"Sharing" for the Holidays!

Hello, folks! I just had a GREAT idea! (Especially for all my beloved contributors and collaborators, who just got a mass email from me, and who are hopefully checking out my blog after reading the email). Why not "share" the possibility of this project with your families and friends as you gather for Thanksgiving? That December 1 deadline is next Wednesday and it just occurred to me that many of us will be socializing over the next few days, so rather than wait until after the holiday and then trying to fit everything in......just work it in as part of your celebration! Someone you talk to might just be "thankful" that you did! Who knows--you may have a budding writer in your midst, or a "leader" just itching for a project to take on. Jump in and have fun with it!

Sample Submission

Hello, folks! Just wanted to share this submission from my new friend, Antonio. He was inspired to write a poem after being afraid to love again, having lost his partner. Love walked back into his life, and this is what he wrote. Enjoy!

Fearless Love

When there is fear
there is no Love.
If there’s no Love
there is no Life.

My heart was choked
with fear and sorrow,
until you came
I could not Love.

You asked for nothing,
I let you in.
While you were there
I made you stay.

You worked inside my deepest fear,
the fear of loving
the way I had known.
While you were there
I chose to love;
my heart is full of Life again.

No space for fears
and no more tears;
over your shoulder,
over the fire,
you saw the last
burning the hurt.

When there is Love
there is no fear.
This is the way
I love Ale.

~ Antonio Ferraro, Santa Maria di Castellabate, Italy

Call for Submissions

In the interest of making this project's info as accessible as possible, here is one version of my "Call for Submissions," in case you found this blog somehow, and need some background information.

What comes to mind when you hear the phrase “We Are Our Words”? Where in your life have you made a conscious commitment to altering the outcomes in your life by connecting your belief system with powerful declarations of intent, promise, and commitment? What positive impact has consciously administering and attending to your words and declarations had on your life? Can everyday people like you and me positively impact the future of the world by collectively harnessing and focusing their creative energies through the words we use—in our thoughts, in our speech, in our writings? If you could instantly change the face and fabric of the world simply by speaking powerful words out loud, what would you say? What would you create?

I am putting together a book to be titled We Are Our Words: Spiritual Writings from Around the World, the writings of everyday people who have the power to change the world simply by speaking powerful words out loud. This book represents the possibility of everyday people expressing themselves and shifting the world with their words, etc. with the intended results of a published book with at least 25 submissions of poetry, essays, and artwork from people of many backgrounds and cultures. If you are inspired to participate, please email me (penda68@gmail.com) with a promise to submit your essay (250-750 words), poem (one page or less), or artwork (.jpegs, please). The deadline for final submissions is noon on Tuesday, July 27, 2010. Additional submissions may be accepted thereafter, space permitting. The goal for publication of the book is November 1, 2010.

Greetings!

Hello, followers! I will post updates about my Self-Expression & Leadership Program project, "We Are Our Words: Spiritual Writings From Around the World" here. Look for updates about number of submissions received, contacts made, inspirations, connections, serendipities, miracles, or whatever comes my way that relates to the book that we're creating together! If you've got questions, please feel free to email me at penda68 using Gmail (trying to subvert the programs that crawl the web and look for email addresses. I trust you can figure out my book's email address using this info!).

I'll write more later about the background of the project--just wanted to get this blog set up so I can post the addy. Thanks for playing with me! :)