Incantations For Rest

Atena O. Danner is an unapologetically Black time-traveling poet-activist who dwells in the past to survive the future. She writes toward Beloved Community, Black liberation, and collective imagination. Atena lives near the traditional homelands of the people of the Council of Three Fires and of the Menominee, Miami, and Ho-Chunk nations with her partner, pets, and two free Black children.

Preface


Acknowledgments


Storyteller’s Invocation


Decatur, Georgia Creeks


Mending


Prayer for Artists and Creatives


Ancestors of the Page and the Call


Conspiracy




Sharing




Of the Altar




Singing Prayer




Evolution of Worship




Lineage of Magic




Facebook Vespers




Simple Parts of Faith




Sharing Losses




Swimming Alone




The Divine Audacity of Bree Newsome




Reckon: Reclaim




Changeling Generation




Teacher to Teacher to Teacher




Divine Right to Rest




Litany for the Exhausted




Litany of Oops and Ouch




Litanies of Worthiness




Labyrinth Chant




Benediction to Build a World




Psalm of Talents




A Spell for Warriors and Heroes




Thinking of Mathew




Reciprocity




Spirit Does




Election Night 2020




Every Storm Runs Out of Rain




Blessing of the Instigators




Giving Each Other Our Flowers




Humble yourself before the brutal lessons of the free Black child!




Combing Liturgy




A Normal Conversation About Attending UU Churches




Unconditional Earth




In Darkness, All Things Are Possible




MYOB




A Black Daughter Speaks of Rivers




Generational Wealth




Praise Song for a Desert Rock




Spitting Out Rocks




Instincts




Attention Deficit Invocations




Dear Fear,




Earthen Vessel




Revenge Bedtime Contemplation




Stories and Stars




Kuumba and the Fourth Principle