EXPLICABLE Peace

After 5 years of employment, today was my last day at work.

I've known for a while that this day was coming.

Wasn't sure exactly how I'd handle things once the day finally got here. All in all, I think I did well. Kept the goodbyes short and sweet 'cause I didn't want to turn into a puddle of mush and cry all over the place. My co-workers were the best there are, and I will miss them greatly. Saying long goodbyes would've been waaay too much for me to handle.

With the debt crisis of this country looming overhead, and the unemployment rate shooting through the roof, now is probably the worst time EVER to be unemployed.

Having 3 kids, 2 of whom are in college and have expenses to be taken care of, along with a teen-aged son who is outgrowing shoes & clothes by leaps and bounds...you would think that I would be freakin' out over this.

To the contrary...I haven't missed a wink of sleep, and I have a calm that's almost abnormal. I am at such peace. Not inexplicable peace though...no, my peace is very EXPLICABLE. I am completely aware of where the peace is coming from...and so for me, that explains it all.

I am a woman of great faith. Great Christian faith. Faith and trust in my all powerful God. My God who is GREATER than unemployment. My God who is GREATER than this crappy debt crisis that our country is in. My God is GREATER than those things, and so much more.

Omniscient, Omnipotent, and Omnipresent. Those are His characteristics! So why should I fear?

Times like these are what help me to know without a doubt that His word is true. I read my Bible daily. Some days I don't feel like the message is really sinking in. But I realize that what I'm taking in spiritually each day is the nourishment that I need to get through times like these. Kinda like polar bears...I've stored up enough of God's word to "get me through the winter" so to speak.

I don't know how long this winter is going to last, but He has given me two great pieces of scripture already that I've stored up for such a time as this:

Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you," says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.

and

Romans 8:28
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

I'm sure that as I travel along on this journey there will be many more scriptures added to my "arsenal". I am going to need them all.

Let the DIALOGUE begin! How do you deal with adversity and hardship? Where does YOUR peace come from?

Talk to me!

Til next time...

Stuff Happens

Over the years I've come across a lot of people. Some have been good for me. Others...not so good.

The ones who have been "not so good" all have the same thing in common. Yet a new person could come into my life and do this same common thing that the others have done. Just that simple.

So I am reminded of a phrase that I've heard a number of times: People will only do to you what you allow them to do.

Is this really true?

These people who share a commonality in my life were all in my life at different times. They don't know each other, yet they've all done the same thing.

Is that because I allowed them, or is it just the way that things played out?

Certainly, when I met these people I didn't say, "Now I'm going to create a situation so that this person does exactly the same thing that 'Person X' did".

No, it never went down like that? So then, my question is...WHY did it end up the same way each time?

I dunno. Not sure if there's even an answer to the question.

Guess it's just one of those nights where I'm throwing my random thought out there, wondering if anything will come back.

And with that...Let the DIALOGUE begin! Do you buy into that whole "People will only do to you what you allow them to do" school of philosophy, or do think that sometimes, stuff just happens...again, and again, and again?

Talk to me!

Til next time...

Maybe I AM my Hair

So the science project continues and I think I've finally gotten it right. I "wet-set" my hair last night and rolled it up on little curlers. Let my hair "air dry" overnight and took the curlers out this morning. LOVED the result. Super curly, still a bit "big" for my taste, but waaay cute. I've got this cute curly afro goin' and as my kids say, "It's poppin'".

Went to my parents house to wish my dad a happy birthday and my mom said, "Aww, look at your hair, it's so cute. Did you get it done?" That made me feel sooo good. I said, "Nope. I did it myself". She really liked it. Said that she could never wear her hair like this though cause she's got so much hair and the curls would just fall...which is absolutley true with her hair.

She asked me how I did it and I told her. She just shook her head when I told her that I washed it last night and it was dry by this morning...without sitting under a dryer. That is an absolute IMPOSSIBILITY for my mom. If she ever "air-dried" her hair it would be wet for days. Way too long...and waaay too thick.

