Author: T.S. Cook

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. (John 14:27)

Just blogging it out . . . Oh, and Happy Thursday Night!!

I’ve been having a little battle with my blog. I usually post Monday through Friday, but as I was typing these last couple of days, the words were unexpected. I thought this week I would go back to my lighthearted posts. I thought last Friday’s post was the last time I would discuss current events. After all, I spent most of my life ignoring them with a simple click of the television remote or by pressing the scroll button on my laptop. A friend texted me this morning, “No blog this week?” I have to admit, each day it gets easier to skip a post. Monday I struggled when the clock struck 12 am. I continued to write and decided it was okay that I was posting late. Eventually, I said forget it, but it wasn’t easy. Last night I threw in the towel at 11:30 pm.

Well, it’s 2 o’clock Wednesday afternoon. I’m not going to quit! Here’s my post for today (Monday & Tuesday actually):

There’s an obvious problem here in America– several, but one has been brought to the surface more so than it has in a long time. Why can’t we talk about it? All lives matter, YES, without a doubt AND there’s a problem that can’t be ignored. There’s something seriously wrong when black parents have to remove certain clothing from their children’s closets so they won’t be mistaken for criminals. There’s something seriously wrong when black parents have to teach their children, specifically their sons, how to respond when they are pulled over or approached by those who are supposed to serve and protect them. There’s something seriously wrong when I have to remind my black husband to not wear a hoodie when he’s walking the dog at night. You see, we live in a mixed neighborhood where there’s only a sprinkle of black people, so that hoodie may pose a threat even if it’s chilly outside and the man underneath that hoodie is bald. Well, he can just put on a hat then, right? Why should he have to change his wardrobe to make our neighbors comfortable? Because I love him and I don’t want anyone to hurt him because they thought he was a bad black person wearing a hoodie. There’s something seriously wrong.

Racism is a subject that makes just about everyone cringe. Some people nod in agreement and some people roll their eyes while either saying or thinking, “Here we go again.” By the way, there are some inaccurate statistics floating around Facebook. People aren’t even checking the facts before they post things nowadays. There’s something seriously wrong when people are trying to prove there is more black on black crime than any other crime. Or that more black people are killing police than police are killing black people. I guess somehow the injustice is justified by those false statistics. Is it really okay that those men were killed because according to statistics, black people kill black people?  Lord, we need you more than ever!

³⁰ And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. ³¹ And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these. (Mark 12:30-31)

We need the police! I have an uncle that was married into our family when I was 10 or 11. He was a Chicago police officer, but I think he’s retired now. I wanted him to be my father because when he was around, I knew I was safe. I knew he would do whatever he could to protect and serve. I believe most police officers are like my uncle. It’s crazy to think all police are bad, but the reality is their badges don’t tell us whether they’re good or bad. People are scared and rightly so.

We have to put our trust in God. As Christians we are to be led by the spirit. We are to love one another, but that doesn’t mean we ignore the problems, does it? We all matter! Does that mean when one of us have a problem we say, ‘we all have problems’? Loving each other means being able to focus on others instead of ourselves even for a moment. It’s not always about us. It can’t be.

We have to do better. We have to be different even if it makes us uncomfortable. If we are uncomfortable perhaps we should explore why. I’m not exempt . . .

I’m just blogging it out . . .Oh, and ask someone how they are doing and really listen!

Continue to pray for peace for our country and the families of Brent Thompson, Patrick Zamarripa, Michael Krol, Michael Smith, Lorne Ahrens, Philando Castile, and Alton Sterling.

I’m sure we can all agree, this has been a challenging week.  As I was preparing to write this post, I thought about an episode of The Twilight Zone called The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street.  Have you seen that one?  It’s the one where there’s a power outage in a neighborhood and the residents think aliens disguised as humans are the cause.  Eventually the residents became hysterical and confused until someone died.  At the end of the episode, the power was restored and the aliens, who were watching from a nearby hilltop, concluded that the easiest way to conquer the planet was to let people destroy themselves.

I was saddened by some of the posts on Facebook today because it seems people were more interested in choosing a side rather than caring for one another.  I wish we would take the time to understand each other instead of defending ourselves.  I wish we would listen in order to understand instead of listening to form our response.  Everything that’s going on is bad!  We have to remember Satan is the real enemy of this world.  He comes to steal, kill, and destroy.  He would love to provoke more violence and hate, but the only way he can do it, is if we allow him. We have to focus on God!!

