tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-78447500087253773372024-02-19T11:09:46.369-05:00Sojo's TrumpetA Culture Blog for TeensTrumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.comBlogger210125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-25312701817585101472015-01-20T18:15:00.001-05:002015-01-20T20:42:27.836-05:00The Arabs Used To Say<div style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px;">
<b><span style="color: lime;">Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture Presents: Naomi Shihab Nye</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #ead1dc;">A Review by Sojourner Ahebee </span></b></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Poet Naomi Shihab Nye w/ Al-Bustan Takht Ensemble<br />Photo by Danielle Nowak</span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: cyan;">Naomi Shihab Nye's collection of poems on the Middle East</span></b></td></tr>
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<b><span style="color: #ead1dc;">A Poem by Naomi Shihab Nye</span></b></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">The Arabs used to say, </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">when a stranger appears at your door, </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">feed him for three days </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">before asking who he is, </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">where he’s come from, </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">where he’s headed. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">That way, he’ll have strength </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">enough to answer. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Or, by then you’ll be </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">such good friends </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">you don’t care. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Let’s go back to that. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Rice? Pine nuts? </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Here, take the red brocade pillow. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">My child will serve water</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;"> to your horse. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">No, I was not busy when you came! </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">I was not preparing to be busy. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">That’s the armor everyone put on</span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">to pretend they had a purpose </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">in the world. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">I refuse to be claimed. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">Your plate is waiting. </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">We will snip fresh mint </span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #ead1dc;">into your tea.</span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #ead1dc;">Back in December, before the new year came rushing through, I had the extreme joy and honor of having the words of beloved poet, Naomi Shihab Nye, wash right over me. At 22nd and Spruce Streets, in the middle of a cold Philadelphian winter, Ms. Nye read us poems aloud while accompanied by the <a href="http://albustanseeds.org/music/musicians/" target="_blank">Al-Bustan Takht Ensemble(</a>directed by Hanna Khoury), a group of esteemed musicians who have dedicated their craft to Arab </span><span style="color: #ead1dc;">music. </span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Namoi Shihab Nye and I</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #ead1dc;">Ms. Nye is an accomplished Palestinian-American poet, and her poems are saturated in her allegiance to themes of place, home, and the world around her. Born to a Palestinian father and an American mother, and having grown up in places like St. Louis, Jerusalem, and San Antonio, she has developed a sharp eye, and her poems serve as little acts of preservation, an attempt to document all that she has seen and heard. Throughout the evening of poetry and music, Ms. Nye would recount her stories to us, poem by poem. In one story, she speaks of her father, her memory of his singing in the shower, “first in Arabic, rivery ripples of song carrying him back to his first beloved land, then in English, where his repertoire was short”( From "What Kind of Fool Am I"- <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/19-Varieties-Gazelle-Poems-Middle/dp/B0007D9VN2" target="_blank">19 Varieties of Gazelle</a></i>). She also spoke of her father’s figtree, his love for the fruit tree, his desire for one. And in his wanting, the poem allowed us, the audience, to sense his want for home:</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #073763; color: #cfe2f3;">At age six I ate a dried fig and shrugged.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #073763; color: #cfe2f3;">“That’s not what I’m talking about,” he said,</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #073763; color: #cfe2f3;">“I’m talking about a fig straight from the earth --</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #073763; color: #cfe2f3;">Gift of Allah! -- On a branch so heavy</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #073763; color: #cfe2f3;">it touches the ground.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #073763; color: #cfe2f3;">I’m talking about picking the largest, fattest,</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #073763; color: #cfe2f3;">sweetest fig</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #073763; color: #cfe2f3;">in the world and putting it in my mouth.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #073763; color: #cfe2f3;">(Here he’d stop and close his eyes.)</span></div>
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<b><span style="background-color: #073763; color: #cfe2f3;">-From "My Father and the Figtree"( <i>19 Varieties of Gazelle</i>)</span></b></div>
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<span style="color: #ead1dc;">As Ms. Nye spoke of Arabic, the Middle East, themes of leaving and displacement, a red brocade, girls who would go on to write the story of their generation, of fathers, of coffee and Palestinians, the music from the ensemble would mix into her words, serving not as backdrop, but as a second way to hear the poem. The violin, the qanun, the percussion, and even the cello had much to say about each poem, and as each musician played their part, Ms. Nye’s poems began to tell new stories. The energy in the space was almost tangible. You wanted to fall right into it.</span></div>
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<i><b><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture is dedicated to presenting and teaching Arab culture through the arts and language.</span></b></i></div>
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<i><b><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">“Al-Bustan,” Arabic for “The Garden,” offers structured exposure to the language, art, music, dance, literature, and natural environment of the Arab world. Al-Bustan promotes cross-cultural understanding among youth and adults of all ethnic, religious, and socio-economic backgrounds through artistic and educational programs. Al-Bustan supports the pursuit and affirmation of Arab American cultural identity, while playing a constructive civic role within broader American society.</span></b></i></div>
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<i><b><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">Visit their website to learn more: <a href="http://albustanseeds.org/">http://albustanseeds.org</a></span></b></i></div>
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<i><b><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">How To Get Involved:</span></b></i></div>
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<i><b><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">In Fall 2009, Al-Bustan formed the Philadelphia Arab Music Ensemble, open to youth and adults of diverse backgrounds interesting in learning to play and sing the classical and traditional repertoire of Arab music. Led by Music Director Hanna Khoury, this community ensemble meets once a week for 3 hours at St. Mary’s Parish Hall located at UPenn campus. The music of the major artist invited each year by Al-Bustan defines the repertoire learned by the Ensemble. In 2010, acclaimed Palestinian musician and composer Simon Shahaeen was the guest artist, and in 2011, acclaimed Lebanese musician, composer and singer Marcel Khalife.</span></b></i></div>
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<i><b><span style="color: #b6d7a8;">For More Information: <a href="http://albustanseeds.org/music/ensembles/">http://albustanseeds.org/music/ensembles/</a></span></b></i></div>
Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-74438671961109423622014-08-26T23:51:00.000-04:002014-08-26T23:51:00.210-04:00Help My Mom Make Some Really Relevant Poetry-Support Her Indiegogo Campaign <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Writer Octavia McBride-Ahebee</td></tr>
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #f4cccc; display: inline;">My mother, writer Octavia McBride-Ahebee, has been selected to participate in the Callaloo Creative Writing Workshop, which will be held this fall in London. Callaloo, a Journal of African Diaspora Arts and Letters based in Texas A&M University, is ranked as one of the top literary journals in the United States and is edited by the Charles Henry Rowell. </span></div>
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #f4cccc; display: inline;">The workshop facilitators include novelist, essayist and Princeton Lecturer Maaza Mengiste, whose book <i>Beneath the Lion’s Gaze</i> is an international bestseller, and famed poet and Columbia University teaching fellow Gregory Pardlo.</span></div>
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #f4cccc; display: inline;">My mom is currently working on a series of poems addressing the current Ebola crisis and the human stories behind this global failure. She would love the opportunity to workshop these poems with the dedicated and experienced Callaloo facilitators. She has started a Indiegogo campaign to raise funds to cover the costs of this trip. Please support this effort.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #f4cccc;">Here is a link to my Indiegogo Campaign:<a href="https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/help-octavia-go-to-callaloo-workshop-in-london" rel="nofollow" style="cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/help-octavia-go-to-callaloo-workshop-in-london</a></span></div>
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Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-62283054266608797302014-05-12T20:13:00.000-04:002014-05-12T20:14:16.696-04:00The 2014 Young Heroes Award by Sojourner Ahebee<div dir="ltr" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
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<b><span style="color: red;"> Hey all! I know it’s been a while, but I wanted to take a few moments to give a shout out to a very special organization. A few years ago I was given the honor of being named a Young Hero by the National Liberty Museum. It was so inspiring to be recognized, at such a young age, for my efforts within my community, so I encourage young people all over the country to look into this fabulous opportunity. Please read the following information, and visit the link at the end for more context. Thank you all!</span></b><br />
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<b><span style="color: blue;"><i>For 13 years the National Liberty Museum has recognized young people who have championed freedom and liberty through their actions. All too often the efforts of our young people to make a positive impact gets overlooked. Through our Young Heroes Award we are able to recognize young people who have taken action where liberty is lacking to promote positive social change. Students have done this through their civic engagement, encouraging peaceful resolutions to conflict, promoting tolerance and diversity and demonstrating leadership.</i></span></b></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><b><br /></b></span> <i><b><span style="color: blue;"> "Flame of Liberty" by Dale Chihuly.</span></b></i><br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><b><i> We are currently accepting nominations for the 2014 Young Heroes Award sponsored by TD Bank now through June 30th, 2014.<br /><br /> To download a nomination form or to submit a nomination through our online form, please go to <a href="https://libertymuseum.org/liberty-institute/awards/heroes/">https://libertymuseum.org/liberty-institute/awards/heroes/</a></i></b></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #d9ead3;">Sojourner Ahebee standing in front of the Mighty Writers location in West Philadelphia.</span></b></td></tr>
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<b>This past Tuesday, I had the opportunity to visit the Mighty
Writers in <st1:place w:st="on">West Philadelphia</st1:place> and meet some
amazing young writers and the adults who mentor and inspire them. Mighty Writers is an organization dedicated to
helping students think and write clearly and using these skills to find success
in school and life. </b></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #d9ead3;">Mighty Writers Teen Scholars</span></b></td></tr>
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<b>I shared with these
teen scholars, who come to Mighty Writers afterschool, my journey as a writer,
information about the Scholastic Art and
Writing Awards <a href="http://www.artandwriting.org/about-us/">http://www.artandwriting.org/about-us/</a> and the National Student Poets Program <a href="http://www.artandwriting.org/the-awards/national-student-poets-program/">http://www.artandwriting.org/the-awards/national-student-poets-program/</a>. I also read some of my poetry and answered
questions. But the best part of the
evening for me was talking one on one with these talented students and reading
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #d9ead3;">Sojourner reading from NSPP chapbook</span></b></td></tr>
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<b>I have to give a huge shout-out to Annette John-Hall, the
highly lauded former Philadelphia Inquirer reporter, who is now the director of
the Mighty Writers West Philadelphia site. She organized my visit and I was so warmly received.
