Tune-in to the Season 4 Finale

#Tunein TODAY!!! Sat. Dec. 30th, 2017 to Radio Theatre For Your Soul on Accelerated Radio, 2 pm PT/5 pm ET. #SEASONFINALE #Rebroadcast #100thAnniversaryBroadcast

For a Season

Seasons Change
Winters come and go
Bitter sweet memories that forever camp
where we grow...
Growing still inside of ourselves
to hear the voice of the MOST HIGH...
Inside of us HE lives
And the seasons...they never Die...
Seasons Change
Winters come and go
Bitter sweet memories camp forever
and...we grow

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

Join the Storyteller-gathering 12/16/17

Radio Theatre For Your Soul, Where Storytellers Gather...Around The Mic on Accelerated Radio (AcceleratedRadio.net) is moving into the Christmas Holiday NOW and celebrating 100+ broadcasts through the end of the month. The poetic offerings at the end of each show are sometimes familiar songs. Be sure to tune-in 12/16/17 for our last LIVE broadcast of Season 4 and hear the Nativity Story of Jesus, as told by featured Storyteller-Playwright-Author-Pastor Sonya Wallace Blair!

Follow us @Radiogathering on FB, Twitter & Instagram

Movin'

This is about spirit movin' through the physical
Born again, growing old and then
to explore again
spirit movin' on
traveling he said, to a city called Heaven
we're not bounded, shackled and hounded
by the grounds precious earth...no
we're spirit movin' higher 
than your minds eye desires to know...I grow...
after being born again
washed in the blood again
cradled in Gods love again
and again...and again...and again...
as I find my way back home again...spirit movin'

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman
First published in Revelation Art - POEMS

One Step to Freedom - Song

I want to shed my flesh

and walk in their flesh

and feel the road they paved

there's just no awards great enough

for all they sacrificed and gave

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

First recorded for the CD Precious Time 

More than enough

May the HARVEST be bountiful
May the FEAST feed many
May the giving be thoughtful
but may your LOVE be plenty

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

Child of God

If I wasn't rock-solid,
there might be a reason
for me to crumble, crack or deteriorate...
but I'm rock-solid
If I wasn't washed in the blood of the Lamb,
one could assume I have no faith...
but I'm washed in the blood of the Lamb
If I wasn't deeply committed
to change the condition of my people, or just 1 person,
you would understand why I have endured such suffering...
but I'm deeply committed
to change the condition of my people, or just 1 person
If I wasn't created to live and love and laugh
and forgive and finally live again,
then my purpose would be worthless...
but I was created and I will live and love and laugh
and forgive and finally live again
If I wasn't rock-solid, there might be a reason
for me to lose my way...but guess what my friend?
You just didn't know...I'm rock-solid

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman
1st published in The Stride of Our Walk...The Root of Our Stand A Collection of Performance Poetry

Sing Little Girl or Chante Ti Fi

Sing a song little girl
Chante une chanson petite fille
sing of dreams of hope
reaching from
while reaching for...
the pearl of the Antilles...
songs in the key of natural beauty,
high mountains, revolution
and tremors of the earth
moving my sugarcane melodies
pushing my voice west
jazzing my instrument
singing each song like a little girl...
without apprehension...for your consideration

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

Consequences

Aroma of Flowers

Shiny Apples for two

but God said...not from that center Tree

so winding-slithery tricked me & you...

banished from beauty forever

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

Mid-Life Cruise (an excerpt)

Undoubtedly, in the middle of your life

if blessed to experience that high-light in time,

the story or stories you tell yourself

will pave a promise of peace

or a promise of deterioration...

discern wisely, think on the better,

the best of and for yourself...to perhaps

just perhaps be a blessing to someone else

tell yourself that story and watch it bloom

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

Crime

1st published in "The Stride of Our Walk...The Root of Our Stand" A Collection of Performance Poetry 2001

Come Ye (an excerpt)

What strength you hold 
in the palm of your hands
the stride of your walk
the root of your stand
Come Ye righteous Warriors
and make a bridge for me
What price will you pay 
for your soul to know freedom
the battle is a spiritual war
as sure as slavery is genocide
and homeless Africans 
is stolen pride, wake-up 
Jihad at your door...
Come Ye Warriors
Come Ye Soldiers
Come Ye Armies of God
Come Ye Men both young and old
I have carried the weight for too long
Come Ye like your Ancestors came
brave, bold & strong
Come Ye armies of God and chant a prayer for me
chant a prayer for me...chant a prayer for me...

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman (1st published in "The Stride of Our Walk...The Root of Our Stand" - 2001)

Sister Celebration (an excerpt)

Sisters celebrating
evolving and elevating
trailblazing and transcending
we are the beginning and the ending
Celebrating sisters so serious
our souls see inside sun-nurtured nations
kneeling in honor of she
she is sanctified rhythm walking on water
riding the tide turbulent sometimes
calling forth the spirits of ancestral fire
in the bodies of babies, grandmothers and we
We are sisters celebrating
uniting forces and creating beautiful things
masterful are you and me...

