Hi <<First Name>>,
How do you want to be remembered? I'm not trying to be morbid. I'm just sharing a question that motivates me. I think my friends and family would recall my personal motto as: "It CAN be done!" That mindset has always paid off for me, especially this year, as I manifested some things I'd been dreaming about for a really long time.
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My second book, Everything Is Necessary (Willow Books), will be on its way to you in March 2019! These poems speak to the need for wisdom in a life journey that can sometimes feel like a whirlwind. But without the contrast of negative and positive experiences, how would you ever learn the importance of balance? Everything is necessary for your personal growth, so hang in there, and let's keep growing and learning together. We're all doing this for the first time.
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I also got a short story I'd been working on for years--and I mean years--published in Kweli, a prestigious literary journal. This story, which has also been nominated for the Best American Short Story series, was prompted by the question: What would make a mother abandon her children? It's based on true events. I'd love for you to read it and email me your feedback.
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Being selected as the Brooklyn Public Library's Artist in Residence this summer was also a dream come true. That experience led to me participate in the annual Brooklyn Stoops Art Crawl in Bed Stuy, where I gave a public reading in a community garden. It was great fun. The art created as part of my residency, which I donated to the Macon Library in Bed Stuy, is still on display on the lower level. Feel free to go check it out.
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And now, you can take some of my art home with you. I've set up an online store to sell my original art prints, as well as my art on mugs, t-shirts, pillow cases, bathing suits, you name it. Have a look and spread the word!
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So remember, it CAN be done! Author Sonia Sanchez once inscribed a book of hers for me with the message, "Sister Keisha, walk your beauty and intellect across the country." Fifteen years later at one of her readings this fall, I had the honor of telling her in person, "I did just what you told me! And I'm still doing it."
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Thanks for supporting me this year. Here's to a creative, fun, healthy, and transformative 2019! Let's grow together.
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Peace & blessings.
Keisha
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