Hey! The first book in my novel series, Discretion of the Heart, will be released on March 25th. YAY! I’m really excited about this one. I started writing this story in 2012. Yikes, ten years ago! You can pre-order your Kindle copy at amazon.com for $7.99. I’ll pop in with more info soon. Check out the blurb below.
At age fourteen, Qiuxia Knight is sure of a few things besides the fact that God is real. She is socially awkward, skinny, and born to dance. Since she could do nothing about the first two, she was determined to reach prima status.
The decision to walk to a bus stop alone on the night of a big audition changed Qiuxia Knight’s life forever. One minute she was on a path to becoming a prima ballerina, and the next, she was a victim of an inconceivable crime. How does a fourteen-year-old pick up the pieces of her broken life?
Discretion of the Heart is a coming-of-age tale about life’s unexpected challenges. And when the unexpected includes the unimaginable, faith and family are the only solutions.
For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)
Antoine and I celebrated our twenty-second year of marriage on Saturday, October 16th. I took the featured pic the morning of our anniversary. Very early in the morning, hence the rawness. It’s not the best photo of us, but it’s 100% real. (I never know where to look in the camera, which is why I look a bit cockeyed while Antoine gets it exactly right almost every time.) I considered posting a cuter picture of us, but I thought this would be funnier. And if you know us at all, you know we love to laugh.
We’ve picked up a few running jokes over the years, but our favorite involves a fifteen-year-old (or older) petrified Fiber One bar. (See the pic below.) I’m not sure why we think it’s funny to taunt each other by writing notes in the voice of the neglected snack bar begging to be eaten. The notes attached to the stale treat are hidden by us all over the house with a common plea, “Eat me!” I’m giggling at the thought of it now. There’s a lot of laughter between us. A LOT!
As always, we reflected on the years prior with a straightforward question: What’s the most significant change you’ve noticed about me over the years? We had the same answer–our relationship with Christ keeps on gettin’ betta and betta. We are determined to keep the Lord first in our lives. What’s the alternative? A life without peace. We don’t like that option.
One of the most important things to realize and remember is that we’re a team in marriage. Disagreements are inevitable and uncomfortable conversations are a must. If we want peace, we have to keep God first and trust Him completely. Antoine and I have gotten on each other’s nerves a few times. Okay, okay, a bunch of times, but the common goal is to live in peace. That doesn’t mean ignoring our feelings or pretending like everything is fine when it isn’t. We have to face issues head-on with prayer, the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and good old communication with the ultimate goal of peace.
Matthew 5:9 says, “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” (KJV)
Notice it says peacemaker and not a peacekeeper. A peacekeeper avoids conflict or ignores problems to keep what appears to be peace. I say it appears because you can’t have true peace without facing conflict. A peacemaker pursues peace by following God’s Word in every situation.
No matter how much Antoine gets on my nerves ( I rarely get on his. LOL I’m joking.), we are determined to trust God and pursue peace. We’re grateful for every minute the Lord allows us to be together and look forward to our relationship with each other and Him gettin’ betta and betta.
Birthdays (July 12th) to me, are always a time of reflection. And since this year is a big one, I thought I’d make a list of things I’d tell my younger twenty-year-old self. Almost thirty years ago (September), I received Jesus as my Lord and Savior. Well, my Savior, definitely. The Lord part is questionable, if you know what I mean. But that’s a different blog post. Anyway, here’s what I’d tell my twenty-year-old new Christian self.
Lock your hair. Ms. Goldberg got it right. LOL I decided to lock (Microlocs: two-strand twists.) my hair a few months ago. No more detangling, no more blow drying, straightening, twisting, etc. etc. etc. The shampooing process is only 7-10 minutes instead of two days. LOL Free yourself, foo! 🙂 Warning: Your long hair will shrink like crazy, but that’s all part of the locking process.
Your body is perfect just the way it is. You’re not too skinny. FYI, the women who keep commenting on your body are actually insecure about theirs. Stop trying to gain weight. You’ll regret it later. LOL I have ten pounds that I’d love to get rid of, but it just won’t leave. It just won’t!! Seriously though, LOVE YOURSELF!