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman (1st published in "Revelation Art Poems" - 2008)

You can't steal my dance...

There will never be
a dance more powerful
a move more thrilling
a leap more heroic
spins more rapid
extensions more lengthy
back-bends more flexible
than the dance...that dance
that lives in your soul
that fuels your passion
and resolves your peace

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

...in the beginning

From the Alpha to the Omega

at morning dew to midnight blue

In waters deep to skies unseen

I am one within the beginning

Forefather's energies command my soul

there is no room for fear

They take me to the land I have never walked

feed me slices of daystar I have never tasted

place me in the pocket of the moon

and cradle me 'til the morrow

I am one within the beginning

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman 

1st published in "The Stride of Our Walk...The Root of Our Stand" A Collection of Performance Poetry

The Few

You should know by now
those like we, we who believe
we who see...are the few
the far reaching...between...
loud and spacious...rooms 
we exist to assist...when you are quiet
exploring the corners of your mind
kind we are, you should know by now
those like we, we who believe
we who see...are the few
the few who will still 
kneel to take a stand

by Shonnese C. L. Coleman

Born in the Summer - an excerpt

I was born in the middle of the summer...
early am...the month of July. 
I cry and smile when I'm happy...
my silence tells you when I'm not...
thinking long, dreaming vividly, walking rapidly in my destiny...
each passing year I cherish more...
growing wiser, grateful, loved monumentally by my mother, my family, my friends...
those that matter...learning new ways to reciprocate that love, to celebrate daily...
this journey on earth we share...a child of God...I AM...
still dancing the road of my story...the road to free...
hugging that cool breeze when it visits on hot humid days in July...
I was born in the middle of the summer 
and every drop of sweat on my brow proves it!  

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

The Hudson

The Hudson River, Pier 45

This river drips...rushes...drains into the Atlantic

Ocean waves hello and goodbye at each onlooker

The story of its origin is visible in mountains

an origin deep low-flow in the center of a valley

the gray blues and sharp-edges rising and falling

when wind blows...toes grip wood planks above

disturbing the peace on humid summers eve

some still grieve for what drifts in its depths...

but tonight we dance...we dance on the Hudson

and bless the waters that nurtures our every move

              by Shonnese C.L. Coleman, 7/18/17 NYC

Summer

Sun-filled skies stare down at me...I stare back...without a squint
Uniformed in beach-wear and boots I am...sweating
Millions of dust particles attach to the essential oils...dry-drenching my coiffure
Must buy a big hat with a big flower attached to the side...note to self
End of the road leads to a watermelon patch...yellow meat
Reading Miles and Me, The Road Less Traveled and Don't Believe The Hype...again

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

I know it was the blood an excerpt

I wasn't born in the street 
but into the street mentality
a reality no child should know
but it was there among strangers 
my character was built
a place I called home, where I'd grow
growing wild like a weed
seeded haphazardly
no one thought I'd succeed
but I stand today...tattoo memories all over me
and it's the blood of Jesus I plead...and pray

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

Standing in their absence

I stand in place of those who have passed on

I breathe their breath...smell of their scent

when lathering my spirit with bits of their goodness

I graciously accept the baton...the weight 

the load...the burden so to speak

for they wouldn't have passed it my way

if I couldn't carry it to the next generation

I stand in place, like a soldier at attention

I see through their eyes...born into me 

when establishing my home with pillars of love

I fiercely guard it like a gate-keeper of ancient times

contemporary times...anytime there is pending danger

for strangers find out quickly

how close they can approach the threshold

I stand in place of those who cared for me

prepared for me long before they knew of me

I stand in place of those who on their knees 

became foot stools for me to stand taller

I stand in place of those who have passed on

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

We Are the Water

Somewhere in our element of truth

the rushing wet reveals its presence

we are the water...nothing shall we fear.

Below the earth and beyond the sky 

we gather together to plan our performance.

The clouds...ohhhh...they weep 

as the Dead Sea washes our ancestors away...

I said we are the water...nothing shall we fear.

In mommies womb we float in warmth

and pull the cord of life

when the timing comes to face the sun

we rapidly swim through her tunnel.

Oh yes! I know we are the water

nothing shall we fear

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

1st published in The Stride of Our Walk...Th Root of Our Stand A Collection of Performance Poetry

No flipflops walking these corridors

No flipflops walking these corridors 

 only hard bottoms so you hear me coming 

 steps tick a louder tock no running 

 but the running is so needed we bleed red not blue 

 No flipflops walking these corridors 

 only hard bottom shoes

 to find the hard ground in truths

to step all over each others shoes

truths...blues... all day everyday in the news 

beg no pardons to panhandle pushers 

No flipflops walking these corridors 

- by Louis Waweru & Shonnese C.L. Coleman

That night at Mama Juana's

When we dance on that crowded floor
the vibration is something science can't explain
and the sweat that shrinks our hair glistens
like a disco ball above our heads
and our feet syncopated
with the clave, drums and trombone
are speaking a languare familiar and from the heart
and before we catch our breath
the band has taken it up a notch
all the while invoking the ancestral intensity
of Tito, Celia and the rest of our familia
our arms intertwined, hold, flick, flip and dip
of course never losing the connection
and somehow our hips got involved
and began to move magically on their own
and although we are fully clothed
it feels like we are naked 2 year olds playing in the garden
and if we knew what immense joy felt like...
this would be it...this would definitely be it...

