Dr. Frederick D. Harper has served as Editor of three refereed journals: the Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, the International Journal for the Advancement of Counseling, and, currently, the Journal of Negro Education. He has authored or coauthored more than 100 scholarly publications, including 13 books and monographs, and presented 110 conference papers. He has presented conference papers in Argentina, France, Greece, India, Ireland, Sweden, and the Netherlands. Dr. Harper is lead co-editor (with Dr. John McFadden) of a major textbook, Culture and Counseling: New Approaches, published by Allyn and Bacon in 2003. In addition, he has done year-round postdoctoral study on two occasions and has served as adjunct/visiting professor at eight universities, including the University of the Virgin Islands and three other HBCUs. Dr. Harper served 16 years as a member of the Editorial Board of the Journal of Negro Education, and he has served on Editorial/Review Boards of nine other scholarly journals. Currently, a Professor of Counseling in the School of Education at Howard University, he has taught numerous counseling and education courses during three-plus decades of service to the University. Dr. Harper has chaired a NASDTEC educational accreditation committee, chaired proposal reading panels for the U.S. Department of Education, founded a number of educational programs, and taught in public schools. He has served in a variety of positions in university administration and professional leadership and has received a number of awards for research, scholarship, teaching, and leadership.

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A Wedding Pledge
by Frederick Douglas Harper

A WEDDING PLEDGE
By Dr. Frederick Douglas Harper

In this, my left hand, I take you as my wife/husband
And hold sacred your life and welfare as long as we
Choose and hold each other;
With my right hand, I promise to work for you,
With you, and for life we may create as one;
In both hands, I cup and nourish the trust we place
In each other as persons and in ourselves as a
Partnership in life.

With this heart, I set forth my allegiance to a sensitivity
For your feelings, and pledge to put no other person's
Needs or wants before your own;
With will and determination, I shall do my best to remain
Patient with your weaknesses as well as your personal
Changes over the years, and I will hold in confidence that
You will do likewise with me;
With this, my head, I will think of you wherever I am
And whenever I can as thoughts of concern for you and
Shared experiences with you.

I pledge at this moment to do all I can:
To help minimize your pains and maximize your happiness,
To forgive you for inadvertent errors of human frailty,
To respect you as a person and as my wife/husband,
To be open with you about my thoughts and feelings,
To touch you each morning and kiss you each night,

To trust in your words and actions,
To be kind, courteous, and considerate to you,
To respect your right to freedom, solitude, and
Individuality,
To commit myself totally to you and our relationship.

Furthermore,
I will try my best not to hurt you in any way or discredit
You before peers or yourself;
I will encourage your personal growth and internal peace,
I will allow no person to conspire to alienate my love for you;
Neither will I allow myself to be blinded by false
Feelings for another or life's many luring excitements;
I will talk with you, walk with you, and persevere with you
Through tests of time and condition;
I will pray with you, hope with you, struggle with you,
And suffer with you in your hardships;

Most of all, I will love you, without condition, for as long
As I can and as long as you want me to—
Hoping and trusting it will be forever.


Harper, F. D. (2004). Poems on love and life (2nd ed.). Bloomington, IN: Authorhouse. (Original work published 1985)
 

Notes From The Author:
You may e-mail me with any comments about my poetry.

Dr. Frederick Douglas Harper has authored more than 900 poems. His poem books include The Light Within Us (2007), Transitions in Life and to Death (2007), Poetica Erotica (2006), Spiritual Teacher Speaks (2005), Poems for Young People (2004), Love Poems of Frederick Douglas Harper (2003), God’s Gifts: Spiritual Writings (2003), Romantica: On Peace and Romance (1988), and Poems on Love and Life (1985, 2004). Dr. Harper has been referred to as a spiritual master by some of his readers and followers. His poetry on spirituality and love has been compared to the great works of Rumi and Khalil Gibran. A university professor of counseling, international scholar, and educational leader, Harper has authored 18 books, including college textbooks. Furthermore, he has served as Editor-in-Chief of three major scholarly journals. His poems were read regularly on WPFW Radio, 89.3 in Washington, DC by the late Nap Turner for more than 15 years, alongside the poetry of the famous Langston Hughes, and his books have sold worldwide.

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Poems for Young People was written mainly for children, teenagers, and young adults--including college students. For young people, the book provides wise guidance and life-long education about living. The more than 100 poems in Poems for Young People are organized under the following themes: (1) Advice for Young People, (2) On Values, Character, and Morality, (3) Natural Beauty of Earth, (4) Courage, Inspiration, and Strength, (5) Healthy, Happy, and Safe Living, (6) Spirituality and Meaning in Life, (7) Love for Family, (8) Friendship, (9) Loss, Sadness, Grief, and Death, and (10) Identity, Understanding, Self-Esteem, and Self-Acceptance.
 