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<b>Here is a great link to Ms. John-Hall and some teen scholars
in action: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=AA9qYc8tXlQ">http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=AA9qYc8tXlQ</a></b></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: #d9ead3;">National Student Poet Sojourner Ahebee and Annette John-Hall, Program Director of Mighty Writers West </span></b></td></tr>
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<b>Again, I want to thank the entire staff of Mighty Writers
for not only welcoming me, but for the important work that they do with young
people. To learn more about the Mighty
Writers program, which has two locations, click here: <a href="http://www.mightywriters.org/west-philly-academy/">http://www.mightywriters.org/west-philly-academy/</a></b></div>
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Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-78164715731049091902014-03-17T19:21:00.000-04:002014-03-17T20:01:55.582-04:00I Wish You A Poem For Your Troubles: Alzheimer's Poetry Workshop by Sojourner Ahebee<div style="text-align: left;">
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<span style="color: #a64d79;">About a month ago I had the chance to reconnect with old memories. How, you ask? Alzheimer’s poetry workshop, I say. On a cold February afternoon, the time of year the snow takes over in Northern Michigan, the time of year you stop believing in magic, Mickayla Noel and Eleanor Rudnitsky-Brown, my fellow writers, and I visited a nursing home ten minutes away from my school to facilitate a poetry workshop with the residents. On our ride to the home, all of our stomachs were bursting with butterflies. We were going into unknown territory, and that scared us. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #a64d79;">When we arrived, some of the residents were already situated in the common area, with the February light pouring into the room as I and my group members unpacked our poems. Some of the residents were being pushed in on wheel chairs as well, their faces searching our eyes like you would a stranger. I then proceeded to walk into the middle of the room and introduce myself. We then went around the room and asked the residents to say their names for us. A woman on the far right in a blue pullover told us her name was Irene. I responded with “that’s a beautiful name. I have a friend named Irene.” Her smile illuminated the very room we stood in. As we continued around the room with introductions, it was evident that these residents were in different stages of the disease. The early-stage patients were able to make eye contact and respond to questions quite quickly. Some of the later-stage patients had their heads down to the point that I couldn't even see their eyes. One woman in particular had her head drooping into her lap, but when I went over and held her hand while asking her name, she focused her eyes on me and smiled, whispering her name softly.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #a64d79;">I started the workshop with Billy Collins’ poem entitled “Forgetfulness”. This involved a call-and-response technique. I would read a line of the poem and then ask the residents to repeat the line back as a means for them to both play with language and to exercise memory. This exercise got off to a rocky start. The residents were shy and had trouble jumping in. But, as we progressed through the poem and they became more familiar with their poetic voices, they were more readily able to feed the lines back to me. In no time the residents were reciting not only the Collins' poem but the poems of Robert Hayden and Wilfred Owen . Some did so quietly in hushed whispers, while others filled the room loudly with the words of these poets. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #a64d79;">This experience was so powerful. Not only because of the memory aspect, but because we were working together to uncover language, to uncover narrative, and most importantly, to uncover the power of the human voice. This was an exchange in which both the residents and my group and I were making a conscious attempt to understand each other.</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQxVQCAvbvrf1h4KRfmPVuKjGpAmArKUeIvx7OodFLP_NbZyoNqLQZBOEzhUnr4DMSEYffd54yYAC_kYA3S8M7urwWKncAx2_fL2eltSk4dEXenw_9nqJWHhxMxp_5DI4epXt-qb4uYKsf/s1600/workshop17.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQxVQCAvbvrf1h4KRfmPVuKjGpAmArKUeIvx7OodFLP_NbZyoNqLQZBOEzhUnr4DMSEYffd54yYAC_kYA3S8M7urwWKncAx2_fL2eltSk4dEXenw_9nqJWHhxMxp_5DI4epXt-qb4uYKsf/s1600/workshop17.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></span></a><span style="color: #a64d79;">After the reading and reciting about five poems, my group and I moved on to our final exercise: the writing of a collaborative poem. I assigned Mickayla the job of being the scribe for this exercise. When we were ready to start, Mickayla collected her huge white pad and sharpie and proceeded to position herself in the middle of the common room so she could better listen to what the residents would have to say. I then explained to the patients that we were going to attempt to write a “Where I’m From” poem. The task appeared daunting at first, but they went along. I started with simple questions like “where was your first home?” and “what was your hometown known for?” As the dialogue progressed, together we began to uncover the history and narratives that the residents had carried with them for quite some time. As we went along, they told me the names of their childhood dogs, their favorite plants, family traditions, people they were very close to, lovers, their favorite meals as children etc. As the residents took turns answering the questions, Mickayla, the scribe, would write all of the details down onto the pad where the poem was growing into this magnificent living thing. Soon everyone was engaged in discussion with each other, and there was no stopping. It almost felt as if time didn’t matter. This was more than the making of a poem. This was memory emanating from our very mouths.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #a64d79;">My short time spent at the nursing home was special because the residents were makers, they were poets for a quick hour. As they shouted bits of Dickinson through the air, or gave me sensory details about the interiors of their homes, I was forced to think of my grandmother, who, too, was afflicted with Alzheimer's. I was forced to remember the resilience in her wrinkles as she recited Langston Hughes on her death bed. All I could do was smile as the residents learned to take control of their world with the power of words. I know my grandmother would be proud, and because of that, I can’t ask for anything more. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #a64d79;">Left to Right: Mickayla, Eleanor, and Sojourner</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial;"><span style="color: #a64d79;"><span style="font-size: 15px;">But you might ask, why poetry? What can poems do for the forgetful? Well, poets and doctors alike are starting to make connections between poetry, memory, and the human mind. Apparently a special part of your brain lights up when you encounter a poem, especially one you have encountered before. While creating my proposal for this very workshop, I purposely included poems that the residents may have come upon while in school or during their youth so the workshop would really engage them on a memory level. A big shout out goes to Gary Glazner and the </span><a href="http://www.alzpoetry.com/" style="font-size: 15px;">Alzheimer’s Poetry Project</a><span style="font-size: 15px;"> for providing me with workshop techniques and much needed insight on the Alzheimer’s disease itself. Also, a huge thank you to the</span><a href="http://www.artandwriting.org/the-awards/national-student-poets-program/" style="font-size: 15px;"> National Student Poets Program</a><span style="font-size: 15px;"> for helping me make this project a reality, Suwan Kim for documenting this project with her gorgeous photography, as well as the nursing home that hosted us. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #a64d79;">I came into the nursing home expecting to change the residents, but in the end they really changed me. They allowed me to see the significance language can play in our lives at different stages of life, and for that, I thank them with all my heart.</span></div>
Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-83142429038372191972013-11-25T12:57:00.000-05:002013-11-25T12:57:55.425-05:00I Am in Such Great Company ; My Friends Are My Estate<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4rWO96TmJFQytadd8NcYiqwwJ_LbxdiBF4qzbyzhKt1rx482AN-7-LXolRx3HSjTN51thZdCHAXfr3qlrWyJmYUMGszKJEI8-ZaPIOFWaXvv_YGMCPJV2sb3pFtr3fwTHrWXBYboYieWU/s1600/group11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4rWO96TmJFQytadd8NcYiqwwJ_LbxdiBF4qzbyzhKt1rx482AN-7-LXolRx3HSjTN51thZdCHAXfr3qlrWyJmYUMGszKJEI8-ZaPIOFWaXvv_YGMCPJV2sb3pFtr3fwTHrWXBYboYieWU/s400/group11.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #b6d7a8; font-size: large;"><b><span 13px="" 18px="" arial="" color:="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grande="" line-height:="" lucida="" sans-serif="" tahoma="" verdana="">Rob Casper, Head of the Poetry and Literature Center at </span><a 18px="" arial="" b5998="" cursor:="" font-family:="" grande="" href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Library-of-Congress/140801819291565?directed_target_id=0" line-height:="" lucida="" none="" pointer="" sans-serif="" tahoma="" text-decoration:="" verdana="">Library of Congress</a><span 18px="" arial="" font-family:="" grande="" line-height:="" lucida="" sans-serif="" tahoma="" verdana=""> and NSPP Juror hosted the 2013 National Student Poets in the stunning Poetry Room this past September. Poets </span><a 13px="" 18px="" arial="" b5998="" color:="" cursor:="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grande="" href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dean-Young/108199592541377?directed_target_id=0" line-height:="" lucida="" none="" pointer="" sans-serif="" tahoma="" text-decoration:="" verdana="">Dean Young</a><span 13px="" 18px="" arial="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grande="" line-height:="" lucida="" sans-serif="" tahoma="" verdana=""> and </span><a 13px="" 18px="" arial="" b5998="" color:="" cursor:="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grande="" href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Matthea-Harvey/109409905752074?directed_target_id=0" line-height:="" lucida="" none="" pointer="" sans-serif="" tahoma="" text-decoration:="" verdana="">Matthea Harvey</a><span style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"> read their poetry and traded collections with the 2013 National Student Poets. Download your copy of the National Student Poets Program chapbook here:</span><a href="http://bit.ly/1775FW5" rel="nofollow nofollow" style="cursor: pointer; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">http://bit.ly/1775FW5</a><span 18px="" arial="" font-family:="" grande="" line-height:="" lucida="" sans-serif="" tahoma="" verdana=""> </span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><br style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;" /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">(from left: </span><a 13px="" 18px="" arial="" b5998="" cursor:="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grande="" href="https://www.facebook.com/USIMLS?directed_target_id=0" line-height:="" lucida="" none="" pointer="" sans-serif="" tahoma="" text-decoration:="" verdana="">Institute of Museu<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">m and Library Services</span></a><span 13px="" 18px="" arial="" class="text_exposed_show" color:="" display:="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grande="" inline="" line-height:="" lucida="" sans-serif="" tahoma="" verdana="">Director Susan Hildreth; <a href="https://www.facebook.com/PCAH.gov?directed_target_id=0" style="cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities</a> Director of Program Initiatives Kimber Craine; Matthea Harvey; Sojourner Ahebee; Nathan Cummings; Louis Lafair; Aline Dolinh; Michaela Coplen; Rob Casper; Dean Young and Executive Director of the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, Virginia McEnerney).</span></span></b></span><br />
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><b><span style="font-size: large;"><span 13px="" 18px="" arial="" class="text_exposed_show" color:="" display:="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grande="" inline="" line-height:="" lucida="" sans-serif="" tahoma="" verdana=""><br /></span></span></b></span>
<b><span 13px="" 18px="" arial="" class="text_exposed_show" color:="" display:="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grande="" inline="" line-height:="" lucida="" sans-serif="" style="color: #6fa8dc; font-size: x-small;" tahoma="" verdana="">* Photo- NSPP Facebook Page</span></b><br />
<span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><b><span 13px="" 18px="" arial="" class="text_exposed_show" color:="" display:="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grande="" inline="" line-height:="" lucida="" sans-serif="" style="font-size: x-small;" tahoma="" verdana="">*<i> My Friends Are My Estate-Emily Dickinson</i></span></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: magenta;"><b>Opportunities for Young Writers: </b></span><br />
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<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7844750008725377337" name="start"><span style="color: magenta; font-size: small;">A Literary Sailing Adventure for Teens 13-17!<br />Black Dog Tall Ships --Writers' Week</span></a></h1>
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<span style="color: magenta;"><b><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=7844750008725377337" name="start"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 19.1875px;">LOVE TO WRITE? In July 2014, join a one-week literary sailing adventure for 25 teen writers aboard the Black Dog tall ship <em>Shenandoah</em> in the waters between Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard. Click here to learn more: </span></a><a href="http://www.merlynspen.org/contentmgr/showdetails.php/id/39543">http://www.merlynspen.org/contentmgr/showdetails.php/id/39543</a></b></span></div>
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<span 13px="" 18px="" arial="" class="text_exposed_show" color:="" display:="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grande="" inline="" line-height:="" lucida="" sans-serif="" tahoma="" verdana=""><br /></span>Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-6174040825033948962013-11-25T12:14:00.002-05:002013-11-25T12:17:38.856-05:00National Student Poet Sojourner Ahebee and Poet Billy Collins Read Poetry at White House <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">First Lady <span style="color: #ea9999;">Michelle Obama</span> and <span style="color: #ea9999;">Dr. Jill Biden</span> hosted a poetry recital in honor of <span style="color: #ea9999;">Kalsoom Nawaz Sharif</span>, wife of Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, in the Blue Room of the White House, on Oct. 23, 2013. Poems were read by <span style="color: #f1c232;">Billy Collins</span>, an American poet, and myself, <span style="color: #f1c232;">Sojourner Ahebee</span>, a student poet.</span></b><br />
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<span style="background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: Verdana;">First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden host a tea and poetry
recital in honor of Kalsoom Nawaz Sharif.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">The formidable
and popular poet and former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins read some of his
poetry for this occasion. </span></div>
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First Lady Michelle Obama, Student
Poet Sojourner Ahebee, and Dr. Jill Biden, wife of Vice-President Joe Biden.
