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How Dialogue came to its Alphabet Challenge!

The idea to 'follow the alphabet' evolved as we transitioned from bi-monthly to quarterly editions: with the first edition of our 27th year, in the Autumn of 2013, which featured many inspiring, challenging and unsettling articles reflecting "Art, Activism and Awakening." 

Actually, it was the evolving theme of the Autumn 2013 edition that suggested the “A” imagery, and hence the idea of giving ourselves a playful challenge for the next six and a half years:  to come up with a cover theme for each edition, while working our way through the alphabet.

It may sound a bit ‘gimmicky’ – but our (Latin) alphabet is the foundation of the language(s) we use to communicate and this little device, we hoped, would help stimulate our creativity and perhaps broaden our horizons!

We will be asking, in each issue, for your suggestions (and contributions) for the “alphabetic” theme for the next issue…

• Autumn 2013, Vol. 27-1: A.... Art, Activism and Awakening
• Winter 2013-14, Vol. 27-2 : B... Bold, Brilliant, Beautiful ideas to inspire, in words & images
  
• Spring 2014, Vol. 27-3 : C... Canada matters! + Christ Consciousness, cosmology, childbirth...
• Summer 2014, Vol. 27-4 : D... Darwin's Lost Theory of Love; and deep state/deep politics; dogs; democracy...
  
• Autumn 2014, Vol. 28-1 : E... Earth, Empathy, Equality, Elections, Economics, Empower, Energy, Education, Electric, English, Enough, Eclectic, Epiphanies, Enlighten, Emotion, Expression, Exposes, Engage, Experience, Enjoy...
  
• Winter 2014-15, Vol. 28-2 : F... Freedom, Flight, Finance, Frye, Future, Fracking, Forgiveness, Family, Fiction, Fact, Fables, Fraud, Fauna, Flora, Forests, Frolic, Fun, Fellowship, Friendship, Folly, Food, Farm, Forage...
  
• Spring 2015, Vol. 28-3 : G... Grace, Gaia...
  
• Summer 2015, Vol. 28-4 : H... healing, heart, healthy, human, happy, home, haven, ahhh...
  
• Autumn 2015, Vol. 29-1 : I... imagination, inspiration ... and illusion...
  
• Winter 2015-16, Vol. 29-2 : J... may joy & justice be intertwined in our journeys and in the worlds we create...
  
• Spring 2016, Vol. 29-3 : K... kindness, kinship, knowledge, know thyself...
  
• Summer 2016, Vol. 29-4 : L... live and let live, Love, learn, laugh, listen...
• Autumn 2016, Vol. 30-1: M...  myths, magic, music, moon, mother, mayhem, money, mountain, madness, mystery...???
• Winter 2016-17, Vol. 30-2: N... noetic, 'normal' and some 46 other "N" words...
  
• Spring 2017, Vol. 30-3: O... owl, oak, ocean, Orwell, oxymoron, Omega, orb, Ottawa and 44 more "O" words ...
  
  
• Summer 2017, Vol. 30-4: P... Possibilities, potential, power, personal perspectives, poetry, philosophy, psychology, politics, plots, puzzles… AND PLENTY MORE! P3s, Painting, Pandemic, Parables, Paradigm, Paradise, Paradox, Paralysis, Parks, Parliament, Parrot, Partisan, Party, Passage, Passion, Paths, Patriotism, Patterns, Pay, Peace, Pebbles, Peculiar, Peddling, People, Perception, Perfection, Perfunctory, Perhaps, Perilous, Period, Permit, Periphery, Perpetuate, Persistent, Person/personal, Perspective, Perplexed, Phalanx, Phenomena, Philosophy, Phoenix, Photography, Physics, Picnic, Pi, Pine, Pink, Pinocchio, Pirouettes, Pithy, Plague, Plan, Planetary, Players, Please, Pledge, Plenty, Plots, Plutocrat, Plutonium, Poetry, Points, Poison, Polarize/polarities, Police, Politics, Pollution, Pomp/pompous, Poor, Popularity, Population, Populism, Positive, Possibilities, Postscript, Posturing, Potential, Potluck, Power, Powerful, Powerless, Practice, Pragmatic, Praise, Prayers, Preaching, Predecessor, Prepare, Present, Preserve, Press, Pressure, Pretentious, Prevaricate, Prickly, Pride, Prime, Priority, Private, Problem, Procedure, Proficient, Profit, Profound, Progress, Proliferate, Prolong, Promise, Propaganda, Property, Proportion, Proposals, Prospect, Protect, Protest, Proto, Provide, Province, Provision, Prowl, Proxy, Psychology, Public, Publish, Punch, Pundit, Puppies, Purple, Purpose, Putrid, Puzzles, Pyramids, +++
  
  
• Autumn 2017, Vol. 31-1: Q... Who knew the letter Q could be quite so enchanting?!  But then, Questions, Quests and Quandaries seem to lie at the heart of our humanity – often summed up in an apt Quote! And how about all the things that go on in the world “on the QT!”… such as 9/11 (P.29), Geo-engineering (p.42), etc. You may come to think of this as the quintessentially Quixotic edition! ~ full of romantic, wild-eyed, ‘impractical’ ideas for a better world…
  