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ADVICE TO THE YOUNG

 

Be true to your eyes, ears, thoughts, and feelings;

Listen to your heart but yield to your mind’s best

Judgment;

Be kind and wise in spoken words, for surely your

Words will follow you;

Be not afraid of risks but be cautious of actions

Driven by emotion, confusion, and false friends;

Avoid jealousy of others’ achievements and possessions;

Don’t live with an insatiable greed for more than

You can appreciate or use;

Don’t eat more than your hunger’s call or

Drink beyond your thirst’s needs;

Listen to spirits that favor you and offend not

Those that oppose you;

Absorb yourself in an activity worthy of your unique

Talent, and develop as many common

Potentialities as you desire and can;

Whatever you do, do it as well as you can;

Live comfortably with your conscience,

And be at peace with your soul;

Be courageous in life, while always respecting

Death’s luring and lurking;

Rest when tired and think when you are uncertain;

Be kind to the sacredness of life and respect the

Natural order of the universe;

Follow no one or no thing except your own judgment

And your own divine wish;

Love and respect yourself and your family;

Be all you can by developing yourself;

Do all you can in helping worthy others;

And live a quality and meaningful life.

 

THE IMPORTANCE OF IMPORTANCE

 

It’s not so important to be liked,

But to like yourself;

It’s not so important to be good,

But to be better;

It’s not so important to receive respect from others,

But to earn respect for yourself;

It’s not so important to spend money on a person,

But to spend quality time with a person;

It’s not important to be important,

But to be appreciated.

 

A FRIEND

 

A friend is

Special for you

And not against you;

Being a friend is in

One’s state of mind,

One’s state of action—

That special one who thinks and acts

For another’s happiness,

For another’s welfare;

Being a friend is giving of self

With joy;

Being a friend is receiving from another

With appreciation;

Being a friend is wanting to be a friend.

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Culture and Counseling: New Approaches
View Larger Image	Frederick D. Harper, Howard University John McFadden, University of South Carolina Publisher: Allyn & Bacon Click Here to Order

Review
 

"Culture and Counseling: New Approaches is a timely and pertinent resource for anyone involved in multicultural practice, counseling, consultation, supervision, or research. ...The collection of works within the text provide readers with a wide spectrum of material connected to culture and counseling.  As there is a broad range of material covered in the text, it may be particularly useful for readers who are looking to develop a solid comprehension of culture and counseling.  This is a foundation text for anyone involved in cultural  practice, counseling, consultation, supervision or research."

~ Clarrice Rapisarda, M.A., Kent State University as reviewed  in the International Journal for the Advancement of Counseling

 

"Overall, this is an exceptional book.  It goes beyond many other books in the fireld by being more inclusive, inviting, and personal, and it presents a very broad appreciation of the importance and necessity of having a world view that is also inclusive, inviting, and personal.  The book is an excellent text for beginning students in the field, but also provides engaging information and discussions for the seasoned counselor and educator.  This text is destined to be a much-used graduate text, but also a valuable reference and resource book for experienced counselors and scholars."

~ Arthur M. Horne, The University of Georgia as reviewed in The Journal of Negro Education

 

Book Description
Culture and Counseling has been designed to serve as a resource for professionals in the fields of Multicultural Counseling, Cross-Cultural Counseling, or Diversity and Culture in Counseling. In this authoritative new book, leading authors address culture and counseling as related to theoretical models, American ethnicities, spirituality, immigrants, intercultural families, gender, sexual orientation, diagnosis and interventions, supervision, and ethics. Counseling professionals, psychologists.

 

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About the Book

Harper's Poetica Erotica integrates the beauty of sensuality with romance, love, spirituality, and sometimes humor through poetry and poetic verse. This book was written to be appreciated by the individual and used by couples who want to celebrate, enhance, and excite their love and sensuality. Poetica Erotica was also written to improve sexuality in marriage or any close, intimate relationship, while making each adult feel more comfortable and free with his or her sensuality and sexuality. Examples of titles from Poetica Erotica include “Musical Hands of a Plumbing Surgeon,” “In Search of Clitorina,” “Thong Girl,” “Touch Me, Will You,” “Sacred Thighs,” “Wondering How It Would Be,” “Sappho’s Fantasy,” “Nude Dancing in the Dark,” “Ode to Pregnant Woman,” “Ode to a Full-Figured Lady,” “David and Bathsheba,” “Ode to a Fine Phat Ass,” “Spread My Orchid to Bloom,” “Sexual Choice; Sexual Risk,” and “First Time in A Wedding Gown.”

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