This was Sojourner's second visit to the White House.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Rachel Goslins, Executive Director
of the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities, National Student Poet
Sojourner Ahebee, Poet Billy Collins and Olivia Morgan, founder of the National
Student Poets Program and PCAH member. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">*Photos- </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial;">by Amanda Lucidon </span><br />
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<span style="color: magenta; font-family: Arial;"><b>Opportunities for Young People in the Creative Arts: </b></span><br />
<strong 0px="" 16px="" 24px="" arial="" baseline="" color:="" font-family:="" font-size:="" line-height:="" margin:="" outline:="" padding:="" sans-serif="" serif="" vertical-align:=""><span style="color: cyan; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">The Anthony Quinn Foundation Scholarship</span></strong><br />
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<b><span style="color: magenta; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Organized as a vehicle to perpetuate Anthony Quinn’s vision for an art conscious society, the Anthony Quinn Foundation Scholarship Program raises and distributes funds for arts education. The Scholarship Program focuses on the Visual Arts & Design, Performing Arts, Media Arts, and Literary Arts for young adults in high school. Scholarship recipients can apply Foundation funds to any recognized pre-college, summer or after-school arts education program. Funds awarded will be sent directly to the pre-college, summer or after-school arts education program designated by the student. <span style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Anthony Quinn Foundation Scholarship cannot be used for secondary school or college tuition. </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: magenta; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">To learn more, click here: </span><a href="http://anthonyquinnfoundation.org/scholarship-program/overview/">http://anthonyquinnfoundation.org/scholarship-program/overview/</a></span></b></div>
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Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-52592692240159859752013-11-24T23:07:00.000-05:002013-11-25T20:39:44.814-05:00Sojourner Ahebee's Interview in Winter Tangerine Review <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQSquLLMzMAjJLckNT0umeyFCgitjSwZ95uDN_UhFCcXsUVWMhBqpFpchf9G1tbYGUzgQ-iUNnqVygTi0uutGGphpSU5c9p34TTQw1e0MpSodof92UUaf48cVzyPqud3IVblBHflo9ayUB/s1600/winter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQSquLLMzMAjJLckNT0umeyFCgitjSwZ95uDN_UhFCcXsUVWMhBqpFpchf9G1tbYGUzgQ-iUNnqVygTi0uutGGphpSU5c9p34TTQw1e0MpSodof92UUaf48cVzyPqud3IVblBHflo9ayUB/s400/winter.jpg" width="293" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg96dADlg4MTn8HppRhgotu-UUXveP6NxUpH1-83kLyM4yTpSdycAuPXd63ekO8i3Dk1e6oZLoW2ZEfb6Flm_ozpNn8KZvktM-Ixeo4G6YW83h4cDZw4FvGm_jz9wX7u0oFj-VJJ7D0FA1r/s1600/artinterview.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg96dADlg4MTn8HppRhgotu-UUXveP6NxUpH1-83kLyM4yTpSdycAuPXd63ekO8i3Dk1e6oZLoW2ZEfb6Flm_ozpNn8KZvktM-Ixeo4G6YW83h4cDZw4FvGm_jz9wX7u0oFj-VJJ7D0FA1r/s400/artinterview.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: eigerdals; font-size: 11px; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 18px; text-align: start;"><b><span style="color: #6aa84f;">Art is 'The Dark Days Are Done' by Pierre Chaumont.</span></b></span><strong 18px="" 1px="" color:="" eigerdals="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grey="" letter-spacing:="" line-height:="" start="" text-align:=""><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></strong><br />
<strong 18px="" 1px="" color:="" eigerdals="" font-family:="" font-size:="" grey="" letter-spacing:="" line-height:="" start="" text-align:=""><span style="font-size: small;">Sojourner Ahebee: Shedding Infinite Light<br /><br />Sojourner Ahebee writes poetry that haunts. Her writing explores the dynamic between immigrants and Americans, with the latter painted as blind to the struggles the former endures. Sojourner writes to inform and to wake up the people who pretend that there is no corruption or abuse in the relationship between foreigners and their new homes. She sheds light where most cast darkness, and it has been a pleasure reading her work, and learning more about her artistic process.<br /><br />To Read the Interview, Click Here:</span> </strong><span style="font-size: small;"><strong 18px="" 1px="" bf9000="" color:="" eigerdals="" font-family:="" letter-spacing:="" line-height:="" start="" text-align:=""> </strong><a href="http://wintertangerine.com/sojourner-abehee-haunting-humble-and-shedding-infinite-light"><span style="color: #f1c232;">http://wintertangerine.com/sojourner-abehee-haunting-humble-and-shedding-infinite-light</span></a><br /><br /><span style="color: #76a5af;">To purchase issues of Winter Tangerine Review or to subscribe, click here: </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #76a5af;"> </span></span><span style="color: #bf9000;"><a href="http://wintertangerine.com/purchase/">http://wintertangerine.com/purchase/</a></span><br />
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<span style="color: magenta; font-size: small;"><b>*Young Writers Opportunity: Scholastic Art and Writing Awards</b></span><br />
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<span style="color: magenta;"><b><i><span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 18px; text-align: start;">The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards has an </span><a 0px="" 11px="" 18px="" border:="" cursor:="" font-family:="" font-size:="" href="http://www.artandwriting.org/bold-ideas/" line-height:="" margin:="" none="" padding:="" pointer="" sans-serif="" start="" text-align:="" text-decoration:="" verdana="">impressive legacy</a><span style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif; font-size: 11px; line-height: 18px; text-align: start;"> dating back to 1923. Over the years, the Awards have grown to become the longest-running, most prestigious recognition program for creative teens in the U.S., and the nation’s largest source of scholarships for creative young artists and writers. A noteworthy roster of past winners includes Andy Warhol, Sylvia Plath, Truman Capote, Richard Avedon, Robert Redford, Joyce Carol Oates, Stephen King, John Updike, and </span><a 0px="" 11px="" 18px="" border:="" cursor:="" font-family:="" font-size:="" href="http://www.artandwriting.org/the-awards/alumni/" line-height:="" margin:="" none="" padding:="" pointer="" sans-serif="" start="" text-align:="" text-decoration:="" verdana="">many more</a><span 11px="" 18px="" font-family:="" font-size:="" line-height:="" sans-serif="" start="" text-align:="" verdana="">. To learn how to enter, click here: </span></i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: magenta;"><b><a href="http://www.artandwriting.org/the-awards/how-to-enter/">http://www.artandwriting.org/the-awards/how-to-enter/</a></b></span><br />
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<br />Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-15556722032575070232013-11-24T22:28:00.000-05:002013-11-24T22:28:05.281-05:00Photographs of the 2013 National Student Poets in Washington, D.C. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitZ3yzbdVaRq0M68P0kGwUehADRAUMuhVK_ND7JoDun2bgAxkbrgbl3nw8bcrmzNU12_E_97FJBe-N_ojcIkKK-Dp6WtETsleUNCnn7mY4pLF5HtKEHh20DvbSir2_Zrkjz9ODQe79wrNZ/s1600/hat1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitZ3yzbdVaRq0M68P0kGwUehADRAUMuhVK_ND7JoDun2bgAxkbrgbl3nw8bcrmzNU12_E_97FJBe-N_ojcIkKK-Dp6WtETsleUNCnn7mY4pLF5HtKEHh20DvbSir2_Zrkjz9ODQe79wrNZ/s400/hat1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2013 National Student Poets at their Appointment Ceremony in Washington, D.C. with the wonderful representatives of the sponsoring organizations of the NSPP/ Sept. 2013 </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4nS5_zO3mKv0KT-4fg1hJBWEgYhRwtmQNdXfyWQM-uiZfBzf8NgWQAUFE-WRyGAVGbTikVXfm9de-wDg9yyViTmsLmJfU1-NzXrbd4MrIoX_YCO5JW07acwEsYCatA-Wn8hLOzIIzly7o/s1600/joyce.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4nS5_zO3mKv0KT-4fg1hJBWEgYhRwtmQNdXfyWQM-uiZfBzf8NgWQAUFE-WRyGAVGbTikVXfm9de-wDg9yyViTmsLmJfU1-NzXrbd4MrIoX_YCO5JW07acwEsYCatA-Wn8hLOzIIzly7o/s400/joyce.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2013 National Student Poets with writer Joyce Carol Oates at the National Book Festival /Sept, 2013</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivOl7ptmbhBLOgA0c3XebQmhzl60noqRtFOfkYO0zUha_zJCX8wCjLrJ_39rKkQ5jyJJ1n5wy7uSArgTjhEB9We-SFzCj3y3ty80qqGUVkOkSGZbZLD_WkfKDOVMrrhAOtZxi1IV9dT0lz/s1600/sojo+and+Natasha.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivOl7ptmbhBLOgA0c3XebQmhzl60noqRtFOfkYO0zUha_zJCX8wCjLrJ_39rKkQ5jyJJ1n5wy7uSArgTjhEB9We-SFzCj3y3ty80qqGUVkOkSGZbZLD_WkfKDOVMrrhAOtZxi1IV9dT0lz/s400/sojo+and+Natasha.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2013 National Student Poets with U.S. Poet Laureate Natasha Trethewey at an event at the Library of Congress/Sept. 2013</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFmGFhEWcs65eHSYApUi00X4psiZ6ZoDdKpMgN4cOgqTrSO0tDx2DLpJ4-mpZ2fFlsUwWmSwLijfDe2zqsj3b1svRuKH2AyGjfBjisqCu0_Aez7L8xftQhMJc-JVNahIxNjIQ03v9-2vBQ/s1600/Sojo+and+family+in+the+diplomatic+room.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFmGFhEWcs65eHSYApUi00X4psiZ6ZoDdKpMgN4cOgqTrSO0tDx2DLpJ4-mpZ2fFlsUwWmSwLijfDe2zqsj3b1svRuKH2AyGjfBjisqCu0_Aez7L8xftQhMJc-JVNahIxNjIQ03v9-2vBQ/s400/Sojo+and+family+in+the+diplomatic+room.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ted McBride, my uncle, me and Octavia McBride-Ahebee, my mother, while we waited in the Yellow Room of the White House for the arrival of Michelle Obama / Sept. 2013</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPZ8EV5Wl4QwKKNdDljm3qiLYqYZ3n7nUiRudtXSlMiQDUv2UKMtBksKDcmTiF7-C08ZCOZwM862apyieaD3q_9YbTmJ88LKJXlXBnBGIlQE_VEJw5TJDshhxDmURCWpUaFpkxqkr2Sz5A/s1600/sojo+in+the+library+of+congress+poetry+room.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPZ8EV5Wl4QwKKNdDljm3qiLYqYZ3n7nUiRudtXSlMiQDUv2UKMtBksKDcmTiF7-C08ZCOZwM862apyieaD3q_9YbTmJ88LKJXlXBnBGIlQE_VEJw5TJDshhxDmURCWpUaFpkxqkr2Sz5A/s400/sojo+in+the+library+of+congress+poetry+room.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2103 National Student Poets in the Poetry Room of the Library of Congress/ Sept. 2013</td></tr>
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* Photos- David Cummings<br />
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<span style="color: magenta;"><b>Writing Opportunity for Young Writers: </b></span><br />
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<span style="color: magenta; font-size: large;">The Patricia Grodd Poetry Prize for Young Writers</span></h1>
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<span style="color: magenta;"><b><span style="font-family: minion-pro, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px;">The Patricia Grodd Poetry Prize for Young Writers recognizes outstanding young poets and is open to high school sophomores and juniors throughout the world. The contest winner receives a full scholarship to the </span><a href="http://www.kenyonreview.org/workshops/young-writers/" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(57, 41, 2); border-bottom-style: dotted; border-width: 0px 0px 1px; font-family: minion-pro, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Kenyon Review Young Writers</a><span style="font-family: minion-pro, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px;"> workshop. In addition, the winning poem and the poems of the two runners-up will be published in </span><em style="border: 0px; font-family: minion-pro, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">The Kenyon Review</em><span style="font-family: minion-pro, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 22px;">, one of the country’s most widely read literary magazines. To learn more, click here: </span><a href="http://www.kenyonreview.org/contests/patricia-grodd/">http://www.kenyonreview.org/contests/patricia-grodd/</a></b></span></div>
Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-67792341101919953222013-11-23T10:52:00.000-05:002013-11-23T11:45:11.621-05:002013 National Student Poets<div class="MsoNormal">
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1NlFAgbb952CADgfB5UQqwEG4q7rYLzI3yQhF2kiG0hBL7EePayaIazuT8qShpjbBVQhra9Cj2NA1qabL2XD2DfpKUyvIKHlYRXTLLiskyCd6WxlpMan5rIcN4-AacjiZznOkh6lrC-sH/s1600/michelle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1NlFAgbb952CADgfB5UQqwEG4q7rYLzI3yQhF2kiG0hBL7EePayaIazuT8qShpjbBVQhra9Cj2NA1qabL2XD2DfpKUyvIKHlYRXTLLiskyCd6WxlpMan5rIcN4-AacjiZznOkh6lrC-sH/s400/michelle.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span 10px="" arial="" font-family:="" font-size:="" helvetica="" sans-serif="" start="" text-align:="">First Lady Michelle Obama with the 2013 National Student Poets (from left: Michaela Coplen; Sojourner Ahebee, Nathan Cummings, Louis Lafair, and Aline Dolinh) in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House, Sept. 20, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson.)</span></td></tr>
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<b>It has been a few months since I last posted. It is my senior year and there are lots of
demands, but I am back. I wanted to
share some great news. I was selected
this year as one of the five National Student Poets. The other gifted poets include <span style="color: #f1c232;">Michaela
Coplen</span>, <span style="color: #f1c232;">Nathan Cummings</span>,<span style="color: #f1c232;"> Aline Dolinh</span> and <span style="color: #ffd966;">Louis Lafair</span>. We were received by <span style="color: #e06666;">First Lady Michelle
Obama</span>, with our families, in the White House in late September. Mrs. Obama is the honorary chair of the
President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities, which is one of the
sponsoring organizations of the <span style="color: #f1c232;">National Student Poets Program</span>. To learn more about the program, its other
sponsors, and the application process for becoming a National Student Poet,
click here: <a href="http://www.artandwriting.org/the-awards/national-student-poets-program/">http://www.artandwriting.org/the-awards/national-student-poets-program/</a></b></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1QkilO74dCzGSTKWOgIwUGkavYvH6l0SH5lvBt4aLumkQcurwJOIsJbapGbQE6NcP_ilKtOTqYH85ObPY6B1KFBMNHINrSrHtKsYr663YNboSG8Lpyt5n9mYZeIEPnK_JaGWhFVD50nli/s1600/michelle1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1QkilO74dCzGSTKWOgIwUGkavYvH6l0SH5lvBt4aLumkQcurwJOIsJbapGbQE6NcP_ilKtOTqYH85ObPY6B1KFBMNHINrSrHtKsYr663YNboSG8Lpyt5n9mYZeIEPnK_JaGWhFVD50nli/s400/michelle1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><b> The National Student Poets Appointment Ceremony in Washington, D.C. . Sept. 2013</b></span></td></tr>
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<b>The jurors this year were poets <span style="color: #fff2cc;">Richard Blanco</span> <a href="http://richard-blanco.com/">http://richard-blanco.com/</a> , <span style="color: #fce5cd;">Robert
Caspe</span>r( poet and Head of Poetry and
Literature Center, Library of Congress) <a href="http://blogs.loc.gov/catbird/author/roca/">http://blogs.loc.gov/catbird/author/roca/</a>,
<span style="color: #fce5cd;">Andrea Gibson</span> <a href="http://www.andreagibson.org/">http://www.andreagibson.org/</a>, <span style="color: #fce5cd;">Kimiko Hahn</span>
<a href="http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/1536">http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/1536</a>
, <span style="color: #fce5cd;">Joy Harjo </span><a href="http://www.joyharjo.com/Home.html">http://www.joyharjo.com/Home.html</a>
, <span style="color: #fff2cc;">Terrance Haye</span>s <a href="http://terrancehayes.com/">http://terrancehayes.com/</a> ,<span style="color: #fff2cc;"> David Lynn
</span>(Editor, Kenyon Review <a href="https://www.kenyonreview.org/">https://www.kenyonreview.org/</a> , <span style="color: #fff2cc;">Alice Quinn</span>( Former Poetry Editor at the New Yorker and
currently <span 8.0pt="" font-family:="" font-size:="" georgia=""> </span>Executive Director of the Poetry Society of America <a href="http://www.poetrysociety.org/psa/about/staff/">http://www.poetrysociety.org/psa/about/staff/</a><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 8.0pt;"> ) </span>and <span style="color: #fff2cc;">Rose
Styron </span> (</span><a href="http://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/books/2013/02/23/rose-styron-poet-and-nocturnal-reader/E9WAj8dlBdMg6bF29jjyfI/story.html">http://www.bostonglobe.com/arts/books/2013/02/23/rose-styron-poet-and-nocturnal-reader/E9WAj8dlBdMg6bF29jjyfI/story.html</a>).
