In response to the Daily Addictions prompt today, I decided to innovate our blog by writing a poem to encourage and inspire readers today. We will still write prose, of course. But, I so enjoy the poetry blogs, and most of the blogs I follow are poetry-based and so well done. But, I want to... Continue Reading →
I cannot remember where I read or heard the saying that life is a drag, but it seemed to be from the 1960s or 1970s. It meant that life is boring or tiresome, and there was a time that I might have agreed with the sentiment. But, now I take every day as a gift... Continue Reading →
I have always been fascinated by whites and tanning. Being blessed with naturally brown skin, and the discrimination that accompanies it, I always have marveled that anyone would want brown skin. So, as we laid on the beach in Portugal, I kept an eye on the people nearby tanning for hours in the pursuit of... Continue Reading →
My dream in my thirties was to be a motivational speaker. I had attended a presentation in which a woman spoke on the title, Be a Pepper! She was a scintillating speaker who had the whole auditorium in her hands! No one was fidgeting, and everybody had their eyes on her. But, what made the... Continue Reading →
The plan was to move to Portugal and live cheaply on our pensions and Social Security. Living in a country with cheaper rents and expenses meant that our monies would go further and last longer, allowing us to travel all over the world. But, after six weeks in Portugal, I knew that living in a... Continue Reading →
My seventh great-grandchild, Knola Kai, was born today! She weighed in at 6 pounds and 13 ounces. I am grateful to God for this new life that I have prayed so fervently to enter the world healthy and strong. Words fail me right now for how much I appreciate God's goodness to us in the... Continue Reading →
For nearly three years, we have lived next door to a mother and daughter who actually moved in the rental property next door the same week we bought our house. I never went over to saying hello, and they never came over to introduce themselves. It seems like knowing your neighbors is old-fashioned today. I... Continue Reading →
During an especially difficult time in my life, I wondered if the earth was some kind of cosmic prison for the rest of the universe, the place people are sent when they have misbehaved in the rest of the cosmos. Being born black in the South in the 1950s, female, poor, and unattractive by cultural... Continue Reading →
It's difficult and painful to realize that you have been wearing a mask for a long time, not really being as authentic as you should have been. It does not matter if the mask was worn unintentionally; what matters is finding the courage to admit that you need to change and to be real in... Continue Reading →
Sometimes one unexpected question can change the way you see yourself. For me, the question was asked after a lecture on domestic violence in one of my sociology questions. A young female student raised her hand and asked, "How did you become such a strong woman after all that you have been through?" I stopped... Continue Reading →
Help from Heaven 