“If there's a book that you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it.”

                                                                                                                      – Toni Morrison

                                                                                       

        

Oxygen

 

There’s the oxygen that we breathe, and there’s the oxygen that’s needed to command spiritual conditions of peace and harmony.

As our environments become toxified with chaos and negativity, more than likely there is a lack of spiritual oxygen, obstructing the harmonious conditions needed to thrive internally and within our environments, relationships and beyond. And if not provided, stress and conflicts ensue, harmfully impacting the essential oxygen necessary to breathe.

“If I’m remembered 100 years from now, I hope it will be not for looks but for books.”

                                                                                                   – Dolly Parton

Plant-based + Creativity

Plant-based eating delivers more benefits beyond physical health.  I’m often reminded of this when I reflect on a time when I experimented with vegetarianism while performing poetry during my early days as a writer.

As I adopted a holistic lifestyle from juicing, eliminating sugar and salt, eating fresh fruits and vegetables, drinking water and practicing spiritual meditation, creativity poured out of me.  It enabled me to create one of the best poems I’ve ever written, as I surrounded myself with other creatives and heard a jazz percussionist deliver a solo performance that inspired an observatory poem about rhythms and their connections to life.

My reflections on plant-based foods and creativity were reignited again after watching the HBO documentary on Earth Wind & Fire and learning about the plant-based lifestyle its band members adopted.

As a personal witness, there is truly a correlation between plants and creativity … consuming something from the earth, created by the Creator can inevitably spark seeds of creativity and seeds of greatness.

Earth, Wind & Fire Part II

Photograph by Bruce W. Talamon/HBO
All Images Courtesy of Warner Bros. & HBO

An informative addition to the Earth, Wind & Fire (To Be Celestial VS. That’s the Weight of the World) HBO documentary, is the interview with its director and producer, Questlove, on the Track Star Podcast where Quest sits down with host, Jack Coyne, and offers an enlightening discussion about the holistic artistry of EWF and its visionary leader, Maurice White.

Photograph by Bruce W. Talamon/HBO

Photograph by Henry Diltz/HBO

For more information on the interview and the EWF documentary, visit the following links:

Jack Coyne Interviews Ahmir Questlove Thompson

The Documentary

Links to Excellence - More Than a Speech

As commencement speeches have become a media event that many look forward to each year, the 2024 Clark Atlanta University Commencement Address, delivered by Dr. Daniel Black, is a phenomenal delivery, surpassing an address catered to students.  Its inspiring message is for anyone needing the encouragement to fulfill their dreams, seize their future and remember their inherent abilities to soar.

The Best Commencement

 

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”

                                                                                             – Eleanor Roosevelt

                                                                  ___________________________________

The Transatlantic

 

Who would have imagined ancestors of such atrocities would bear descendants who’d enrich America ... names that would remain, after their demise.

MLK Day

 

Though we’re all created equal for some, it’s earned.  Glory is a cinematic movement, reminding us of the sacrifice.  

The Song