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcP64NyCY9FDXc2nqITsVd6xRwpS-fYjf9lTE2tUtxpX5v8GxFfkKxvZp_6fMMGS7NpqZhcQHGCNkzIIQmHcr98VqUgASgkvg6jfwmE5PRqcPSp3mz0MQO4JtPQfjAr4yeEs8jEz_JV3m_/s1600/so+dc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcP64NyCY9FDXc2nqITsVd6xRwpS-fYjf9lTE2tUtxpX5v8GxFfkKxvZp_6fMMGS7NpqZhcQHGCNkzIIQmHcr98VqUgASgkvg6jfwmE5PRqcPSp3mz0MQO4JtPQfjAr4yeEs8jEz_JV3m_/s400/so+dc.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;"><b>The 2013 National Student Poets at the Library of Congress</b></span></td></tr>
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<b>I plan, throughout the course of my year of service, as a
National Student Poet to not only share with you the incredible opportunities I
have had so far and will have, but to also share opportunities for young
writers. </b></div>
Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-78971897333243666112013-07-13T11:53:00.000-04:002013-07-13T11:53:03.817-04:00Broadway’s “Wicked: The Untold Story of The Witches of Oz” at The Academy of Music <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvqRCk_oqjWOSkPGxCd7o7ao9FyhxkftI_28V8tOlEJbdHqvVXK8JU5fpOQ3R_4Rzn9mfRpJ-UPJXM7CCMfm7KavWXhKvynjktC2r5earaLr2ikAkDMG2v8QvRO0oHqMCjIMLl-gnHV6it/s1600/Wicked_the_Musical_by_UndyingLight.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvqRCk_oqjWOSkPGxCd7o7ao9FyhxkftI_28V8tOlEJbdHqvVXK8JU5fpOQ3R_4Rzn9mfRpJ-UPJXM7CCMfm7KavWXhKvynjktC2r5earaLr2ikAkDMG2v8QvRO0oHqMCjIMLl-gnHV6it/s320/Wicked_the_Musical_by_UndyingLight.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1avKHFkBIlxq8LeY-3BQ2qnH_IPocUQqguwTf8vvVYrCJOptWVmL8EozCfylbzAvmw0TvhY8ovqmoY5Nc-0wTaqi79NQlQ1kaZnxDqaMwKHvFn5k6MEs-fyxuvAJWI61qQ6TePZckaZun/s1600/emerald+city.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1avKHFkBIlxq8LeY-3BQ2qnH_IPocUQqguwTf8vvVYrCJOptWVmL8EozCfylbzAvmw0TvhY8ovqmoY5Nc-0wTaqi79NQlQ1kaZnxDqaMwKHvFn5k6MEs-fyxuvAJWI61qQ6TePZckaZun/s320/emerald+city.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="color: orange;">Glinda and Wicked(Elphaba) visit the Emerald City!</span></b></td></tr>
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<b id="docs-internal-guid-21ae38e7-d8a8-f44c-8355-0313f18e9663" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: lime;">A Review by Sojourner Ahebee</span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-weight: normal; text-indent: 0px !important; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> <span style="color: #38761d;">On Thursday the 27th of June I attended the hit Broadway Musical “Wicked”, which has had quite the run on stages all over the country. I’ve been wanting to see this show for quite a while, and prior to going I always thought that the basic premise of the musical was about capturing and documenting the wicked witch's(Elphaba) perspective on how events actually took place in the wonder-filled world of Oz. But after finally getting around to seeing it, I’ve realized that it’s about so much more than that.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-weight: normal; text-indent: 0px !important; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> <span style="color: lime;"> The musical primarily focuses on the time before Dorothy makes it to Oz. We commence with Elphaba’s death, and then travel back in time with the use of flashback, as a way of revisiting Glinda and Elphaba’s childhood. The audience quickly learns of Elphaba’s unfortunate birth. Because she was born with green skin, her parents never could find the place to love her. Elphaba if forced to come to terms with this reality for the rest of her life, and her circumstance contributes to her behavior later in the story.When her sister, Nessarose, is born, though she is handicapped, Elphaba’s parents are so relieved that their second child is not green, and they make sure Elphaba is aware of their relief. Elphaba’s whole childhood is spent believing she is unsightly and worthless. From the beginning of the musical one of the major themes that define the play begins to take form upon the stage;that is the theme of self-identity and rejecting the status quo. While Elphaba receives no love from her parents, her spirit is not completely destroyed due to her sense of determination and humor. This was quite a powerful part of the narrative for me. Because I’m about to start my college search, I’m at a point in my life where I have to figure out who I am and who I want to be. I attend an arts boarding school, so I know, first hand, what it means to not fit into the box that society wants you in. So, through seeing this part of “Wicked”, it was almost like seeing all of my battles of identity on stage, up close and personal.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-weight: normal; text-indent: 0px !important; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> <span style="color: #38761d;"> Soon the musical transitions. Elphaba and Nessarose find themselves at Shiz University, a co-educational university in which many of the main characters attend. It is here that Elphaba, later dubbed “Wicked”, encounters Glinda, the good witch of the south, for the first time. It is also here that the audience gets to see some of the remarkable acting come to life. Galinda, played by the fabulous <i>Jenn Gambatese</i>, is brought into a whole new light, a light that was not present in the original telling of this story. Glinda comes from an affluent family, and her beauty and wealth are two of the main factors that gain her much popularity at the university. She is quite the bubbly type, with sass and pixie dust emanating from her very soul. Elphaba, played by the wonderful </span></span><span style="color: #38761d;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; text-indent: 0px !important; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Laurel Harris</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-weight: normal; text-indent: 0px !important; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, is a character that you grow to love throughout the play. She has an inclination to spout out dry humor, and she is one of the most candid and down to earth characters present in the narrative. Elphaba is given a lot of humanity in this musical. While Glinda and Elphaba do not take a liking to each other in the beginning, they grow a friendship that is quite unexpected. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span><span style="color: lime;">While much of the expected school drama takes place at Shiz University, there is an underground movement going on in Oz. Many of the animals who have had important roles in the Oz community are suddenly losing their ability to speak. I feel as though this is symbolic of ones ability to fight the amoral majority. Wicked has spent all her life as a minority, so she relates to the struggle that the animals face, especially after her professor, Doctor Dillamond( played by </span></span><span style="color: lime;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-style: italic; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Clifton Davis</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">) is fired due to the fact that he is indeed an animal with a profession that depends upon the act of speaking. Soon Wicked is summoned by the Wizard of Oz, and this is where things go awry. She discovers the Wizard’s lack of real power, and secret information concerning all the animals in Oz, and the Wizards involvement in this secret movement. She becomes disappointed and angered by this reality, and she starts to question everything she has ever believed in. It is this moment in her life in which she must make an important decision: linger in her own neutrality and ignorance, or take a stand for something that is in dire need of audacious freedom. She decides to take a stand and utilize her magic to rise against the oppressive powers of Oz.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-weight: normal; text-indent: 0px !important; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> <span style="color: #38761d;"> While I don’t want to ruin the rest of the musical for you, I do want to touch on one more theme: the role of storytelling and truth. When Wicked makes her decision to go against the great powers, she puts the Wizard and his entourage in a very dangerous place. Because they don’t want to get found out, Galinda is ordered to twist the story, as a way of turning the citizens of Oz against her. This is not a musical about sides, this is a story about truth and the importance of documenting truth. This is a play about storytelling and lies. But most importantly, this is a story about not accepting the reality that is given to you. What I love about art is that it is a medium of expression that aims at doing just so:questioning reality and discovering other worlds. After seeing “Wicked” as an artist, as a writer, and as a global citizen, I was truly moved. Costumes, set design, and music was just simply fantastic! I really felt as though I had entered another world! I urge everyone to go out and support this show!</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; text-indent: 0px !important; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="color: orange;">“Wicked” will be at the Academy of Music until August 4, 2013. To get specific times and dates for the performance, visit the link below!</span></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.kimmelcenter.org/broadway/" style="text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px !important;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">http://www.kimmelcenter.org/broadway/</span></a><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-weight: normal; text-indent: 0px !important; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></div>
<br /><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-weight: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"></span></b>Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-78036736693312114622013-06-06T01:29:00.001-04:002013-06-06T01:29:38.086-04:00Beyond Swastika and Jim Crow; An Inspiring Exhibition Presented by The National Museum of American Jewish History <div class="AppInner" jquery17206391611896166456="280" sizcache04182366948209026="9" sizset="0">
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A Review by Sojourner Ahebee</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9-lR4Bu9xWIZ3pNLZ2Dop__iUyHtGUmm9EzpnZ-oGCYAH6MlGqOAGPP5dxIJVpZlM_uUY3FRwqpHCcxN0DS4EZs2epIRS8QMeAtUL9QWxtWqCpzj-R_WJrHwR9xGELfWvvvfv9Ets2cUf/s1600/cat1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9-lR4Bu9xWIZ3pNLZ2Dop__iUyHtGUmm9EzpnZ-oGCYAH6MlGqOAGPP5dxIJVpZlM_uUY3FRwqpHCcxN0DS4EZs2epIRS8QMeAtUL9QWxtWqCpzj-R_WJrHwR9xGELfWvvvfv9Ets2cUf/s400/cat1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-family: Helvetica, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 15px; text-align: left;"><b>Professor Ernst Borinski teaching in the Social Science Lab, Tougaloo College, Miss.</b></span></td></tr>
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<span style="color: #ffd966;">Howard Zinn wrote “Nations are not communities and
never have been. The history of any country, presented as the history of a
family, conceals the fierce conflicts of interest between conquerors and
conquered, masters and slaves, capitalists and workers, dominators and
dominated ... And in such a world of conflict, a world of victims
and executioners, it is the job of thinking people, as Albert Camus suggested,
not to be on the side of the executioners.” </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Albert Einstein giving a physics lecture at Lincoln University, a<br />historically African-American University. At this time, Einstein was on the<br />staff of Princeton University.</b></td></tr>
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There were many kinds of horrific events that preceded the ultimate horror of the Holocaust. One of these was the dismissal of Jewish academics from German universities. During the 1930’s, Hitler and the Nazi party had gained much influence in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Germany</st1:place></st1:country-region>,
and many Jewish professors and scholars were expelled from their educational
positions at universities. Because these scholars experienced the country’s rabid hostility and rightfully feared what was to come next, they fled to the <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">United States</st1:place></st1:country-region> and hoped to find teaching positions at American universities. While
well-known Jewish academics, like Albert Einstein, were hired by major
universities like Harvard, <st1:place w:st="on">Princeton</st1:place>, and
Stanford, it was hard for other professors to find jobs stateside. As a result
of this, many Jewish scholars found refuge and positions at Historically Black
Colleges/Universities, where they discovered that the same battle they were fighting back in Germany was not too different from the struggles of African-Americans. </div>
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The National Museum of American Jewish History hosted an
exhibition entitled “Beyond Swastika and Jim Crow”, from
January 15 to June 2, 2013, which highlighted the lives of some of these German scholars who found refuge and kinship at many African-American institutions and established enduring relationships with their African-American peers and students. The
exhibition featured several memorable and engaging Jewish academic refugees like Ernst Borinski, George Iggers, and Lore and Donald Rasmussen who were welcomed by various African-American colleges, many of them located in the deep South ,at the height of the Jim Crow era. These intellectual powerhouses rigorously challenged their African-American students in such subjects as the Sciences, Latin and
Philosophy as well as the Arts. These Jewish professors not only found a safe haven at these institutions, they also found an opportunity to take an uncompromising stand against the prevalent and insidious racism faced by African-Americans, especially in the South. </div>
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These Jewish scholars immediately recognized the common battle they shared with African-Americans in their fight for equality and they were moved to directly confront and challenge the mean and dehumanizing racism of the United States. They were actively involved in civil rights campaigns off campus and supported their students in public venues, even when it was illegal and dangerous to do
so. Also, they were active participants in organizations like the NAACP;the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. </div>
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Viewing the photographs of these transplanted scholars and some of their personal belongings such as their letters, religious objects and even videotaped interviews with some of these scholars was so moving and placed me right in the middle of a history that I am connected to also. Equally compelling were the video interviews of several former African-American students who
expressed both their love and joy for their beloved professors who had come so far and fleeing such horrors to arrive in a place to offer their light. Their testimonies were so candid, heartfelt and inspiring all
at once. </div>
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Last summer I traveled <st1:country-region w:st="on">France</st1:country-region> and took a course exploring the history of the lives of American expatriates in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Paris</st1:place></st1:city>.
