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“The BeZine” – Submission Guidelines updated and Themes through December 2016 announced

The BeZine is published monthly on the fifteenth of the month.  We suggest that you read our Intro and Mission Statement and at least three back issues of The BeZine before submitting work for possible publication here.

Please be mindful that our core team, guest contributors and readers represent the world’s diversity. Nonviolence, respect and inclusion are core values here.

All work must be submitted in English and properly edited for publication. Please send submissions to bardogroup@gmail.com and put “submission” in the subject line.  If you were referred by one of our core team please put his or her name in the subject line along with “submission.” Please provide us with a brief bio not a curriculum vitae. If you have published the work submitted on your own website, blog, YouTube channel or other online venue you may send a link. Response time is generally six weeks.

We will consider work that has been published elsewhere but the copyright must be yours.  You retain your copyright for work published in The BeZine. We regret that we are unable to offer payment or editorial feedback.

We address a new theme each month, but we are also interested in cultural and religious material – especially seasonal – which should be submitted at least three months in advance. We appreciate work that expresses a love for traditions and rituals and offers education.

Should you have anything to submit that is over 1,000 words, please forward only a brief one-paragraph summary description for our initial evaluation.  All creative arts are acceptable: visual arts, literature and poetry, music and film.

The following themes are approved through December 2016 by the Core Team and friends of The BeZine.

Themes:

September – Poverty (Michael Dickel hosts)
September 26 – 100TPC/Poverty (Michael Dickel hosts)
October – Visual Arts: Shape, Color, Movement, Meaning
November – At-risk Youth  (Terri Stewart hosts)
December – The Hero’s Journey
January – Parents and Parenting
February – All God’s Creatures
March – The Joys of Nature: Wilderness, Gardens and Green Spaces
April – interNational Poetry Month
May – The Books That Changed Our Lives
June – What! You too?: Joys in Friendship
July – Faith: In Things Seen and Unseen
August – Hope: Great Expectations and Quiet Desires
September – 100,000 Poets for Change
October – Rituals for Peace, Healing, Unity (Terri Stewart hosts)
November – Caritas/Chesed/Metta
December – The Healing Power of the Arts

We look forward to hearing from you.  Thank you!

Be the peace.

Update: September 2, 2015

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100,000 Poets (and other artists and friends) for Change, 26 September 2015, event posters from around the world

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As of this writing, there are over 500 events scheduled around the world. To find an event near you or to register an event that you are organizing go to 100TPC.

Our own (The Bardo Groupand Beguine Again – publishers of The BeZine) virtual event is scheduled to be held at The BeZine blog on 26 September 2015. You are invited to join us by linking in your relevant work on poverty  (our theme this year) through Mr. Linky (directions will be included in the post that day) or simply by adding your link or your work in the comments.  You retain your own copyright.  All the links and works will be collected and posted in a Page at The BeZine and also archived at 100TPC.  So, think about and prepare something you’d like to share so you can have your say and feature your own work.

To “meet” our host for that event, American-Israeli Poet Michael Dickel, link HERE.

To “meet” the founders of 100TPC, link HERE.

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The BeZine, 15 August 2015, Vol.1, Issue 10 – Table of Contents with Links

15 August 2015

“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything.” Platohintergrund-802

We are excited this month to bring you an issue devoted to music. Never have we had such an enthusiastic response to a theme. Facebook messages, emails and emoticons flying through the ether resulting in what is probably our best and largest issue to date … chock full of mind, imagination and flight wrapped in essay, memoir, poetry and video . . . and it’s all about music.

There is no part of life that music doesn’t touch. No part of our being that is left unmoved. Music is a gift that transcends borders and beliefs and can move the most hardened heart to tears and joy.

As fortune would have it, tears could have been the theme for this month.  More than one of us lost someone special. As I worked to pulled things together I also learned of the death of a good friend and found myself helping out another friend who is at the end of her life.  She loves music, so during visits with her I shared the videos that were coming in from Core Team members and friends of The BeZine. No matter what life is delivering to us in this very moment, music comes as friend, healer and  spiritual succor.

And so we start here with a tear: John Anstie’s short piece on the Darwin Song Project, which is accompanied by a video of Karine Polwart singing We’re All Leaving.  It struck me as I listened to this that there is no need for walking on water, no need of “miracles.” We are THE miracle. We who know we are mortal, that we will lose and be lost, still reach out and give our hearts away …What remarkable creatures we are.

Normally I would pick one or two of the pieces that come in to be lead features, but the depth and breadth of the work submitted made that impossible. Hence we have five lead features this month. We have Michael Dickel teaching us about the relation between poetry and music. James R. Cowles bringing music together with science. Lily Negoi is possessed by music. Priscilla Galasso and Terri Stewart bring us memorable experiences of music in the context of family.

From there we move on to a collection of poems and videos. The latter offering some humor as well as grace.

So grab a hot coffee or a cold beer and settle down with us for awhile.  Let us know what you think and consider sharing a link to one of your favorite videos as you go through the work delivered here.

Be the peace.

On behalf of The Bardo Group and Beguine Again, publishers of The BeZine,
Jamie Dedes

TABLE OF CONTENTS WITH LINKS

MUSIC:

Giving Life to Everything

Our header this month is courtesy of Sabine Sauermaul.

