campuses, and also worldwide, with approximately 70 percent of university students addicted.
So how much is too much? The maximum daily caffeine intake is often cited as 400 mg. An eight-ounce cup of coffee, depending on its intensity, can contain 40-200 mg of caffeine. When consumed within this margin, caffeine improves attention, memory, wakefulness, reaction time and athletic performance for some. Additional evidence suggests that that caffeine, in moderation, has positive effects on mood, and may play a role in weight loss. Sounds great, right?
Unfortunately, many coffee drinkers exceed this safety margin. Two cups is just with breakfast. Almost unconsciously, another three or four may be consumed to stay awake during lectures, meetings and assignments. But what are the consequences? Most of the detrimental effects of caffeine are long-term. These include heart problems, deteriorated bone health and even diabetes.
Caffeine may also have effects on the dopaminergic reward system of the brain. This is a pathway involved in drug addiction and a possible explanation for why coffee is so addictive. Withdrawal symptoms (which might appear all too familiar) include sleepiness, poor concentration, headaches and nausea. Studies done specifically on undergraduate students showed that those who drink over six cups of coffee a day sleep significantly fewer hours than their peers. It seems to be a vicious cycle.
Another consideration is that brain development related to planning and emotional control is also critical in the early 20s. Caffeine may have an adverse impact on how these brain functions develop and lead to long-term cognitive changes.
If one were to try the daunting task of leaving coffee behind, the best way to start is a gradual reduction in daily amounts of coffee. This, combined with caffeine alternatives may effectively promote long-term caffeine reduction. If you’re going for a cleanse, cold water and stretching are also good options.
But let’s not paint such a dark (roast) picture of coffee consumption. The bottom line is that caffeine — like most things in life — is best in moderation. If you are drinking three or more cups of coffee a day, running to the washroom frequently and/or wanting to reduce caffeine, there may be merit in evaluating your daily schedule and priorities to see what can be changed. Also, stress is a major hindrance to sleep. In days when sleep seems far away, considering various outlets for stress can improve your nighttime zzzs.
Caffeine alternatives
Green Tea
The most well known alternative has less caffeine than coffee and contains catechin, an antioxidant and disease fighter.
Licorice Tea
This caffeine free tea also replenishes adrenal glands, organs that respond to stress.
Prune Juice
Need something sweet? Prunes replenish your electrolytes, which can lead to increased stamina.
Chai Tea
A creamy chai tea latte will trick your body into thinking that you’re drinking coffee.
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