It was from this course that I discovered the non-fiction of James Baldwin. James
Baldwin fled the United States at a
time when the state of affairs for African-Americans was at its worst. It was in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Paris</st1:place></st1:city>
that Baldwin first experienced that freeing feeling of not always being identified and received as a "Black" man, but simply as a human being. After his
experience in <st1:place w:st="on">Europe,</st1:place> he came to the conclusion
that “the past is what makes the present coherent.” I think <st1:place w:st="on">Baldwin</st1:place>’s
experience is something that these Jewish refugee professors might have really related
to in terms of their reception at these African-American colleges where they were not just Jewish scholars , but welcomed sources of enlightenment. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>James Baldwin in Paris</b></td></tr>
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Even though this particular exhibition has closed , I highly recommend making a visit to this phenomenal museum. It is imperative that we are aware of
what has taken place before us to be able to digest and understand what is
happening in the present . Through being conscious observers and analysts
of history, we join the fight in eliminating the struggle between victims and
executioners. Below you can find the link to the museum’s website, where you
can access the museum hours, ticket rates, information on exhibitions, and the
museum’s location. Stay Zen!</div>
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Museum Website: </div>
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<a href="http://www.nmajh.org/" target="_blank"><span style="color: windowtext; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">http://www.nmajh.org</span></a></div>
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<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">National</st1:placename>
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<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Philadelphia</st1:city>
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Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-70624552642830860652013-01-06T20:43:00.004-05:002013-01-06T20:52:50.397-05:00Les Misérables, the Musical, in Philadelphia<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Broadway: Les
Misérables</b></div>
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<b>A Co-presentation of
the<span style="color: orange;"> Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts and The Shubert Organization</span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: orange;">A Review by Sojourner
Ahebee</span></b></div>
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<b>On Wednesday evening of January
2, 2013, I attended The Broadway Series production of <span style="color: #cc0000;">Les Misérables</span>. What an
experience! </b></div>
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<b> </b><br />
<b>This
story is an old one, drawn from <span style="color: #6fa8dc;">Victor Hugo's </span>classic novel which is also
entitled Les Misérables. The story tells the tale and balances on the themes of
the survival of the human spirit. Through transitioning from a traditional
novel to a full blown musical performance, much is brought to stage and to
light through the voices of the actors. The musical commences with the
introduction of <span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Jean Valjean </span>(played by Peter Lockyer), an outcast who
is kindly taken into the care of the Bishop of Digne. After many unfortunate
situations, Valjean decides to start his life all over, with a fresh first
step. Eight years pass and he has become a Mayor and a factory owner. For a
brief moment the audience is allowed to breathe, with the good fortune that is
born with Valjean's hard work. But, soon the audience gains a sense of these
desperate times with the presence of the musical number “At the End of the
Day”. While this is quite a heart wrenching song, what I appreciate about this
number is that it is sung from the voices of the poor, more specifically, the
workers and the unemployed. There are lines like: <i>At the end of the day
you're another day older/and that's all you can say for the life of the poor/
it's a struggle, it's a war</i>. As <span style="color: orange;">Howard Zinn </span>once mentioned, history is
usually told from the the perspective of the privileged. This is not the case
in this narrative. The sheer honesty present in this piece lends itself to much
power.</b></div>
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<b> </b><br />
<b>Also,
through the musical number “At the End of the Day”, we are introduced to
<span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Fantine </span>(played by Genevieve Leclerc), one of Valjean's workers, who has
a secret illegitimate child who is in the care of a couple she sends money to,
to pay for her child's expenses. When the women in the factory discover this,
they are enraged and demand for her dismissal. Their brutality towards Fantine
is something I will never understand, but this situation surely lends itself to
the tense environment of the narrative and also, it helps with the audience's
ability to sympathize with Fantine.</b></div>
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<b>With
no job and no where to go, Fantine is forced to sell her locket, her hair, and
later she must even resort to selling herself as a prostitute, so she can
continue to pay for medicines for her daughter. I've never experienced a
mother's love showcased on the stage with such omnipotence. While Fantine waits
for customers, she ruminates on her lost love and wonders why she finds herself
in this situation. These ruminations are present in the musical number “I
Dreamed a Dream”. The lines in this song that really hit me hard were: <span style="color: orange;"><i>but
the tigers come at night/ with their voices soft as thunder/ as they tear your
dreams apart/ as they turn your dreams to shame</i>.</span> This is later followed
with the number “Lovely Ladies”, which further demonstrates the desperate environment, with the aid of the
presence of the prostitutes. On a surface level, this song has quite an upbeat
tune, but the darker undertones of having to sell your own body to make ends
meet is very much there as well.</b></div>
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<b>When
a customer arrives, Fantine feels degraded and gets into a fight with this
customer. She is about to be taken to prison by<span style="color: #9fc5e8;"> Javert</span>( played by Andrew
Varela), but Valjean arrives and demands she be taken to the hospital
instead. Before he leaves Fantine in the hospital, he promises her that he will
will find and look after her daughter, <span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Cossette</span> (played by Siri Howard).</b></div>
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<b>Cossette
has been staying with the <span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Thénardiers,</span> where she is abused by the family. After
studying so much Shakespeare during my first semester of school, I have learned
the importance of certain roles in theatre, especially those like the
Shakespearean fool, who is there to teach a lesson but to also provide some
type of comic relief. While Cossette was not a funny character, the presence of
a child on stage, someone who wields bits and pieces of innocence, is what
allows the audience to take a short break from all the tragic happenings in the
play. Also, on a vocal level, I found it refreshing to hear a child's voice on
stage. Cossette sings a song entitled “Castle in the Cloud” where she expresses
her want to escape to another place, like a type of wonderland, as a means to
escape the unkind family. Valjean holds his promise and finds Cossette. He
makes a bargain with the Thénardiers,
and they agree to let him take the girl and raise her as his own. </b></div>
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<b>Years later, there is much
political unrest in the city due to the situations of the workers and the
common people. People become fed up and start to revolt. In Act 2 we are
reintroduced to Cossette when she is older, and a boy named <span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Marius,</span> who starts
to fall in love with Cossette. We are also re introduced to <span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Éponine(</span> played by Erin
Clemons), the Thénardiers's daughter, who also loves Marius. But, if you
want to find out what happens, I would highly recommend attending the
performance at the Academy of Music.</b></div>
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<b>The musical is full of energy,
light, and most importantly truth. Also, this is a very vocally demanding
piece, and the actors pull this off with much power! I never felt like I wasn't
in the moment and these songs will stay in your head forever.</b></div>
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<b>This
brand new 2<span style="color: orange;">5<sup>th</sup> Anniversary production</span> will be playing in
Philadelphia at the Academy of Music until January 13, 2013. To get more
information, click the link below!</b></div>
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<a href="http://www.kimmelcenter.org/events/?id=4396"><span style="color: orange;">http://www.kimmelcenter.org/events/?id=4396</span></a><br />
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Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-3293610632031866572012-12-27T12:21:00.000-05:002012-12-27T12:21:33.100-05:00Anna Karenina; Food for Thought and a Feast for Your Eyes<br />
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<b>Last night I saw the newest film version of <span style="color: cyan;">Leo Tolstoy’s
Anna Karenina</span>. Loved it! I loved it so
much that I went to my favorite bookstore for used books, <span style="color: cyan;">Last Word Bookshop</span>,
and I got my copy of <span style="color: cyan;">Tolstoy’s</span> epic story. The number of pages seems a bit daunting,
but I am determined after seeing this film. I will also take a couple of
Russian Literature courses at school. </b></div>
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<b>Visually the film is a nonstop feast for your eyes. What had
me sitting on the edge of my seat was nothing scary. It was how the director <span style="color: cyan;">Joe
Wright</span> presented this story. It was
presented not as a play, but it is told from a stage, in the most original,
imaginative, and surreal and bold way. </b></div>
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<b>Another great discovery for me is playwright <span style="color: cyan;">Tom Stoppard</span>
who wrote the screenplay for Wright’s Anna Karenina. Playwright <span style="color: cyan;">Tony Kushner</span> visited my school
this past semester and shared his insights on the craft of playwriting. I had previously seen his <span style="color: cyan;">Angels in <st1:country-region w:st="on">America</st1:country-region></span>. Consequently, I was excited to see
<span style="color: cyan;">Spielberg’s <st1:city w:st="on">Lincoln</st1:city>
</span>film, because Mr. Kushner was the screenwriter. It has been a new and interesting journey
meeting all kinds of writers and studying their work and seeing the creative
ways in which they present their work to the public.</b></div>
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<b>Tom Stoppard and Joe Wright are now at the top of my list for
delivering on the wonder and delight.
You have to experience how this story is told. </b></div>
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<b>My mom was constantly whispering historical commentary in my
ear throughout the film, which, I will admit, made me more excited about
reading and discovering more of Tolstoy. </b></div>
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<b>A few years ago, I participated in <span style="color: cyan;">The Great Books Summer
Program at <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Amherst</st1:placename>
<st1:placetype w:st="on">College</st1:placetype></st1:place></span>, where all I did
for a few weeks were read and discuss books.
