Stuff I Write About

Whenever I find myself looking over my shoulder I'm grateful God keeps me from turning into a pillar of salt. Be careful of who and what you surround yourself with. Be mindful of negativity, sometimes it is cloaked in kind faces. The world is a sad place when everything is against you. Be grateful for some things that have slipped away and always look to the hills from which cometh your help. It's brighter on the horizon and it is hard to move forward looking backward. "The secret is not to figure it out, just live." - A. McCray

Dear Family, This year as I grow a year older I learn a valuable lesson, an amazing revelation that I just have to share. - Don't Faint and Don't Give Up, Galatians 6:9 says "And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not ." KJV . International Standard Version states "Let's not get tired of doing what is good, for at the right time we will reap a harvest-if we do not give up." The Enemy is the Inner Me In 2007, I began having fainting spells, physically due to anxiety and spiritually due to discouragement. I'd been working very hard with very little reward, wondering why in the world is everyone around me more blessed than me, why do I work so hard, why am I so concerned when so many are not, why, why, why? I began asking, WIFM (what's in it for me). I was at the crux of chosing a Bitter or Better attitude and the latter was losing. Sometimes the "Enemy" is the "Inner Me", a master in...

"...and there's no way I can pay ya back but my plan is to show ya that I understand you are appreciated....... " -Tupac +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ For all my sisters that may be feeling unappreciated - DON'T! Self realization is a good thing, self-actualization is better Be encouraged +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Reminders of Myself Buried in Treasure Appreciate Me, and what I have to offer….not just my good ____. Appreciate My soft skin and big legs and big eyes and full thighs and the prize in between. ...My mind in how it will perplex and challenge you ...My laughter that will lift and encourage you. Appreciate Me, a queen more valuable than rubies, not afraid to face the past hurt of yesterday, knowing that is where it will stay. Appreciate My struggle and the stretch of my ambition ...My female intuition, the condition, of my physique ...My delicate and petite frame, ...My brain that was wise enough to choose you. Appreciate Me in all...

"It's been a long time; I shouldn't have left you...." Eric B. & Rakim, I Know You Got Soul +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Indeed it has been a long time since my last post, as seasons change so do I and the cycle helps me get back to me. I am posting the following entry to let everyone know it's never too late to start again - - - again. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Date: November 28, 2006 Time: unknown Place: Dreamer's Cove (5 miles off the coast of Memory Lane) +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Déjà Vu I am walking by a bayside Listening to the trickling sounds of hope and ambition pass by. I walk a familiar path. I've been here before, faintly reminiscent of hurt and disappointment. This place – I was here then and am now I see a piece of a dream then remember it was mine. It was here then and it is here now Washed up along the shoreline And I walk to see more memories of me, My dreams. And I gather...

I am posting this short piece as a reminder to pay attention to the small reminders in life that have big meanining. I had a revelatory yet humurous encounter with a door at Shop and Stop which taught me --just walk through. Date: March 28, 2007 Place: Stop and Shop ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Opportunities opening like automatic doors at groceries stores Large enough to push a cart of dreams through ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Door Dilemmas As I walked out of the grocery store, I noticed how the automatic doors just opened up for me, anticipating my steps forward and I thought – huh isn’t that a little like Faith? Ever come upon a door only to stop analyze and ask questions instead of just walking through: “I know that door is supposed to open but….what if it doesn’t.” “What if I step forward and nothing happens at all?” “What if I run into the door?” “What if the electrical signals are bad?” On and on... Sounds comical and t...

For my sparse yet adoring fans wondering like me …."Is Spring ever going to get here?" Be encouraged, use the time indoors to reflect and rejuvenate yourselves on the inside. I penned these poems a few weeks after a slightly hellish but awakening trip to Indianapolis and Chicago O'Hare Airports which inspired me to take more time to do nothing. Date: February 25, 2007 Time: Morning Location: At My Kitchen Table ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Life Synonymous With Spring I see my happiness far off, like the rise of the sun on the horizon. It looks faint but bright and I start to remember the smell of Spring, My well of joy, now's bout empty And I wonder why I feel the way I do I am waiting to abound forward, like the newness of Spring. Brought forth Brought into Brought out of My life synonymous with Spring. But to me I am hard to find Like hedge clippers lost in the weeds of tall grass Like grasshoppers against the roar of heavy traffic I am there jus...

[Happy Valentine's Day! Feb. 14th] In the spirit of Valentine's Day, I decided to post an entry about a moment that I love. It was shortly after meeting one of poetry’s great literary heroines; Sister Sonia Sanchez. This was a remarkable moment not only because of who she is but what she represents. To be able to not only see her but meet her was an honor and privilege. Below is a poem I wrote in response to that encounter and the entry that follows. Date: November 11, 2006 Time: Mid-morning on a beautiful sunny day in late fall Place: Vertigo Bookstore (College Park, Maryland) ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ In Love and Teaching Ooooo Whoo… I want to touch you I want to reach you in parts unseen I want to pour out my love on you in way that there's no doubt you've been loved. Give you a smile to make you forget trouble ever was I want to touch you, touch you, and reach....your mind. I want to reach you and, make your mind bend Take your thoughts to new heights I ...