You have been patient. Some of you have nails that testify to that wait; others have made hairballs from cleaning combs and brushes.  We do not recommend detroying nails, cuticles or losing hair while waiting for anything!   We hope no one is binge eating although I can't get enough of certain foods to appease my nervous stomach or watching late night TV when there is no late night TV to watch.  My example should not be an example that anyone should follow.  With that said, I will not comment on the condition of my nails or those fuzzy balls rolling around my bathroom floor.      While waiting for the anniversary issue (the fiction section is being uploaded as I write, and then all pages have to be linked to a uniform composition... and then we do a final online proof etc. etc.,) I find myself doing much needed yardwork, walking along the pier adjacent to Owasco Lake, writing (that's right...w...

Auburn , NY - The Auburn/Cayuga Branch of the NAACP will celebrate forty-six years of service to the Auburn community at its Annual Freedom Fund Banquet on Friday, May 10, 2013 at the Springside Inn. The 2013 Freedom Fund Banquet will be exciting, memorable and historic. The theme for the evening is “Harriet Tubman: The One Who Never Gave Up.” The event will reaffirm the group’s commitment to empower local youth and prepare them for a better future. This year, the branch will commemorate its connection to the oldest civil rights organization in America with a keynote address by retired news anchor for WSTM-TV and CNY Central, Jackie Robinson . This evening of elegance will begin with a performance by Louis Nocilly and his band JAZZITUDE during the cocktail hour. President and CEO of aaduna, inc., William E. Berry, Jr., will be the Master of Ceremonies. The highlight of the evening will be the presentation of recognition awards to community members and organizations, Promise ...

For the past few weeks, aaduna presented poets whose words and imagery were woven into poetic statements for your enjoyment and reflection.    In the Second Anniversary issue, you will experience other poets: Christine Green, Cyd Charisse Fulton, Jamar Ogletree, Christopher Shapard and Mariah Krochmal in addition to the poets whose works were shared with you over the past few weeks.  Joining the featured poets in the anniversary issue will be fiction writers Ronal d Gauthier and Lindsey Ferrentino, who is best known for her plays.  Timothy Ogene 's essay addressing how spoken word is best transferred to a print format will take center spotlight in the non-fiction genre.  Two of the galleries will be closed until the summer issue and the open one will enable you to experience the rawness and unedited vibrancy of "spoken word."  We hope you enjoy the upcoming issu e, la u nching shortly! We also en...

You already know that April is National Poetry Month.  You also know that aaduna uses this month to celebrate the poets who will grace the Second Anniversary issue.   A person who can answer our question without thought or mico-seconds of hesitancy is  Lyn Lifshin .   Enjoy this poem and watch for her additional work in aaduna's upcoming issu e! THE CELTIC   BIRD GODDESS' WILD SONG you'll see me in Celtic jewels, in tapestries, carvings. I'm there in the most gorgeous leaves, echoes of my feathers are in the swirl of rivers. When you hear the beauty of wings, what I touched is touched again. I run with the horse goddess, with the swans, the bull, those women, half women, half ghostly bird, a reminder of strength and courage. You will find me in your dreams some night it begins to snow just after a full moon, my feathers on your deck the first night impatiens wilt in the freeze. J...

You will be captivated with the words of Kelly Grace Thomas and how she weaves poignant stories with subtle boldness sprinkled with nuances of myriad emotions.  Here is an excerpt from one of her poems that will grace the Second Anniversary issue. Unfinished Ode By Kelly Grace Thomas I meant to write you a poem. To dedicate lines and rhythms, secrets and whispers, to every memory that makes me compare perfection to all the other days. To know that cracks in fences reveal more than just a glimpse and that when you drew the sun, I thought we were really the center of the universe. I hold these moments in my cabinets, under beds and pressed between the pages of books. Waiting for them to waltz again with the innocence they once honored. Or perhaps they will slowly fade, like a photo taken out of focus, forgotten before finished. Finish reading Kelly's "Unfinished Ode" in a few weeks along with  "Shame on You" and "Cha...

In the Second Anniversary issue, aaduna will kick-off publishing spoken word artists whose poetry is at its best when performed. We will publish two of Giovanni's pieces in print and provide a video of him performing those pieces as well as two others that we will not print. In this way, our readership can see the dynamism of seeing and hearing spoken word versus reading, the same work in a printed format.     (Tim Ogene, our recently appointed contributing editor for poetry, will offer his insights and advice on this burgeoning style of poetic expression in the non-fiction section of the journal.) To continue our celebration of National Poetry Month, we are sharing the unedited version of "Enough" in print.   You are encouraged to check out Giovanni’s performance of this piece in the forthcoming issue.   You can then judge your reaction to seeing and hearing the vibrancy of spoken word poetry. Enough I awoke When "they" told us we had to start...

Changming Yuan provides a “short take” reflection from his portfolio of work.  Read how he orchestrates the interaction between words and imagery. We look forward to the poetry that he is bringing to aaduna’s Second Anniversary issue in a few weeks. Amidst Morning Mists Unable to endure constant burning The suffering souls finally find their ways Out of the topsoil, trying To rise together With the summer sun Yet they are all shot With its very first needles Into the darkest moment of last night Where the ghosts of the newly dead, the invisible Linger on, staring at one another No one knows how many of them Were still holding their authentic Human shapes, how many of them Became deformed, agonizing Between pools of stinking blood And piles of rotten flesh   Read more of Changming's work…soon…you just have to wait…patience is really a virtue !