  
• Winter 2017-18, Vol. 31-2: R...
  Remembrance, Redemption, Resilience, ripples...
  Here are some “R” words from Inge Hanle: “Just jotted down some
  ‘R’ words, both negative, neutral, & positive” – Radiant, Radiate, Radical, Raid, Rank, Rape, Rapture, Rascal, Ravage,  React, Reactionary, Read, Readiness, Real, Reality, Reap, Reasonable, Reassurance, Rebuke, Reciprocal, Reckless, Reclaim, Recommend, Reconcile, Reconstruct, Recover, Recreate, Recrimination, Rectify, Rectitude, Redress, Re-establish, Reflect, Reform, Regenerate, Regression, Rehabilitate, Reign, Reinforce, Reintegrate, Relate, Reliability, Religion, Relinquish, Remedial, Renewal, Renunciation, Repossession, Repression, Reproach, Rescind, Resignation, Resolution, Resolve, Respect, Restitution, Retaliation, Retrograde, Revive, Righteous, Ritual, Rogue, Roots, Ruin...
  
  
• Spring 2018, Vol. 31-3: S...
  An issue full of Stories, Scandals and Secrets...
  Salmon (4), Symptoms (4), Sleaze (7), Survival (10), Schools (16), Sustainability (26), Seeing (27), Symmathesy (30,60), Symbol (32), Shakespeare (35), Seasons, (39,40), Sex & Satire (42,43), Superstition (46), Solfeggio Frequencies (46), System, Security, Salvation (46), Shingles (47), Synergy (49), Syncretism (49), song (59)…

• Summer 2018, Vol. 31-4: T...
  Tao, Target Termination (of Plastics),Technology to end drought, Telling The Truth, Toads, Time, Thinking, Thanking, Titles, Traditional Territories, Tourism, Toxic, Traditions, Transcendental Treachery, Transportation, Tribunal Testimony, Tributes, Trust, Truths, Tsilhoqot’in Nation, vTaiwan... and TREES, of course!
  
  
• Autumn 2018, Vol. 32-1: U...
  Unforgotten, Unspeakable, Unmasked, Usury, Understanding, Unforgivable, Unlawful, Unbelievable, Unmasking Unsavoury, UFOs,...
  

• Winter 2018-19, Vol. 32-2: V...
  V is for... Values, Veering, Venezuela, Vertigo, Victory, Vietnam War, Village, Vincent Van Gogh, Virtue, Vitality, Visionary, Volunteering, Voting, Voices...
  
  IN SPRING 2019: BEGINNING OUR LAST YEAR (LAST 4 ISSUES)
  OF THE ALPHABET CHALLENGE!
  
  

Spring 2019, Vol. 32-3: W...
Warnings, Whistleblowers, Words of Wisdom...
Some other "W" words you may find in this edition: Wages, Walls, Want, War, Water, Wealth, Weather, Weirdness, Wellness, West, Wet’suwet’en, Who, Why, WIFI, Will, Wind, Wistful, Wit, Wonder, Words, World, Worrisome, Worth, Wrath, the Writing on the Wall, the Written Word,… 

Summer 2019, Vol. 32-4: X...
In our trip through the alphabet, we arrived at the letter “X” – a most enigmatic letter that has taken on so many diverse roles in our culture…
X for Wrong!  X for my Vote!  X-Files for the verboten topics… Not to mention, X standing for Christ, X for a crossing, crossroads, crossbones,
X for ten, X for ‘times’ (multiply), X for the Unknown… Or ‘xxx’ for sending kisses… Some of these topics were touched on obliquely in various articles - and Susanne Hare's art on the cover inadvertently featured an X shape!

Autumn 2019, Vol. 33-1: Y
Years go by…, Yesterday, YinYang, Yoga, Youth, You, Yurts... and lots of "Ys" - as in Why?!

This issue also features the start of the story - or rather, the saga -
from Norm Zigarlick and friends:
“The Feudal Fiefdoms of Saskatchewan’s Regional Parks" (p.25,60)

Winter 2019-20, Vol. 33-2: Z
The winter issue saw the finale of our Alphabet Challenge...
With compelling synchronicity, Maurice left his earthly form on December 2nd, 2019, as the Winter edition - and the final "Z" iteration of Dialogue's "Alphabet Challenge" was being put together. The cover image for this issue was a painting contributed by Dolly Dennis of Edmonton. The issue became a tribute to Maurice and the beginning of our dedication - as readers, writers, volunteers all - to ensuring that his legacy continues well into the future.

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You can use the Submissions Page to send your ideas, articles, images,etc. - or mail/email (below).

If you have an idea or layout for a themed cover image design, please contact volunteer editor, Janet, at:
dialogue@dialogue.ca
Or mail to: Dialogue magazine, 6227 Groveland Dr.,
                Nanaimo, BC V9V 1B1; Tel. 250-758-9877

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