Proverbs 3:5.6  Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. ⁶ Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.

Praying for peace for our country and the families of Brent Thompson, Patrick Zamarripa, Michael Krol, Michael Smith, Lorne Ahrens, Philando Castile, and Alton Sterling.

Just blogging it out . . .Have a safe weekend.

You will keep in perfect peace all who trust in you, all whose thoughts are fixed on you!   Trust in the Lord always, for the Lord God is the eternal Rock. (Isaiah 26:3,4)

Despite all the chaos and confusion going on around us, God is in control.  I know my way of thinking may be a bit punkish to some.  After all, innocent people are dying everyday including police officers. Well, I don’t know what else to do.  Do you?  God has never let me down and I know He is bigger than any problem.

My heart goes out to the Sterling family, the Castile family, and all of the police officers who were wounded and killed in Dallas and their families.  Killing police officers is not the answer.

Just blogging it out . . .Oh and please pray for one another!

I’m not one to write about race issues, but that doesn’t mean I’m not affected by what’s going on in the world. I have a deep relationship with my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, which gives me the strength to move on no matter what. I usually share my opinion with the people who are closest to me and I steer clear from social media arguments. If I disagree with something, I just move on because we are all entitled to our opinion.

My silence may give one the impression that perhaps I’ve never experienced racism or if I have, it’s a thing of the past. The truth is, I have experienced racism more often than I care to speak or think about. I think the first time I noticed racism was when I was 8 or 9 years old. My brother and sister were in a car accident one bitter cold December night in Calumet City, Illinois. Back then, Calumet City was predominately white and so were all the police officers at the police station. After waiting for hours, I had to go to the restroom. When I asked where the restroom was, I was told they didn’t have one that I could use even though the white little girl, who was also waiting in the lobby with her family, was escorted to the restroom a few minutes earlier. Unfortunately, I had to use the restroom outside in the bitter cold. I’ve been called the “n” word several times while driving through Orland Park, Illinois where I worked for about five years before moving to California. Oh and one time my sister and I were standing in line at Jewel. (A grocery store in Illinois, but I can’t remember the city.) This lady called us the “n” word because she thought we cut a head of her in line. She didn’t realize the line curved.

I think one of my craziest experiences happened with Tara, a coworker. We worked at a department store called Carson Pirie Scott in Orland Park, IL. During our break, we went to Buy the Weigh candy store. As we walked by the nuts, she laughed and yelled, “N______ Toes!” She told me that was what her father called Brazil nuts. She continued giggling as I told her how offensive it was.

Recently, my husband and I went to the Staples in our area. The Sharpie Marker display clearly had the “n” word written in huge letters on it. I politely told one of the workers. Surprisingly, she knew it was there and it had been there for a while. Why did I have to say something before it was removed?  I’ve been accused of stealing, cheating, and even violent for merely pointing out an injustice.

I’ll stop there even though I can go on and on.  Don’t get me wrong, I know everything isn’t about race.  But please understand that because of the color of my skin, I’ve been treated unfairly and I KNOW IT!! What’s my point? I saw this on FB today:

As a follower of Christ, I know all lives matter.  As a black person who has experienced racism first hand, I also know screaming “all lives matter” in situations where it’s important to face the injustice that’s happening to a group of people is a huge slap in the faces of the people in that group and several gigantic steps backward in society.  No I don’t believe all cops are bad or all white people are racists.  That’s patently absurd.  I think it’s just as absurd to believe we are all treated equally.

I will continue to pray for our society and keep focusing on the Lord.  Here’s another meme I saw on FB:

Just blogging it out . . . Oh and if you’re approached by the police, don’t resist.  Your life matters!!!  😦  #tellyourownstory

P.S. I realize not resisting doesn’t always keep you safe.

And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. (Mark 12:30)

I’m not exempt . . .

I’m just blogging it out . . . Oh and Happy Tuesday Night!! 😀

Happy 1st of July!! 😀  This will be another busy month for me. Writer’s camp started today and my goal is to complete 25,000 words of book 3.  Before I start book 3, I have to finish book 2. 😀 I’m looking forward to the challenge.

