| Winter 2012......  Another year has come and gone! So.... with the New Year also comes a time to make assessments and resolutions. What you will give up, what you hope to gain, what you’ve already lost, what you will retain, and then there’s the good old New Year’s Resolution. Personally, I don’t believe in New Year’s resolutions. I believe I am a work in progress that consistently require tweaking. From time to time I ask friends and family to critique my behavior patterns and occasionally I get unsolicited advice regarding something about my person that is need of adjustment. In the words of Nikki Giovanni “Everyone has something to give and more important needs something to take”. So I try to find value in even the most negative situation and always ask myself what is the lesson I need to learn? I always hope to get the lesson right the first time so I don’t have to repeat the experience. On the other hand my birthday is the last day of the year, so I do make birthday assessments and resolutions. For me it’s about what went well this year, what didn’t, who I need to purge out of my life, who’s a keeper, and most important…. am I consistently working on my spirituality, did I give more than I took, did I make a difference in anyone’s life, am I living my values in a way that is transparent to all who encounter me, and finally, am I doing the necessary work to elevate to my higher self? There is some other maintance stuff that should receive worthy mention like… eating healthy, keeping company with folk who are a reflection of something positive within myself, paying my bills on time, being honest about what I can commit to, and here’s a hard one …..am I making a conscious effort not to spend excessively????? Yes, I am a work in progress, and my life’s work is preparing to meet my higher self while spreading a little love, creativity, culture, positive feminine energy, and joy, along the way! I so hope that if I ever had, or get the opportunity to, meet you that in our exchange you might take some of that with you……My gift from me to you! Happy New Year!!!!!!!! -Na Koikoi Aziza Zenzile Kintehg | | Poetry Contest Submit your poetry to win (Low entry fees)
Converse College Julia Peterkin Award
Deadline: February 15, 2012 Converse College Julia Peterkin Award Creative Writing Program 580 East Main Street Spartanburg, SC 29302 (864) 596-9111. Richard Mulkey, Director A prize of $1,000 and an invitation to read in Converse College’s Visiting Writers Series is given in alternating years for a group of poems or a work of fiction. The 2012 award will be given for poetry. Original works in English, either previously published or unpublished, are eligible. Submit up to 10 pages of poetry along with a cover letter and a $16 entry fee. Send an SASE, e-mail, or visit the website for complete guidelines http://www.converse.edu
Poetry Foundation Emily Dickinson First Book Award
Deadline February 17, 2012 Poetry Foundation Emily Dickinson Award 61 West Superior Street Chicago, IL 60654-5457 (312) 787-7070. A prize of $10,000 and publication by Graywolf Press is given for a first poetry collection by a U.S. poet age forty or older. Submit a manuscript of 48 to 80 pages. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for complete guidelines. http://www.poetryfoundation.org
Winter Haiku........ Whisper winter wind I hear life lessons in rifts Conducted by Trane
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AZIZA'S 1st FRIDAY ON THE NILE ART & CULTURE EVENT The Nile Cafe & Vegan Resturant 6800 Germantown Avenue Philadelphia, PA Friday, Febuary 3, 2012 7pm LIKE US ON FACEBOOK
My Kwanzaa  Umoja –be the face of unity by striving to unify in every situation by first unifying your own mind, body, and soul, your family nucleus, and then seeking to make unity a continuum in which your life force operates at all times……. Kujichagulia - To be more determined to be an active participant in the charting of my own destiny, uplifting my culture, and being a positive role model in my community
Ujima – To have a clear basic understanding that I am my brother’s /sister’s keeper, that each of us is an extension of the other; whatever affect one ultimately affects the community as a whole, and I have a vested interest in nation building.
Ujamaa – Continue to live the values of co-operation and collaboration, introduce and incorporate the barter system, while making a conscious effort to circulate my resources within our community whenever possible.
Nia – Continuously strive to live up to my higher self, to recognize and cultivate the good in every living being, and assist others in realizing their full potential. Kuumba - To be ever mindful that I among those chosen to be a custodian of a gift, to continue to nurture and cultivate my own creative growth to uplift, enlighten, and heal, as well as, assist other in the development and sharing of the positive creative spirit, and to be cognizant at all times of the responsibility and consequences …
Imani – To keep the faith that transform hope into a harvest of blessings, in the protection of my Ancestors, in myself for the manifestation of faith in action!
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