Poetic Revelations: My Journey into Soul Fire Wednesdays

By Kiana Jones

My poetic debut at Soul Fire

      I had the privilege of attending LLP and Southern Word’s Soul Fire Spoken Word and Poetry Club session this past Wednesday night. This event is held on Wednesdays at 5:00 P.M. in Humanities Room 103 hosted by faculty adviser Dr. Michelle Pinkard and Tia Smedley of Southern Word.
       There were many colorful words spoken in this fiery session from listening about the streets of St. Louis to Dr. Pinkard challenging us with word games to “think about things deep but not profound”. 

       When you first walk into a Soul Fire workshop, you will note a prompt on the board. This week's prompt explored the importance of the process of questioning: “Sometimes the question is the point. Write a poem that begins with a question about your life…see where it takes you."   I felt the best method of observation was participation, so I wrote a poem starting with the question, “Who is Kiana?” Here is my contribution to the spirit of the eveninging:

Hey y’all it’s ya girl Kiana aka KJ aka Fanny Mae aka School Teacher aka the little country bumpkin from Montgomery, Alabama aka Gumptown

Yes I eat white sauce

Yes I shuck corn

Yes I say “Howdy do!” aka “Hello”

Yes I love eating cornbread and greens

Yes I eat honeysuckle

Yes I have wild hair

Yes I love turkey necks

Yes I’m from the rundown part of Montgomery

However don’t take me being country as dumb

No I don’t know any rednecks

No Alabama isn’t full of incest

No I didn’t live on a farm

And no I don’t like the rebel flag

Again it’s ya girl Kiana aka KJ aka Fanny Mae aka School Teacher aka the little country bumpkin from Montgomery, Alabama

I encourage you to come by Soul Fire on Wednesdays.  The conversation is good, the poetry is live, and the snacks are free.  Until then, I will continue to question what deep, but not profound. 

A Conversation with Our Latest LLP Spotlight

Why Choose LLP?

By Kiana Jones

 I had the pleasure of speaking with Tennessee State University’s very own, Alldon Thompson. Some of you may know him as the new LLP spotlight. Thompson is from Atlanta, Georgia and is a junior at Tennessee State University. He double majors in English and Mass Communication with an anticipated graduation in 2021.

Alldon Thompson

 “I naturally chose to be an LLP major because I passionately love language," Thompson says. "(I enjoy) all the creative ways one can use language to convey a story and information.”  His English influencers are Toni Morrison, James Baldwin, Maya Angelou, and Toni Cade Bambara. They have inspired and encouraged him to employ language as an advocate for causes most important to him. He goes on to say, “Choosing to be an English major allows me to extend my imagination.”

After completing his years as an undergraduate, he plans on continuing a higher education striving for a dual J.D./M.J. in Law/ Journalism. His career goal is to advance his knowledge and creative skills to become one of the best investigative journalists in the news/media industry. Thompson also wants to publish fiction and nonfiction works in the future.

His favorite English class that he is currently attending is Adolescent Literature with Dr. Shafer. He declares, “I enjoy how he advocates for his students to make their academic essays and assignments uniquely their own. His lessons are clear and brilliant. Lastly, Dr. Shafer does not subject Adolescent Literature to merely adolescents, but the effective use of it for children and adults equally.”

I asked Thompson if he had any advice for those who may have a desire to major in English and he replied, “Close readings help a lot with annotating and understanding the material. Most importantly, seek help from professors if the course gets too challenging.”