Special Feature

Music for Mewling, John Anstie

Lead Features:

Music as Self and World, James R Cowles
The Waltz: Poems and Songs, Michael Dickel
Music: A Soul Experience, Priscilla Galasso
On Music, Liliana Negoi
Yes, indeed, that kind of singing . . . , Terri Stewart

Poetry

Late Night Jazz, Michael Dickel
Words, Words, Words, Michael Dickel
Middle-Class Middle-Aged Male Blues, Michael Dickel
But Hear the Dissonance 1948-2011, Michael Dickel
Songs Around the City, Sharon Frye
The Final Bar, Joseph Hesch
Playing with Their Eyes Closed, Joseph Hesch
The Song Remains the Same, Joseph Hesch
I Hear the Angels Hum, Joseph Hesch
Concerto, Joseph Hesch
For Music, Ben Naga
Grande’s Mandolin (Revised), Corina Ravenscraft
music. . . , Charles W. Martin

Music Videos

Hallmark of Harmony, John Anstie
Don’t Throw Away Your Empties, John Anstie
The History of Lyrics That Aren’t Lyrics, Jamie Dedes
Britian’s National Disabled Orchestra, Jamie Dedes
Big Mama Thornton, Jamie Dedes
Sergey Khachatryan – Armenian violinist, Silva Merjanian
Georgre Enescu: “Carillons nocturnes,” Cristian Perescu, piano, Liliana Negoi

BIOS WITH LINKS TO OTHER WORKS BY OUR CORE TEAM AND GUEST WRITERS

FOR UPDATES AND INSPIRATION “LIKE” OUR FACEBOOK PAGE, THE BARDO GROUP/BEGUINE AGAIN

MISSION STATEMENT

Back Issues Archive
October/November 2014, First Issue
December 2014, Preparation
January 2015, The Divine Feminine
February 2015, Abundance/Lack of Abundance
March 2015, Renewal
April 2015, interNational Poetry Month
May 2015, Storytelling
June 2015, Diversity
July 2015, Imagination and the Critical Spirit

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Conversations on Poverty and Homelessness (Part 2) ~ The BeZine, 100,000 Poets for Change

On our 2015 Facebook Page for 100,000 Poets for Change, we’ve been discussing poverty and homelessness.  I’m sharing some of the conversation there.  If you’d like to join us on Facebook, please let us know.  All are welcome. For the September 2015 issue of The BeZine, we’ll be exploring poverty and on September 26, we’ll hold our virtual event and we invite reader participation.  Instructions will be in our blog that day.  Links to everyone’s work will be collected and posted as a Page and also incorporated into a PDF that will be archived at 100,000 Poets (writers, artists, photographers, musicians and friends) for Change; i.e., peace and sustainability. 

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This conversation was started on our The BeZine 100TPC 2015 Facebook Group Page by Michael Dickel (Fragments of Michael Dickel):

It’s only a little more than a month until 100 Thousand Poets for Change—Fifth Anniversary—26 September! Time to start some provocations…

Just to get us thinking abou the Poverty Theme next month—this was posted in a FB group, “Philosophy,” a while back but just appeared in my timeline.

The question I have is, does the standing man reach into his pocket because of empathy? Does he see that the beggar could be him? Or is it narcissism, that he sees an extension of himself (rather than seeing the person himself as separate)? Is he only giving b/c it is another version of himself (white male)? Would he reach into his pocket if he saw the Other?

I don’t ask these questions to be cynical, but because I think the cartoon suggests all of this and possibly more. Who do we see when we see poverty? Who do we help? Who do we wonder why they are not “making something” of their lives (as one commenter on the posted photo said he would ask “himself”—the beggar self—in this situation)?

Jamie asked me to take the lead for the poverty-100TPC page, if I understood correctly, so consider this a first provocation. I hope to put out a couple of more in the next couple of weeks.

Are they prompts? Inspiration? Irritants? I like the idea of provoking thoughts, creativity, ideas. So I call them provocations. Mainly, just use what generates something for you, ignore the rest or all if you’ve got your own excitement rolling.

– Michael Dickel

Some of the discussion that resulted from Michael’s prompt follows:

“Would he reach into his pocket if he saw the Other?” Heartbreaking that we even have to ask. And we know the artist’s perspective, he is not seeing the other.” Terri Stewart (Beguine Again)

“I’d like to think in the spiritual sense he’s seeing himself but that is wishful thinking, eh? Jamie Dedes (The Poet by Day)

“The ‘but for the grace of God, go I’ response. Maybe. I was more cynical…I was seeing the ego. Ego demands giving to look good. Ugh. I’ve been doing justice work too long.” Terri Stewart

“I think the cartoon suggest all of this—the empathy of “there but for the Grace of God” likely the intent of the artist. The ego the reflection in the mirror, and possibly also intent? Who knows, I guess about intent… and that sense of I will help those like me. And what about those not like me? Terri Stewart

The drawing is provocative. And privileged. And as such, regardless of intent, draws attention to our own privilege, those like me anyway, white male, sitting at my expensive computer writing on FaceBook, drinking good coffee, and not worrying about where my next meal will come from, just whether I can afford to install central AC.” Michael Dickel

What are YOUR thoughts? Please feel free to share them below.

The August issue of The BeZine will be published online on August 15. The theme for August is music.