Tito Will

I believe I should introduce you to someone very dear to me, my Tito Will. He’s certainly an inspiration to me in my writing. He’s witty, hilarious at times, clever, and most certainly intelligent. Yes, he can be a little bit of a temperamental drama king, but I believe that’s just part of his persona. I (as well as some other friends of mine0 love him. Actually, Tito Will is world-famous. It’s just that, of course, he’s known by his real name --- William Shakespeare.

That’s right. I call Shakespeare my uncle. The Bard of the Elizabethan Age (and, for that matter, one of the most well-known writers in the history of mankind) is considered part of my extended family. I love the author so much, I self-declared him a relative of mine.

This madness is actually an inside joke between my friend Charlie and I (Only, he calls Shakespeare “Ninong Willie”). He was the one who started the whole hurrah of The Bard being a relative. When I heard him refer to Shakespeare as his Ninong, I immediately thought “What an ingenious idea!” (Rather than “Okay? That’s weird”). And so, a new, creative, widely read member of my family was hereby inducted. Now, whenever we feel like sending random lines from Sonnet 18 or other Shakespeare quotes, we jokingly mention that Tito Will asked us to say that to the other. Haha!

Yes, I do hear what you’re thinking, and I suppose, you’re correct. Who am I, anyway, to call one of the most well-known and profoundly influential writers in history my uncle? What gives me the right to give myself acquaintance to the man who wrote “Romeo and Juliet”, arguably (maybe even, unarguably) the most well-known romance on the face of the planet? He is, after all, the most famous English writer ever. My goodness! Even nine year-olds know who William Shakespeare is already. He’s right up there in the Hall of Literary Geniuses. I, on the other hand, am not. So what was I doing trying to relate to him by calling him Tito?

But you see, reaching out to new heights and relating to people is what literature is all about. In literature, there are no boundaries, and the soul is allowed to fly to wherever it feels like --- Narnia, 16th century England, anywhere. So yes, calling a literary rock star like Shakespeare your uncle is most definitely allowed. To bar someone from doing so is just antithesis to literature’s free, unlimited nature.

And you know what? I believe it is that --- the mindset that renowned writers such as Shakespeare, Victor Hugo, and Pablo Neruda are as unreachable as that cookie jar on the top shelf is for a little child --- which turns some people off from literature. It’s that overwhelming feeling that they’re not good enough to read a certain author that partially contributes to a general idea of stuffiness about reading, which is false.)

Every author reveals a piece of themselves in their words. They’re actually trying to connect to you, relate to you. So if you feel that tug in your heart that the words you are reading hit the spot, go ahead. Call them uncle.

Now, I must end. My Papa needs the laptop for his trip to his Colombian hometown. I think you recognize his name --- Gabriel Garcia Marquez!