It was WONDERFUL! You can also study with this program at <span style="color: cyan;">Stanford University</span> and <span style="color: cyan;">Oxford University,</span> in England. This program
also has a film component, where students watch and learn how to critique
films. Here is a link to learn about
this program. <a href="http://www.greatbookssummer.com/"><span style="color: cyan;">http://www.greatbookssummer.com/</span></a></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #222222;">Last
Word Bookshop<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #222222;">Address:</span><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="color: #222222;"> </span></span><st1:address w:st="on"><st1:street w:st="on"><span style="color: #222222;">220 South 40th
Street</span></st1:street><span style="color: #222222;">, <st1:city w:st="on">Philadelphia</st1:city>,
<st1:state w:st="on">PA</st1:state> <st1:postalcode w:st="on">19104</st1:postalcode></span></st1:address><span style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #222222;">Phone:</span><span style="color: #222222;">(215) 386-7750<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-2818675983114836022012-11-26T21:10:00.000-05:002012-11-26T21:10:14.067-05:00Say No-UNiTE To End Violence Against Women<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<strong><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span>Join forces with the <span style="color: #ff6600;">Say No- UNiTE To End Violence Against Women </span>campaign.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Say </span><span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="color: #e36f1e;">NO</span></span> – UNiTE to End Violence against Women is a social mobilization platform on ending violence against women and girls. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>November 25, 2012<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>marked the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, kicking off 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence that highlight the connection between women, violence, and human rights.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This campaign stands as a reminder to the world, local organizations, and most importantly, ordinary citizens to say “No” and unite to end violence against women.<o:p></o:p></span></span></strong></div>
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<span><strong><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">My local Amnesty International chapter’s focus project for this campaign will be Malala Yousufzai, the <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-font-kerning: 18.0pt;">Pakistani girl who was shot by the Taliban.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>urge you, too, to do a simple, but powerful gesture; to send a </span>message of support to Malala, her schoolmates and friends and let them know you stand with them and for the rights of women and girls everywhere. It was a shocking act of violence: 14-year-old Malala Yousufzai was shot by Taliban gunmen, and her condition is slowly improving in a <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">UK</st1:place></st1:country-region> hospital after a bullet was removed from her brain. Two fellow students, Shazia Ramzan and Kainat Ahmed, were also injured in the attack.<br />The Taliban targeted Malala -- <em><span style="font-family: Arial;">a child</span></em> -- specifically for her human rights activism. Malala has bravely spoken out for the rights of girls to receive an education. Her father ran one of the last girls' schools to defy a Taliban ban against female education in <st1:country-region w:st="on">Pakistan</st1:country-region>'s <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Swat</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Valley</st1:placetype></st1:place>, and both Malala and her family have received threats from the Taliban in the past.<o:p></o:p></span></strong></span></div>
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<strong><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span lang="EN" style="color: #ff6600; font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN;">You can easily visit the Amnesty International’s homepage and click on the feature about Malala and submit your letter online. </span><em><span style="color: #ff6600; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">You can customize your message of solidarity or use</span></em><em><span style="color: #ff6600; font-family: Arial;"> </span></em><em><span style="color: #ff6600; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">the sample provided</span></em><em><span style="color: #ff6600; font-family: Arial;">. </span></em><em><span style="color: #ff6600; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Whatever you do, take action.</span></em><em><span style="color: #666699; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></em><span lang="EN" style="color: #666699; font-family: Arial; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> <span style="color: #3d85c6;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.amnestyusa.org/"><span style="color: #3d85c6;">http://www.amnestyusa.org/</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></span></strong></div>
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<em><span style="color: #666699; font-family: Arial; font-style: normal; line-height: 120%; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><strong><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">When you have submitted your letter of support, email me at </span></strong><a href="mailto:vwolf12@hotmail.com"><span style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><strong><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">vwolf12@hotmail.com</span></strong></span></a><strong><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> , so I can share your messages of support and include them in my chapter’s campaign efforts. </span></strong></span></em><span style="color: #666699; font-family: Arial; line-height: 120%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-77763293354386720412012-09-26T21:18:00.000-04:002012-09-26T21:18:22.024-04:00How To Feel Fulfilled As An Artist<br />
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<strong><span style="font-size: large;">My mom posted this on my timeline today. Wise words, especially number 2. </span></strong><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgam6Zvsgyu5Ntz5df8Y8skU-FkZmfpwQSjheKn0yKV1RqYnsGygbDsZB5sFQXgOJawCsYEJLcFPd9euKEtyAq04x09ZKSOSAue3N3QAUQ0r0jR16zSuGdfHFEFAyxN9cQYy5qfvRvMqYpc/s1600/tumblr_m6wc7nZXxB1qlgui8o1_400.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgam6Zvsgyu5Ntz5df8Y8skU-FkZmfpwQSjheKn0yKV1RqYnsGygbDsZB5sFQXgOJawCsYEJLcFPd9euKEtyAq04x09ZKSOSAue3N3QAUQ0r0jR16zSuGdfHFEFAyxN9cQYy5qfvRvMqYpc/s1600/tumblr_m6wc7nZXxB1qlgui8o1_400.jpg" /></a></div>
Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-5313732041288639972012-09-26T20:41:00.000-04:002012-09-26T20:45:59.472-04:00Who Will be the First Youth Poet Laureate of Philadelphia ? Maybe You!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizSxKcqPnM5i0tBD8GAn89l30F573jc5PxsuyWgFLW8DDu12og3mM5-siajDCp_2EqD3kgPCc07qB9BF150ZwaPsQ5_mvqdmaJs9kSmfZduFpVwzx9g464YAkRsqqyk-TLK2Crr9xV-4tP/s1600/POETRY_EVENTS_LG.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" kea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizSxKcqPnM5i0tBD8GAn89l30F573jc5PxsuyWgFLW8DDu12og3mM5-siajDCp_2EqD3kgPCc07qB9BF150ZwaPsQ5_mvqdmaJs9kSmfZduFpVwzx9g464YAkRsqqyk-TLK2Crr9xV-4tP/s400/POETRY_EVENTS_LG.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong>Who Will be the F<span style="font-size: x-small;">irst Youth Poet Laureate of Philadelphia ?</span></strong></td></tr>
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<strong><span style="font-size: large;"><st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"> Philadelphia</st1:place></st1:city> has always been in the vanguard of the creative arts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here is yet another great example that proves this point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">The </span><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">City of <st1:city w:st="on">Philadelphia</st1:city>’s Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy</span> is establishing <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Philadelphia</st1:place></st1:city>’s first Youth Poet Laureate position. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just applied and I encourage all my fellow Philly poets to do the same. Here is a link for more information.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> <span style="color: #9fc5e8;"> </span></span><a href="http://creativephl.org/youthpoetlaureate"><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">http://creativephl.org/youthpoetlaureate</span></a></span></strong><br />
Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-17798685003581471312012-09-25T21:54:00.002-04:002012-09-25T22:09:23.544-04:00Meet the 2012 National Student Poets<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeYEhSb8QhMvSAEbCefEa4BYZ17D-gkfnCf6BJrh2jXXNFZVlbTmyyPum5Nb-Sc6hq_C1BHFmuoWqmLXNUVGQEidbixipfhBncLn0yyr8Bvh82c0PrKe8SqdvjK7RJKeUgaeUhxNZ6FfTr/s1600/be+5.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" hea="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeYEhSb8QhMvSAEbCefEa4BYZ17D-gkfnCf6BJrh2jXXNFZVlbTmyyPum5Nb-Sc6hq_C1BHFmuoWqmLXNUVGQEidbixipfhBncLn0yyr8Bvh82c0PrKe8SqdvjK7RJKeUgaeUhxNZ6FfTr/s200/be+5.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong>Lylla Younes</strong></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2TY0CPruoDTTz7s62biyCej1TILP1kwYObIuczrNa2_jLwPKvXRkS_xjndwuZ2pwYKNWyqXWBvWD1tCA8Ioe_eQzIxO9cPrs7afH1NO0sw1wWc3pF8GHhMzTjD7jaAGqCbi5LCnzOk8hX/s1600/be+4.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" hea="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2TY0CPruoDTTz7s62biyCej1TILP1kwYObIuczrNa2_jLwPKvXRkS_xjndwuZ2pwYKNWyqXWBvWD1tCA8Ioe_eQzIxO9cPrs7afH1NO0sw1wWc3pF8GHhMzTjD7jaAGqCbi5LCnzOk8hX/s200/be+4.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong>Natalie Richardson</strong></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwQmbHT-w_sHNZWo1sHkOnvqcC_K-a9lQcV32pCHf-bSxFt8m87kgyxwqZwaHAaFQH4F9Og34i4t6SBR6joI4T9EazZ65IKW-l47AA4hx7y32zmtLJiojZCw-HTWLUInD9zCeRt-MSt9UP/s1600/be+3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" hea="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwQmbHT-w_sHNZWo1sHkOnvqcC_K-a9lQcV32pCHf-bSxFt8m87kgyxwqZwaHAaFQH4F9Og34i4t6SBR6joI4T9EazZ65IKW-l47AA4hx7y32zmtLJiojZCw-HTWLUInD9zCeRt-MSt9UP/s200/be+3.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong>Claire Lee</strong></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0zGQXpnnmqRHV3DrE89HMaoHzOC-TQdUk9HVQyRhe_dp_V6QuhC55t0YIA78uotrFecCUhfAN2BMCFT43sKVulvujA31jp23ErRjcVEnmNJzwsxCMn7bTrHDOialcBnP7kRLniANknEFi/s1600/be+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" hea="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0zGQXpnnmqRHV3DrE89HMaoHzOC-TQdUk9HVQyRhe_dp_V6QuhC55t0YIA78uotrFecCUhfAN2BMCFT43sKVulvujA31jp23ErRjcVEnmNJzwsxCMn7bTrHDOialcBnP7kRLniANknEFi/s200/be+1.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong>Luisa Banchoff</strong></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrZvoAXI5hN3KmrSCPnK9V-4zD0_nYqiuWewjh_lW-7U-YN_oOCM13vb2IDYG-0UokCzlVzlF1uGbPfiLO2botu89hGfhecuQTnkSMnpn56cxrtjWy6aAaxoLjtX69E4DJLNe9zH72C65X/s1600/be+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" hea="true" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrZvoAXI5hN3KmrSCPnK9V-4zD0_nYqiuWewjh_lW-7U-YN_oOCM13vb2IDYG-0UokCzlVzlF1uGbPfiLO2botu89hGfhecuQTnkSMnpn56cxrtjWy6aAaxoLjtX69E4DJLNe9zH72C65X/s200/be+2.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong>Miles Hewitt</strong><br />
<strong><strong><span style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">BRAVO !!! Congratulations to </span><span style="color: yellow;">Luisa Banchoff</span> , <span style="color: yellow;">Miles Hewitt</span>, <span style="color: yellow;">Claire Lee</span>, <span style="color: yellow;">Natalie Richardson</span> and <span style="color: yellow;">Lylla Younes</span>;<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="color: yellow;">the 2012</span> <span style="color: yellow;">National Student Poets</span>. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></strong><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span>On Tuesday, these </span></strong><strong><span style="font-size: large;">literary luminaries were<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>officially <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>appointed <span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>during the <span style="color: yellow;">Library of Congress’</span> National Book Festival in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:city w:st="on">Washington</st1:city>, <st1:state w:st="on">DC.</st1:state></st1:place></span></span></strong><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size: large;">To lean more about the National Student Poets Program and these winning poets, click here. </span></strong><a href="http://www.artandwriting.org/the-awards/national-student-poets-program/"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="color: yellow; font-size: large;"><strong>http://www.artandwriting.org/the-awards/national-student-poets-program/</strong></span></span></a><o:p></o:p><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size: large;">Did I mention I was a semi-finalist?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ah, to dwell in possibility…</span></strong><br /><br /></strong></td></tr>
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Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-118741308857132592012-09-25T21:28:00.000-04:002012-09-25T21:29:59.837-04:00 Foreign Language Programs for the Summer 2013<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong>London</strong></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong>Paris</strong></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhMLIGgld6UrYtMMySNK1vqMoy0FBh0lMrlJxna5kgj8siQC2G1sZVcqoSHp9TZeOyDeLKa_RuMjVK2GNRQIBh11rXZpwe1ttmVuZovCp466RmZdtCTsQHD0Z86PDsi7Oxvk-d7XQ-VetH/s1600/sojo+academie....jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" hea="true" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhMLIGgld6UrYtMMySNK1vqMoy0FBh0lMrlJxna5kgj8siQC2G1sZVcqoSHp9TZeOyDeLKa_RuMjVK2GNRQIBh11rXZpwe1ttmVuZovCp466RmZdtCTsQHD0Z86PDsi7Oxvk-d7XQ-VetH/s400/sojo+academie....jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong>Paris</strong></td></tr>
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<strong>This has got to be the longest period of time I haven't posted something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pardon!- with </strong><strong>a French accent ! I had such a busy summer and now school has resumed. </strong><strong>I had an amazing time this past summer, in <span style="color: lime;"><st1:country -region="-region" w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">France</st1:place></st1:country>,</span> studying Parisian architecture and American expatriates and practicing my French. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did I mention also gorging on macaroons?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I 've been through the fire and now I can go almost anywhere on the metro.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also got to visit friends in <st1:city w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"><span style="color: lime;">London</span></st1:place></st1:city> during all of that Olympic mania.</strong></div>
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<strong>Anyway…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Believe it or not, NOW is the time to apply for so many remarkable summer programs, most of which offer financial aid and/or scholarships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since I am in a </strong><strong>foreign language state of mind, I will share some links to language programs, many of which take you abroad. </strong></div>
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<strong>Does studying in <st1:country -region="-region" w:st="on">England</st1:country>, <st1:country -region="-region" w:st="on">France</st1:country> or <st1:country -region="-region" w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Spain</st1:place></st1:country> interest anyone?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Try <span style="color: lime;">Oxbridge Academic Programs</span>, the organization that arranged my </strong><strong>studies in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country -region="-region" w:st="on">France</st1:country></st1:place>. They are first-class all the way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></strong><a href="http://www.oxbridgeprograms.com/index.php"><strong><span style="color: lime;">http://www.oxbridgeprograms.com/index.php</span></strong></a></div>
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<strong>How about you guys who are interested in learning critical languages like Chinese, Arabic, Hindi, Farsi, Russian, Korean and more?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How about if you want to learn these languages in the countries where they are spoken?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I got you covered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Check out the </strong><span style="font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><strong><span style="color: lime;">National Security Language</span> <span style="color: lime;">Initiative for Youth</span>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s an intense process to get selected, but if you do, all expenses are paid and you get to open your mind and heart to another culture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s more information about the National Security Language Initiative for Youth: </strong></span><a href="http://exchanges.state.gov/youth/programs/nsli.html"><span style="color: windowtext; font-weight: normal; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><strong><span style="color: lime;">http://exchanges.state.gov/youth/programs/nsli.html</span></strong></span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