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman
First Published in REVELATION ART Poems

Gift received by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

A gift...a source of light-energy multiplied

he brought the fire...he brought the calm

exposing the truth...that hidden jewel

and jewels hidden...rules of life

our hues in this physical life made sense

I’d make a bet only unveiled in Kemet

where he tread a measure or two
he would dance for you

who could measure sure-proof

and understand the task of this man

King in his royalty...Father to so many

A gift...indeed to educate...to stimulate our minds-eye

tap into those sleeping places and invigorate...aggravate…

initiate contemplation of ones spirit...prayer and meditation

I hear it every time...in every movement so intense we don’t realize

day into night runs us out of time
when we finally let go of the tension

standing boldly at attention...hands open....hearts too

receiving the lessons that must continue...
to be carried on…purposefully...
as he our beloved...summoned to ancestral family…

not gone...transformed...I know…

thank you for being a gift ACO

 In loving memory of Lee Lynn ACO/ACA Thompson 

Live...Walk...Rise an excerpt

He was born to die

so you may live

don't waste your earth-walk traveling backwards

when growing forward is your call...rise

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

One Step to Freedom

One step to freedom for me and my children

I see you like the legacy of triumphant warriors

like men buried who rise again

like courage allowing you to stand obstinately...unmoved

like birds that fly even in the worst of storms

do you hear the voice

do you know the laughter

there's no victory in giving up

know thyself and you will know freedom

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

first published in

“The Stride of Our Walk...The Root of Our Stand”

A Collection of Performance Poetry

Harlem Renaissance - what I heard

I hear in Harlem it sounds like Jazz

and Jazz sounds like a young brown man
practicing his Trumpet
the Trumpet sounds like Duke Ellington
and Duke Ellington sounds like Harlem

I hear in Harlem it sounds like self-recognition
and self-recognition sounds like a poem

read at the corner cafe

the corner cafe sounds like Langston Hughes

and Langston Hughes sounds like Harlem

I hear in Harlem it sounds like rhythm rituals

and rhythm rituals sound like protest against oppression

and oppression sounds like the Blues

and the Blues sounds like Bessie Smith, Gertrude "Ma" Rainey,

Barbecue Bob, Blind Boy Fuller, Alberta Hunter, Mamie Smith,

Big Bull Broozy, Ida Cox and all those voices 

from the south of Harlem sounds like Harlem

I hear in Harlem it sounds like a big party

and the big party sounds like it's full of painters and poets

and musicians and singers and writers and dancers

expressing their truths, embracing their uniqueness,

honoring their culture, establishing their voice

giving birth to a Renaissance and the Renaissance...

well...that also sounds like Harlem                                          

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

1st published in "The Stride of Our Walk...The Root of Our Stand" 

A Collection of Performance Poetry

I see it

The way I see it

has nothing to do with my tone

I see injustice 

and I speak up

The way I see it

has nothing to do with my stare

I see potential

and I encourage action

The way I see it

has nothing to do with my questions

I see Hills and Valleys

and I show you the hidden path

The way I see it

has nothing to do with what it looks like

I see with my mind first

and prepare for the future

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

An Octave Higher

Everybody in the family sings
Every voice a blending personality
Sharp tones sing the Babes
Flat notes obstruct the Score
We want more...more singing
In tune to respect our Elders...
They held her too tight that day
Pushing melodies into night 
Angelus wings flapping 'round surround
Sound on the window seals
But you feel me right?
Everybody in the family sings
Every voice a blending personality
Heyyyy she said...
Play Misty for me in the Key of D

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

Woman Gift

Nothing wrong with being woman
who speaks power into you
while power she is too
a sturdy grace gentle pace
faced with plenty of perplexity
hers yours the others but she soars
honest...beauty a welcome mist
fertile ground blooming this
rose confident intent on strength
warm heart...smart from the start
oh she knows more than you think
but she will speak power into you
while power she is too
nothing wrong with being woman

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

Catch Breath

We're singing...singing for our souls to brighten...
our hearts beating...stronger with every inhale...
exceeding our necessity to shine

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

They're Not Average

They're running marathons
for something more than 
checking it off of their list of "things to do"
before they die...
They successfully complete the course
only to realize that it never ends...
now it's time to begin again...
gain momentum on the never-ending voyage
They recognize that there is an energy, a power, 
a strength independent of the physical
They obey the celestial...
keep moving forward through all obstacles...
they're not average...they're running marathons
and enjoying every step                         
                                             by Shonnese C.L. Coleman

Community Reset (an excerpt)

These Streets
My team
We scream bloody every time
Your feet hit my beat
don't come here unless
You no fear playing with fire
the red and blue ain't for hire
just want to go higher in mind
want a mind on higher ground...reset

by Shonnese C.L. Coleman