In yesterday’s Spring into 2009, I talked about a more concise definition of the word “Spring.” That would be the word “Equinox,” which literally includes both the northern and southern hemispheres.

It’s a word I love the sound of–say it a few times, equinox, equinox.

It doesn’t quite roll off the tip of my tongue—yet–but it does cause my mind to work a little bit harder.

What is an Equinox?

In essence, it’s a balance of night and day. The traditional day for the March Equinox is March 21^st. When researching this, I discovered another event that takes place on the March Equinox; World Storytelling Day, a global celebration of the art of oral storytelling.

What do World Storytelling Day and Travelin’ Local have in common?

Each year, many individual storytelling events around the globe are linked by a common theme. Indeed, every year, the theme is identified by, and agreed upon, by storytellers from around the world.

The World Storytelling Day’s theme for 2009 is Neighbors.

Neighbors and neighborhoods are a core theme and aspect of Travelin’ Local’s concept and ethos:

We don’t need to travel to another location to find fun and relaxation; we can look for it in our own backyard. And who lives in our backyard? To be sure it’s our friends and neighbors.

This idea of neighbors is especially true in today’s global society. I don’t live next to Darren, but I learn from his blog; I have never talked to Neil, but I greatly enjoy his photography; and while I’m not a country music aficionado, I can totally understand and emote to how much Lara misses Los Angeles.

Most of us are not neighbors in the locale we live in, but we are all neighbors in the blogging and Internet community. We learn, grow, feel, and share a common identity. Just as we are able to celebrate arts and artists from everywhere around the world, and from different countries, this would stand to hold testimony to the global nature of our interconnectedness through the Internet.

In that vein I’d like to celebrate World Storytelling Day with a contest. Although I have limited ability to write fiction, in the truest sense of storytelling–others do. So, I’d love to read a few tales based on the theme of “Neighbors.”

Are you up for the challenge?

The rules are simple: Just write a story or poem (Yes, even though it’s World Storytelling Day, I’d love to read a few poems, too.) that follows this theme and link back to this post. I’ll put the participating blogs in a hat and draw a name. That person wins the prize.

The Prize

In honor of this wonderful theme, the winner of Travelin’ Local’s challenge will receive a book written by Helen Keller entitled, “The World I Live In.”

This book was published in 1908. It’s a first edition, with green cloth, and gilt lettering. It’s in near fine condition.

Who was better equipped “to talk” about the world than someone who “saw” it in her own unique way. Exactly—although Helen Keller was mute, she defined and embodies the notion of World Storytelling.

Because writing prose doesn’t happen overnight, this contest will run for a month, so the deadline for entries is April 30^th.

The winner of Travelin’ Local’s Independence Day, Paramount Studios contest, is Elizabeth, Urban Panther’s Lair, who scribed inspirationally and passionately, How watching movies will help me win!

For her efforts, I’ll be shipping Elizabeth the beautiful book, Vanity Fair’s Hollywood.

I look forward to reading about your stories and storytelling inspired by your own Travelin’ Local experiences.

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