I stumbled on an article, and there were these words: "poets help us to love the bump on our nose". How many images, meanings, figures does this conjure in your imagination? Ah forget about it. Richard Powell, the author of ‘Wabi Sabi Simple: Create beauty. Value imperfection. Live deeply’ (2004), says that "accepting the world as imperfect, unfinished, and transient, and then going deeper and celebrating that reality,is something not unlike freedom.” I'm yet to read Richard's book, I just stumbled on that quote on another blog, but I suppose it gives us a new lens to work with. This month's theme is 'Celebrating Imperfection'. Ideally, we are looking for poems, stories, or essays that celebrate imperfection, not only in content, but style too. We will be looking for angels in brothels and vegetarians in steakhouses, we are looking for the poem that fell off City Council garbage trucks and which we are told was picked by you. We are looking for the incomplete yet whole, faulty yet perfect, inadequate yet full of esteem and hope. Broken people. Broken loves. We are looking for that matchstick discarded by the wayside - and pressumed dead - but which rose and burnt the forest. DATE: 16th August 2015 WHAT TO DO: If you want specific comments on your work, send poem (not more than 42 lines), short story (not more than 1000 words) to hisiazangupoetry@gmail.com by 9th August 2015 or come and perform your spoken word piece (not more than 5 minutes long) during the workshop. WHAT TO CARRY: Writing material, Kshs 200 for entry, and as many friends as you can tag along. VENUE: Southern House opposite Meridian hotel off Moi Avenue - near Ufundi Plaza. TIME: 2PM to 5PM