Yeah, you don’t like meat no matter how much ketchup, mustard, BBQ sauce, hot sauce you put on it. It’s perfectly normal. It’s gross to you. You’re going to be a vegetarian real soon.
You really don’t want to be a Psychologist. Drop out now, girl!!
Family is important. You will have a great relationship with your siblings one day. I’m living it now. 🙂
You’re a writer and your stories will be seen and read.
You’ll never blend in and that’s fine. You are different.
Your identity is in Christ. That lady you thought was strange who told you to study Ephesians wasn’t strange at all. She’s trying to help you. Knowing who you are in Christ is a game changer. Don’t internalize what others say about you, and don’t say negative things about yourself or others.
Receive God’s love, grace, and mercy so that you can give it to others. The reason you’re so hard on yourself is that you really don’t understand the depths of God’s love for you. Receive it!! You really really need it. Ask God to show you how to love His people. You need His strength.
Surrender to the Lord. All of you! It’s a mindset and a daily activity. There’s true freedom in Christ Jesus!
Spend MORE time with the Lord. The more you know Him, the more you’ll recognize His voice. Admit everything and let Him heal you. Admitting you’re hurt isn’t a sign of weakness.
Be led by the Holy Spirit. Most of the time, He’ll tell you to be quiet. 🙂
Set healthy boundaries. The people who are supposed to be in your life will accept them.
Be who God says you are. He’s the one who created you, so believe what He says!
You’re right about Antoine. He’s a keeper. 🙂
What would you tell your younger self?
There’s so much more I could tell my twenty-year-old self. I’m grateful for what I’ve learned over the years and looking forward to learning more. I think one of the greatest lessons I’ve learned and put into practice is #10. There’s true freedom in Christ Jesus if we surrender all to Him. I would take the time to include Bible verses, but since I mentioned Ephesians, I thought I’d elaborate on the lady who I thought was strange. Here goes!
So yeah, I met this lady who firmly told me that I needed to study Ephesians. Her response to my weak, “Okay,” was an intense, “I’m serious. You need to study Ephesians.” Um, that lady didn’t know me from Eve. LOL See what I did there? 🙂 I took her suggestion about a quarter serious. I did attempt to study what she strongly suggested, but it didn’t last long at all. Over the years, I’ve read/studied Ephesians; however, in 2017, the Holy Spirit reminded me of that conversation I had with that lady. Some people have life verses. I have a life book–Ephesians. LOL It took decades for me to finally understand that encounter with that lady. Better late than never.
Anyway, I’m so grateful to God for allowing me to still be here. I’m a blessed woman indeed! Is my life perfect? Nope, and He never promised us a life of perfection. I know that no matter what happens, God is in control, and I know Romans 8:28 is the absolute truth like the rest of the Bible.
Well, I guess that’s all I have to say. My prayer is that you will receive all that God has for you and that you trust Him completely. He knows exactly what we need.
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:28-30 (MSG)
I’m not a frequent reader of the Message Bible, but I like the translation of these verses. Have a great weekend! May you take a real rest in Jesus.
“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” John F. Kennedy
Yes, we have a long way to go, but we can’t deny what we have. Thank you, Heavenly Father, for all the men and women who have lost their lives while serving our country. I pray for strength, comfort, and peace for their family members. And that their needs will be met. In Jesus’ mighty and matchless name, I pray. Amen!
And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)
During my bout with COVID-19 this past January, a short story that I had written a few years ago popped into my mind. I decided to read it, not knowing what to expect because I hadn’t looked at it since 2017 and had no intentions of looking at it again. I may have even had a funeral for it. LOL After I finished reading it, I thought, “I really like this story.”
Initially, it was supposed to be included in a collection with other authors, but it didn’t make the cut. From what I remember, that manuscript came back marked up in red with all the reasons it didn’t fit the project. My name was literally on the book cover and then deleted, like–
LOL In hindsight, I can confidently say that she was correct in that the story didn’t belong. It definitely wasn’t the right time for me to release anything that I had written.