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<strong>Ok, I know, some of you want to stay stateside, but still want the rigor and intensity of a total language immersion experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Look no further.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here is the link to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on"><span style="color: lime;">Middlebury-Monterey</span></st1:placename> <span style="color: lime;"><st1:placename w:st="on">Language</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Academy</st1:placetype></span></st1:place>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did the French immersion program a few years ago. AWESOME.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The institute offers the total immersion </strong><strong>experience-you sign a pledge not to speak English during your 4-week stay-in </strong><strong>Mandarin, Arabic, German, French and Spanish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can do it:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></strong><a href="http://mmla.middlebury.edu/"><strong><span style="color: lime;">http://mmla.middlebury.edu/</span></strong></a></div>
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Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-43302988615747689482012-06-15T00:19:00.001-04:002012-06-15T00:19:50.991-04:00Kehinde Wiley's Economy of Grace at the Sean Kelly Gallery-One More Day<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Kehinde Wiley, <em>Kancou Diaovno</em> (2012)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Kehinde Wiley, <place w:st="on"><state w:st="on"><em>Dacia</em></state></place><em> Carter</em> (2012</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sojourner in front of <em>Princess Victoire of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha</em> (2012) <br />
by Kehinde Wiley</td></tr>
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<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">Besides the above, what was great about being in <state w:st="on"><place w:st="on">New York</place></state> was being able to visit so many dynamic places.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One of those places was the <place w:st="on"><span style="color: #93c47d;"><placename w:st="on">Sean</placename> <placename w:st="on">Kelly</placename> <placename w:st="on">Gallery</placename></span></place>. I went there with my mother and aunt. This gallery is featuring the work of <span style="color: #6aa84f;">Kehinde Wiley</span>. You know how I feel about his work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></h2>
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<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">It was exciting and odd at the same time to view this particular collection because the subjects are all women.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wiley is synonymous for his almost exclusive portrayal of men. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>True to his signature style, this body of work, entitled <span style="color: #6aa84f;">Economy of</span> <span style="color: #6aa84f;">Grace</span>, is over the top and spectacular.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was kind of eerie and neat to see his work in this huge gallery with just four or five people in there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It felt very intimate. </span></h2>
<strong><span style="font-size: large;">Wiley has said he based these paintings on historical portraits by masters like <span style="color: #6aa84f;">Jacques-Louis David, Thomas Gainsborough</span>, and <span style="color: #6aa84f;">John Singer Sargent</span>, and that <em>Economy of Grace</em> challenges society’s views of feminine beauty and the place of black women in art history.</span></strong><br />
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<strong><span style="font-size: large;">“I am painting women in order to come to terms with the depictions of gender within the context of art history. One <em>has</em> to broaden the conversation,” he is quoted as saying.</span></strong></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1O2a87FI5HnSEAmNUVLkO2F1ExpJFyJIUrWjCy74WSMbtkG694yVzo9g8FBlNz-aiM_hX3ozFy6NREiddGsh3KSf6awEvDRyC4nqvxA6syPROQrkdCYWIwri7NYLovOmp0nxUgaDhfNT8/s1600/women22.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" pca="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1O2a87FI5HnSEAmNUVLkO2F1ExpJFyJIUrWjCy74WSMbtkG694yVzo9g8FBlNz-aiM_hX3ozFy6NREiddGsh3KSf6awEvDRyC4nqvxA6syPROQrkdCYWIwri7NYLovOmp0nxUgaDhfNT8/s320/women22.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Kehinde Wiley, <em>Judith and Holofernes</em></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><strong>To learn more visit the Sean Kelly Gallery website:</strong></span> <h2 style="margin: auto 0in;">
<span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><a href="http://www.skny.com/exhibitions/2012-05-06_kehinde-wiley/"><span style="color: purple; font-size: small;">http://www.skny.com/exhibitions/2012-05-06_kehinde-wiley/</span></a></span></h2>Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-72558236109123736182012-06-14T23:54:00.001-04:002012-06-14T23:54:32.433-04:002012 National Scholastic Art & Writing Winners<br />
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<strong><span style="color: #f1c232;"><placename w:st="on"><span lang="EN" style="color: #807d7d; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 9pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Three-time</span></placename><span lang="EN" style="color: #807d7d; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 9pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"> <placetype w:st="on">Academy</placetype> Award-winning actress Meryl Streep provides young artists and writers with inspiration at the 2012 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards at <place w:st="on"><city w:st="on">Carnegie Hall</city>, <state w:st="on">New York</state></place>, Friday, June 1, 2012. (Stuart Ramson for Scholastic Inc</span></span></strong></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="color: #f1c232;">Me, Sojourner Ahebee, with my gold medal.</span></strong></td></tr>
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">Two weeks ago I was in <city w:st="on"><place w:st="on">New York City</place></city> because I was selected as a </span><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">2012 National Scholastic Art & Writing Award Winner, along with 800 other talented teens.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I won a gold medal for my poetry. We all had our names published in the New York Times-Thursday, May 31, 2012, and we were given sage advice by the actress Meryl Streep at an event held in our honor at Carnegie Hall .<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our work is currently on display at Parsons The <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">New</placename> <placetype w:st="on">School</placetype></place> of Design. <a href="http://www.artandwriting.org/AWNNYC"><span style="color: purple;">http://www.artandwriting.org/AWNNYC</span></a></span></strong><br />
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<strong><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; mso-ansi-language: EN; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US;">If you are a teen artist, enter next year. Here is more information: <a href="http://www.artandwriting.org/">http://www.artandwriting.org/</a></span></strong><br />Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-4239760952339613742012-06-14T22:47:00.000-04:002012-06-14T22:47:17.305-04:00Open Auditions at The School of Pennsylvania Ballet<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="color: cyan;">Ballerina Misty Copeland</span></strong></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: cyan;"><strong>The Power of Dance-Misty Copeland</strong></span></td></tr>
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<strong>Like many girls and some boys, I went through a beautiful phase in my life when I wanted to be a ballet dancer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I took ballet lessons at the <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">Gwendolyn</placename> <placename w:st="on">Bye</placename> <placename w:st="on">Dance</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Center</placetype></place> </strong><a href="http://www.gbyedance.org/"><span style="color: purple;"><strong>http://www.gbyedance.org/</strong></span></a><strong><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I went religiously to performances of the Pennsylvania Ballet to see my then idol Heidi Cruz.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I even went to an audition, with my friend Kristen, for the <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">Rock</placename> <placetype w:st="on">School</placetype></place> for Dance. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></strong><a href="http://therockschool.org/programs"><span style="color: purple;"><strong>http://therockschool.org/programs</strong></span></a><strong><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I passed through that phase.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Though I am not a dancer, I love dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I always will.</strong></div>
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<strong>But there are those young people for whom dance is not a phase, but in the blood and their desire to dance will not be quieted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are my idols, too.</strong></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><strong><span style="color: #d5a6bd;">The <place w:st="on"><placetype w:st="on">School</placetype> of <placename w:st="on">Pennsylvania Ballet</placename></place> has announced a second date for open auditions. It will be this Saturday, June 16, 2012.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here are the details from the source.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let the dancing begin.</span></strong></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><strong><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: magenta;">Source: Marissa Montenegro of the <state w:st="on"><place w:st="on">Pennsylvania</place></state> Ballet</span></span></strong></span></div>
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><strong><span style="color: #d5a6bd;"><em>This session will accommodate students who were unable to attend the first open audition in April. Set to open in Fall 2012, the School also has named current Company Member Laura Bowman and former Principal Dancer Martha Chamberlain to its faculty. Guest faculty will include current Principal Dancers Amy Aldridge and Zachary Hench and former Principal Dancers Alexei Borovik and Alexander Iziliaev. </em></span></strong></span><br />
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><strong><span style="color: #d5a6bd;"><em><span style="color: magenta;">Auditions on Saturday, June 16 will be held at Pennsylvania Ballet’s studios at <street w:st="on"><address w:st="on">
3502 Scotts Lane</address>
</street>, Building 4, <place w:st="on"><city w:st="on">Philadelphia</city>, <state w:st="on">PA</state>, <postalcode w:st="on">19129</postalcode></place>. </span>There is no audition fee. Girls and boys ages 8 to 18 are invited to take an audition class, divided by age (see schedule below). Girls should wear tights and a leotard. Boys should wear a white t-shirt and black tights or shorts (no long pants). Girls ages 12 and above should bring pointe shoes. Previous ballet training is not required to audition. To register for auditions, please complete the form on this link: </em></span></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><a href="http://www.paballet.org/BalletSchoolAuditionForm/Default.aspx"><strong>http://www.paballet.org/BalletSchoolAuditionForm/Default.aspx</strong></a></span><br />
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<span><strong><span style="color: #d5a6bd;">Ages 8 to 12<br /><span style="font-family: Arial;">Check-in: 9:30 a.m.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial;">Audition Class: 10 a.m.-11 a.m.</span></span></strong></span><br />
<span><strong><span style="color: #d5a6bd;">Ages 13 to 18<br /><span style="font-family: Arial;">Check-in: 11 a.m.</span><br /><span style="font-family: Arial;">Audition Class: 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.</span></span></strong></span><br />
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<em><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><strong><span style="color: #d5a6bd;">A</span></strong></span><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><strong><span style="color: #d5a6bd;">ll ages indicated are as of September 1, 2012. Auditions are for the Student Division (ages 8-18) only. The <place w:st="on"><placetype w:st="on">School</placetype> of <placename w:st="on">Pennsylvania Ballet</placename></place> also will offer Pre-Ballet (ages 6-7) and Open Adult classes, with no audition required.</span></strong></span></em><br />
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><strong><span style="color: #d5a6bd;"><em>Based on current contractor projections, <span style="color: magenta;">the <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">Louise</placename> <placename w:st="on">Reed</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Center</placetype></place> for Dance</span>, Pennsylvania Ballet’s new home on the Avenue of the Arts, will be ready for occupancy in December 2012. The <place w:st="on"><placetype w:st="on">School</placetype> of <placename w:st="on">Pennsylvania Ballet</placename></place> will move into the new facility in January 2013. In the meantime, fall classes for Levels 3, 4, 5, 6, and adults will be held in the current Pennsylvania Ballet studios in the <placename w:st="on">East</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Falls</placetype> section of <city w:st="on"><place w:st="on">Philadelphia</place></city>. Fall classes for Pre-Ballet and Levels 1 and 2 will be held at the Philadelphia Performing Arts Charter School in <place w:st="on">South Philadelphia</place>. <place w:st="on"><placetype w:st="on">School</placetype> of <placename w:st="on">Pennsylvania Ballet</placename></place> staff will assign a level to each student accepted for Fall 2012.</em></span></strong></span><br />
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><strong><em><span style="color: #d5a6bd;">Re-opening the <place w:st="on"><span style="color: magenta;"><placetype w:st="on">School</placetype> of <placename w:st="on">Pennsylvania Ballet</placename></span></place> is one pillar of the Company’s current $25 million capital campaign, Building Beyond 50. Other goals include constructing the <place w:st="on"><placename w:st="on">Louise</placename> <placename w:st="on">Reed</placename> <placetype w:st="on">Center</placetype></place> for Dance; artistic priorities such as expanding the repertoire, increasing the number of dancers in the Company, and maintaining the Pennsylvania Ballet Orchestra; as well as strengthening the Company’s balance sheet and working capital. For more information on the Building Beyond 50 campaign, please contact Hilary Alger, Director of Development, at 215.587.6912 or</span> <span style="color: #d5a6bd;"><a href="mailto:halger@paballet.org">halger@paballet.org</a>.</span></em></strong></span><br />
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<span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><strong><span style="color: #d5a6bd;"><em>F</em></span></strong></span><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: Arial; font-size: 10pt;"><strong><span style="color: #d5a6bd;"><em>ounded in 1963 by Balanchine student and protégée Barbara Weisberger, <span style="font-family: Arial;">Pennsylvania Ballet </span>is one of the nation’s leading ballet companies. Headquartered in <city w:st="on">Philadelphia</city>, the Company’s annual local season features six programs of classic favorites and new works, including the <city w:st="on"><place w:st="on">Philadelphia</place></city> holiday tradition, <span style="font-family: Arial;">George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker™</span>. For more information, visit paballet.org or call 215.551.7000.</em></span></strong></span><br />