An interesting situation happened today. As John Quiñones would say:  What would you do?

Here’s what happened:

I was approached by a teenager who was holding a sheet of paper in a plastic sleeve as I was walking into the grocery store.  He delivered his spiel quickly as he waved the poorly copied paper in my face.  He asked for a donation to help him purchase his basketball uniform.  Right away, I felt this kid was running a scam because the paper he was holding was not legible so I asked him questions.

Me:  Do you have a card or flyer with your school’s info? I’d like to give online.

Him: Ah no. See we had a table set up out here yesterday. We gave out all the flyers. Since I didn’t raise all the money, my coach told me to come back today.

Me: Oh, so your coach is here?

Him: Ah yeah.

Me:  Where is he?

Him: (Looks out into the parking lot.)  Ah, he’s driving around.

Me:  Okay, maybe he can give me the website address so I can give online.

Him:  Oh ah, we took the info off of the website already.

Me:  Sorry, I don’t feel comfortable giving you money.

He rolled his eyes then backed away from me.

I considered telling the store manager, but I wasn’t 100% sure it was a scam.  I mean, what if I were wrong?  I’m sure there’s a special place in Hell for people who wrongly accuse children of fraud. LOL  I jest.  🙂  But you know what I mean.  I said to myself, better safe than sorry. No biggie, right?  WRONG!!! As I was leaving the store, I saw an elderly lady giving the kid money. UGH!!!! He slipped the money in his pocket then backed away quickly when he saw me walking out. I considered telling the elderly woman to be careful with whom she gives money, but I didn’t. 😦

WHAT’S WRONG WITH ME?!? Things didn’t add up.  I don’t have children, but it seems a bit unprofessional for a school’s athletic program to make the team raise money on the street.  Usually if there’s a fundraiser, there’s a banner with the school’s info and a table involved.  The kid said the information was taken off the school’s website already.  Really?  And his “coach” was driving around the parking lot.  Not to mention, how shady it is to put fundraiser money in your pocket.

What would you have done in that situation?

Just blogging it out . . . Oh and Happy Friday Night!!  😀

You have to click the link to see it.

That’s all.

Just blogging it out . . . Oh and Happy Thursday Night!! 😀

Stick-to-itiveness-the quality that allows Tanya M. Saldana to continue trying to do something even though it is difficult or unpleasant.

It seems like I’ve been working on AUTUMN MOON for almost three years.  Oh wait . . . I have. LOL Book 2 was supposed to be done by the end of this month, but I guess I will be working on it in July.  😀  I will continue until I’m done no matter what.  Stick-to-itiveness makes quitting difficult especially if you were given a triple portion like I was given.  LOL

And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. (Galatians 6:9)

Here’s a funny before I go:

Just blogging it out  . . . Oh and Happy Wednesday Night!! 😀

No weapon formed against you shall prosper, And every tongue which rises against you in judgment You shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, And their righteousness is from Me, Says the Lord. (Isaiah 54:17)

I had one of those moments today where one situation led to a bunch of useless thoughts.  You ever had that happened?  No?  Hmmm, well maybe it’s just me.  LOL Here’s what happened:

Our GSD, Scout, had an upset stomach today.  It was nothing major, but lets just say she dropped a few unusual loads in the backyard.  Sorry, but I have to give you the facts. LOL  Anyway, while I was trying to figure out what she could’ve eaten to cause the slight sickness, I remembered all the mysterious foreign objects and trash we’ve found in our backyard.  That thought led to me being annoyed with my neighbors for not watching their kids especially that time I found a dart sticking out of our grass.  The dart could’ve really hurt one of us.  Then I remembered when the dog next door came in our yard MONTHS ago, but still it looked really sick.  Oh, and then I remembered the time some of our neighbor’s trash blew in our yard and how Scout was chewing on a napkin.  They’re probably doing that on purpose. LOL

You see what I mean?  I finally had to say, “No weapon, girl. No weapon.” 😀  Okay, that was a little overboard.  If we’re not focused on God, the enemy will take our thoughts into THE STRANGE ZONE. By the way, Scout is doing just fine and I’m going to bed.  Good night.

Just blogging it out . . . Oh and Happy Tuesday Night!! 😀