Fast forward to today, I see no reason to change the story. It just didn’t fit in that collection. It’s precisely the way it’s supposed to be. No, it doesn’t fit tradition, and that’s completely fine with me because it’s a story Straight from My Heart. I hope that whoever reads it will be inspired and entertained. I designed the cover and published Season of Love on Amazon–$1.99 Kindle/$6.99 Paperback. It would be great if you read it. And please post a review if you do. 🙂
I knew I’d start releasing my stories this year. I never imagined Season of Love would be the first, but I’m glad it is. That whole experience is part of what God used to bring me to this point in my life–in His peace. I’m amazed at what God has done since 2017.
I don’t have a website, Instagram, Twitter, or all the other things I was suppose have before releasing Season of Love. All of that will come in time. I do have an author page on Facebook that I started a few days ago. Click the link to follow. Well, that’s about it.
May the Lord bless you beyond your imagination as you seek His will.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable, undefiled, and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, 7 so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which perishes though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ; 8 and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 obtaining as the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. (1 Peter 1:3-9 NASB)
Earlier today, I yelled downstairs to my husband, “I can smell the black bean soup up here.” To which he replied, “Ohhh, cool.” The ability to smell the aroma of something cooking in the kitchen may not seem like a big deal, and a month ago, it wasn’t.
Okay, so this whole COVID-19 pandemic thing is real. Prayerfully, you won’t get it, and hopefully, you’re not one of those people who refuses to follow the CDC safety recommendations. I NEVER expected or wanted to see a positive COVID-19 result on my life resume. Know what I mean? As a matter of fact, I questioned the validity of my test results until Saturday, January 16th, at around 1:30 pm. Let me back up a little.
My husband and I received our positive results on Tuesday morning, January 12th. I was shocked for a split second, then I asked myself, “Why not me (us)?” Yes, we’re cautious, stay home (as much as possible) and away from folks, cook at home, have groceries delivered (wipe down items), etc.
The truth is, we have a good idea of what led to our bout with COVID-19 through contact tracing, but that’s not the topic of this blog.
Now back to Saturday, January 16th.
Yeah, so I thought I was asymptomatic because the only reason why I knew I had COVID-19 was because Kaiser told me I did via email. Either asymptomatic, or they sent me someone else’s results by mistake. I didn’t have a fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, chest pains, fatigue, etc. I exercised (at home) as usual and everything else. UNTIL Saturday, January 16th, at around 1:30 pm.
I had just eaten lunch, which I tasted and smelled, by the way. I decided to have a Cara Cara orange for a snack. That orange looked like it had a lot of flavor. I bit into it after peeling it and tasted nothing. Zilch! Nada! I was like,
That orange was void of all citrus goodness! I got up from the table, stood over our diffuser with lemon oil in it, and inhaled as hard as possible. Nothing!! I sniffed eucalyptus oil, tea tree oil, and peppermint oil. I could feel the stimulating sensation of the oils but couldn’t smell a thing.
And that’s when I said, “Okay, Lord. I’m still trusting You, completely no matter what.” I said that and meant it upon the diagnosis. But I didn’t have a reason to be concerned. Okay, yes. COVID-19 has wreaked havoc across the world, but at that point, I had no symptoms. My thoughts: What’s next? Is this lack of taste and smell thing permanent? Is it the start of more severe symptoms?
Of course, I prayed against all that. Thank you, Jesus! My ability to taste and smell is back. Hence, the reason why I yelled to my husband that I could smell our dinner, black bean soup. 🙂 Ahhh, The Little Things! By the grace of God, my husband and I had mild cases of COVID-19. The only thing that followed the loss of senses was a little nasal congestion.
We don’t know when this COVID-19 thing will be over, but there are ways we can lower our risk of contracting and spreading it. No one is exempt. I know quite a few people who’ve had it who experienced mild symptoms like us to people having to go to the emergency room. There’s no way of knowing how the virus will affect us, so following the CDC guidelines and recommendations are extremely important.
As Christians, my husband and I take the guidelines and recommendations as a way of showing love for God’s creation. That may seem silly to some, but this walk isn’t about us. We wear our mask, the correct way, for you, not just for us. Social/Physical distancing, disinfecting, washing hands, and other precautions can be a matter of life or death. Why risk it?
I’m so grateful that our experience wasn’t life-threatening. Our prayer is for the eradication of all variants of COVID-19. And for mercy for us all. In Jesus’ name. Amen
Obedience is better than sacrifice. Stay safe and well.
blogging it out 