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</span>Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-86499936746924715132012-06-14T17:52:00.000-04:002012-06-14T22:14:27.560-04:00Topdog Underdog: A Review By Sojourner Ahebee<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIJPeg51AjQ0UOuwVqWkbvoDsGk5d4tSAiFAodJo5zlylqfDr1VgfR2uJiWfHequ4atd7A1pyzUI8xj5jD8DkqcXFVXL-3dyho0PzoitiN8YSQ1tRwExLGaxBUkNpuQ6g10L21L-xObXeV/s1600/SuzanLoriParksByEricSchwabel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIJPeg51AjQ0UOuwVqWkbvoDsGk5d4tSAiFAodJo5zlylqfDr1VgfR2uJiWfHequ4atd7A1pyzUI8xj5jD8DkqcXFVXL-3dyho0PzoitiN8YSQ1tRwExLGaxBUkNpuQ6g10L21L-xObXeV/s320/SuzanLoriParksByEricSchwabel.jpg" width="263" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Suzan-Lori Parks</b></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8vBV_w04epUclRq6LwnRxptpqhSb84LICoLVNoV6ouRSKilBypv5JUmZWfNgo5Y7a8z85mUrD-dVLpzCXBSOfZtElbVIiYvn2bGtXQkB1ktp03sYszaB_UyfhmTajuaf-g0pDM78qTOEs/s1600/topdog+underdog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8vBV_w04epUclRq6LwnRxptpqhSb84LICoLVNoV6ouRSKilBypv5JUmZWfNgo5Y7a8z85mUrD-dVLpzCXBSOfZtElbVIiYvn2bGtXQkB1ktp03sYszaB_UyfhmTajuaf-g0pDM78qTOEs/s320/topdog+underdog.jpg" width="231" /></a><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"> <strong>Last Wednesday night at The Walnut Street Theatre, I attended</strong></span><strong><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;"> Suzan-Lori Parks</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">'s Pulitzer winning play entitled </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">“Topdog Underdog”</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">. This play takes on the narrative of two brothers, Lincoln (played by</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">Kash Goins</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">)</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">and Booth (played by </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">Roderick Slocum</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">). Already you are presented with a story, a play, swimming and rich with history. If it isn't obvious, Abraham Lincoln, the 16<sup>th</sup> president of the United States, was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth. The brothers in this narrative have a relationship I wouldn't hesitate to characterize as volatile and dysfunctional but the love between the two siblings is still present as well.</span></strong></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"><strong> Lincoln and Booth were abandoned by their mother and father at the age of sixteen, and left with an inheritance of 500 dollars each. They had to learn what it meant to be an adult before most teenagers their age. Their harsh and unpleasant childhood follows them into their adult lives, which is where the heart of the play exists. Lincoln used to be a <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">3-card Monte con-artist but he stopped because he saw his friend shot as a result of this. He now takes on a job at a carnival arcade, where he dresses up as Abraham Lincoln and lets people shoot him. I find it interesting that he stops his prior job because his friend was shot but he takes on a job that involves people shooting him just for fun. There is something so haunting about this and it is here that you, as the audience, really begin to see the brilliance of Lori-Parks and the complexity of</span></span> Lincoln's character. But back to the point. Lincoln's change of profession does not bring in the same amount of money as the cards but it's enough to support he and his brother in their shabby rooming house. Booth on the other hand has no job and completely depends on the income of his brother. He dreams of becoming good at 3-card Monte and when he's not dreaming, he's shoplifting. Booth is a character you can find yourself easily hating but deep inside all of his bad qualities, there is sometimes good. At one point in the play he steals some clothing from a department store,two suit to be exact, but one of the suits he steals for his brother. It's easy to just look at Booth as this “bad guy” but that's not how people really are. People contain multitudes. </strong></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"><strong> What's even easier is to make Lincoln the good guy but what really separates him, morally, from his brother, Booth. Yes Lincoln stopped playing cards but he starts up again towards the end. On a literal level there is a tan folding screen separating the two brothers in the room but is that enough of a borderline? This all makes the audiences questions the moral differences between President Lincoln and John Wilkes Booth themselves. When it comes down to it, Abraham Lincoln was not concerned with the welfare of slaves if it meant the union was going to become split. He wanted the union to stay together. Then on the other hand you have Booth, a man who assassinated the president. He is painted as this racist southerner throughout the eyes and perspective of history books. Even though his actions were completely wrong, (especially considering the fact that I feel like Lincoln evolved as a president and as a person) are his views towards the slaves and African-Americans in general, any better than Lincoln's? But, at the end of the play, the character Lincoln receives the same fate as our 16<sup>th</sup> President. It's then left up to you, as the viewer, to make the decision on who's the “bad guy” or the “good guy”. Maybe neither exists. </strong></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"><strong> Finally, this is a story about childhood nightmares and how they manifest into reality. This is a story about morals and lastly, this is a story about asking questions. You can never stop asking questions and finding new perspectives, which tend to hide in the dark corners of history.</strong></span></div>
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<strong> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"> “Topdog Underdog” will be at the </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">Walnut Street Theatre</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">until</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">June 17, 2012. </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">This is definitely a must see so I urge everyone to go out and support! Click the link below for more information concerning the showtimes. </span></strong></div>
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<a href="http://www.gokashproductions.com/"><strong>http://www.gokashproductions.com/</strong></a></div>
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</div>Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-10528003751503006052012-05-06T13:51:00.001-04:002012-05-06T13:51:55.450-04:00Nina Simone Looming Large<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2GXF6UpSwre_YRbHwSqUZEQvzJptlnccUz6McuykTQriy7ZMq124iMJ-Kc5u54sqcicYjzEm5vpYz28T_YutlaitKEXizPqYf42wiBNqhs887q6EoBm58zzYIOBWjxGSrhAEeZvAdEKRx/s1600/hand.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2GXF6UpSwre_YRbHwSqUZEQvzJptlnccUz6McuykTQriy7ZMq124iMJ-Kc5u54sqcicYjzEm5vpYz28T_YutlaitKEXizPqYf42wiBNqhs887q6EoBm58zzYIOBWjxGSrhAEeZvAdEKRx/s400/hand.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong><span style="color: cyan;">Monica A. Hand</span></strong></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ6ryFrbAj-FHnALKeRF-9WZ-vk-KC0AmhER7Kf5zHR5TPsH7jnPMTYzEiG_WGjuC-mzMOmYSa2LgjuwkrN5er-Gc6Tm0tri3cMKAYZTM1eaCMrjMHFIeXgln1nihiz5ZUwT-JiDcoWW6v/s1600/nina.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ6ryFrbAj-FHnALKeRF-9WZ-vk-KC0AmhER7Kf5zHR5TPsH7jnPMTYzEiG_WGjuC-mzMOmYSa2LgjuwkrN5er-Gc6Tm0tri3cMKAYZTM1eaCMrjMHFIeXgln1nihiz5ZUwT-JiDcoWW6v/s1600/nina.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: cyan;">me and Nina by Monica A. Hand</span></td></tr>
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<em><span style="color: #b6d7a8;"><strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Hi.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m reposting a
post by my mom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It concerns a great poet
by the name of Monica Hand, who I got to see and hear at the AWP conference in
Chicago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do support her campaign.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here it is.<o:p></o:p></span></strong></span></em></div>
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Nina Always Looming Large<o:p></o:p></span></strong></div>
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">By Octavia McBride-Ahebee<o:p></o:p></span></strong></div>
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Jazz reigns supremely in my family home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had many momentous occasions to see, with
my father and brothers, live performances of our best jazz artists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One such occasion was when my dad and I saw
<span style="color: cyan;">Nina Simone</span> at the now defunct Chestnut Street Cabaret, in Philadelphia.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A fantastically long line of her fans wrapped
around 38<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup> Street onto Filbert and while they waited for doors to
open, they shared their Nina Simone stories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>These were tales not only of Nina’s concerts and her wonderfully
singular editorials which ranged from indictments on the music business to
charges that racism and sexism were still running amok in our country, but they
were tales of a more intimate dimension.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Most of those side-walk shared vignettes were about where people were in
their personal development when Nina so wonderfully, so unabashedly, so
melodically blasted the world with her take on things. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was as if Nina’s songs served to document
their lives and they were there for that concert not only to hear her, but to
continue on their journey with her serving as a pivotal backdrop in
illuminating the truth of their lives.<o:p></o:p></span></strong></div>
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</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">This brings us to poet <span style="color: cyan;">Monica Hand</span> and her new poetry collection,<span style="color: cyan;">
me and Nina</span>, which perfectly exemplifies all of the above.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Poet Tyehimba Jess said of this collection
and of Hand:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Monica A. Hand sings us a
crushed velvet requiem of Nina Simone. She plumbs Nina’s mysterious bluesline
while recounting the scars of her own overcoming. Hand joins the chorus of
shouters like Patricia Smith and Wanda Coleman in this searchlight of a book,
bearing her voice like a torch for all we’ve gained and lost in the heat of
good song.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></strong><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span></span><br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Not only do I encourage you to purchase this book, but I invite
you-TODAY- to support Hand in her immediate project, which is raising funds to
get her to England, so she can participate in the Keats Festival in June.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With the advent of fundraising platforms like
Kickstarter and Indigogo, we can become patrons of the arts for a minimal
contribution; but it’s a contribution combined with others that has a
resounding impact. </span></strong></span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Here is the link to a video of Hand reciting one of my
favorites poems from me and Nina as well information about her fundraising
efforts and how you can contribute: </span></strong></span><a href="http://www.indiegogo.com/meandNina"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong>http://www.indiegogo.com/meandNina</strong></span></a><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">Here is information about the Keats festival- </span></strong><a href="http://www.keatshouse.cityoflondon.gov.uk/852/The-Keats-House-Festival.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong>http://www.keatshouse.cityoflondon.gov.uk/852/The-Keats-House-Festival.html</strong></span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
<strong><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
You can order the me
and Nina from here as well: </span></strong><a href="http://alicejamesbooks.org/pages/book_page.php?bookID=164"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong>http://alicejamesbooks.org/pages/book_page.php?bookID=164</strong></span></a><o:p></o:p><br />
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<br /></div>Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7844750008725377337.post-8906364387573992992012-04-01T10:55:00.000-04:002012-04-01T10:55:26.658-04:00Trayvon Martin Is My Brother, Too !<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOLq0ID0RQkEl2sOXugCddYH088Z1XNsqnXuhJCulJwI-EKMXuB2EmFsGlDi75QD_13JZ8gJg6NC-GxXgX-3BIzQVXZAmbrfcZBOUUOGylVoSnypOA8GVINFsshc4arnbPalgH0FSVWQcz/s1600/Wiley-Kehinde_TriplePortraitOfCharles_I.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOLq0ID0RQkEl2sOXugCddYH088Z1XNsqnXuhJCulJwI-EKMXuB2EmFsGlDi75QD_13JZ8gJg6NC-GxXgX-3BIzQVXZAmbrfcZBOUUOGylVoSnypOA8GVINFsshc4arnbPalgH0FSVWQcz/s400/Wiley-Kehinde_TriplePortraitOfCharles_I.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><strong>By Kehinde Wiley</strong></td></tr>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 16.2pt;"><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 9pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">an excerpt from</span><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> An Ode to Liberty</span><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div><span style="font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; font-size: 14pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">By Sojourner Ahebee</span><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 12pt;"><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I.</span></b><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></div><b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I have a brother and he is brown<br />
My mother tells her son that the world is his oyster<br />
Lay claim to all around you, she begs<br />
And he smiles and believes in dreams that can’t be scaled down.<br />
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As he gets older, like now, like 10 years old<br />
My brother, who is brown, tall like the Sahara Desert on stilts,<br />
Handsome like the Grand Canyon in a rainstorm<br />
Has only the weapons of a violin and a painter’s brush<br />
And a bedroom plastered with heroes to calm his fears of the things foretold.<br />
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Maybe not his fortune, doesn’t have to be<br />
But the wails of a mother tied to the wails of another<br />
Linking hundreds of death cries over lost sons,<br />
Released in one year, cascading through one city<br />
Ours<br />
Can spook a little brown boy thinking about living.</span></b><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 16.2pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><strong><span style="color: #ffd966;"><i><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-size: 16pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f1c232;">I’ve been selected as a gold medal winner for poetry by the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, representing the Midwest region where I attend school. Other notable past winners include </span></span></i><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14pt; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="color: #f1c232;"><span style="color: #a2c4c9;">Andy Warhol</span>, <span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Sylvia Plath</span>, <span style="color: #6fa8dc;">Truman</span> <span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Capote</span>, <span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Richard Avedon</span>, <span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Robert Redford</span> and </span><span style="color: #9fc5e8;">Joyce Carol Oates</span>.</span></span></strong><i><span lang="EN" style="color: #2a2a2a; font-size: 16pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"> </span></i><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; font-size: 16pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><a href="http://www.artandwriting.org/awards/nationalwinners" target="_blank"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"><span style="color: #ead1dc;">http://www.artandwriting.org/awards/nationalwinners</span></span></a></span><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 16.2pt;"><i><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-size: 16pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> </span></o:p></span></i><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><i><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-size: 16pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f1c232;">The President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH) and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) have partnered with the nonprofit Alliance for Young Artists& Writers to create the National Student Poets Program, the country’s highest honor for youth poets whose original work exhibits exceptional creativity, dedication to craft and promise. Five outstanding high school poets will be selected annually for a year of service as literary ambassadors for poetry, encouraging a wide range of youth to explore and develop new creative capabilities.</span> </span></i><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: "Tahoma","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 16.2pt;"><i><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-size: 16pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f1c232;">National Student Poets will be chosen from among the national medalists in the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards by a national panel of literary luminaries and leaders in education and the arts. Student Poets will receive academic awards and opportunities to present their work at writing and poetry events, and will be featured at the National Book Festival in Washington, DC, in cooperation with the Library of Congress. Awards will be presented in September 2012.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i></div><span style="color: #f1c232;"> </span><i><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-size: 16pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f1c232;">I’m keeping my fingers crossed.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></i><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 16.2pt;"><i><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-size: 16pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="color: #f1c232; font-family: Calibri;">I also would like to promote my poem “Listen to Africa”, which has been published as a poster for sale by the Syracuse Cultural Workers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s the link: </span><a href="http://syracuseculturalworkers.com/poster-listen-africa"><span style="color: #d9d2e9; font-family: Calibri;">http://syracuseculturalworkers.com/poster-listen-africa</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></i></div><span style="color: #f1c232;"> <span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-size: 16pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">*<span style="color: #f1c232;">Painting-Kehinde Wiley<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0in 16.2pt;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-size: 16pt; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><a href="http://www.kehindewiley.com/"><span style="color: #ead1dc; font-family: Calibri;">http://www.kehindewiley.com/</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></div><br />
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</div>Trumpethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04151247482394970920noreply@blogger.com0