So all in all, it was a GREAT day for my hair. Now for the challenge. I've been on vacation for a while and I go back to work tomorrow. This is not quite the hair style for "Corporate America", but since I don't service customers face-to-face, I'm thinkin' that it'll be okay. I mean, if Black women in our office wear braids, I don't see why I shouldn't be able to wear my hair "natural". We'll see.

But all of this hair stuff got me to wondering...maybe I AM my hair. Mind you, I didn't trip when it fell out a while back, and I was totally open to the fact that I may have had to start wearing wigs because of the hair loss, but the thought never bothered me. Hair or no hair, I was still the same person.

Now, with all of the changes that I've had with my hair, I kinda feel like the changes are somewhat reflective of me. Some days it's straight and I wear it down, letting it blow in the wind. Other times, it's straight but I wear it in a ponytail (my most common style). Other times, I do wear it "natural", but it's all tied down because it's really big if not tied down. And now, I'm wearing it "natural" and free. Not tying anything down. Just lettin' it "do what it do". And I LIKE it.

So just as my moods sometimes change like the wind, I guess my hair is entitled to do the same. As much as I like the India Arie song, "I am not my hair"...maybe, just maybe...I AM my hair...and that's not such a bad thing.

Let the DIALOGUE begin! Have you been wearing the same hairstyle for years? If so, do you want to change it? And if so, what's keeping you from changing it?

Talk to me!

Til next time...

Which BOOK?

Today while I was watching television, I saw a commercial for a show that I wanted to record. I clicked on the "record" button, and a notice popped up alerting me that there was not enough room and that I needed to go to "the prioritizer" to make some space. Basically, get rid of what I don't need, so that I can make space for what I wanted.

I don't know why, but this made me think about my everyday life and where my "priorities" are. It brought me to Facebook and how much time I spend there, in comparison to how much time I spend where I should be...in God's Book.

I'm not a Facebook addict by any stretch of the imagination. I don't have a smart phone so I don't have instant access. I don't log on at work, so that only leaves home.

But I'm finding that it's the first thing I do when I walk in the door. Sadly, it's the first thing that my daughters also do when they walk in the door. Houston...we have a problem. Somethin's gotta change.

So I asked myself this question: Do I spend more time on Facebook than I do reading God's Book...The Bible?

Most days, the answer is that I spend an equal amount of time with the two, yet some days, I don't open my Bible at all...but I'm sure to check Facebook. That is sooo not cool!

For me, it's time to rearrange my "prioritizer". Facebook does not give me direction for my life. It does not comfort me in times of trouble. It does not give me hope. It does not tell me that I am loved. It does not tell me how to love those who have hurt me. It does not tell me that I am forgiven. It does not tell me how to live a life that is pleasing and acceptable to the God I serve. Nor, is it supposed to.

I am by no means knocking Facebook. It was not meant to do any of the above. It is merely serving the purpose for which it was created, and it's doing a heck of a job.

My Bible on the other hand does all of the things mentioned above, yet I am giving it equal time with Facebook. For me, something is very wrong with that picture. So...I'm changing the picture.

One log in a day, and that's it. That's all I need really. I've never been a big "poster" or "commenter" anyway, so I won't miss much by logging on only once a day. This will be good for me...I can already tell.

So how 'bout you? Let the DIALOGUE begin! Where do you spend more time...Facebook, or God's Book...The Bible?

Talk to me!

Til next time...

My Science Project

As a Black woman I have many challenges with this stuff that grows out of my head...my HAIR.

As a little girl, I, like most little Black girls, wished I had "good hair". My mother (who does have "good hair"), would snap back at me and say, "Stop saying that! You DO have "good hair". If you have hair on your head then you have "good hair". So I don't want to hear that anymore!"

Well...that settled that.

Over the years I've had many many styles. Long, short, straight, relaxed, braids (once), never a weave...unless you count the extra hair that was added when I had my braids (which by the way, I only left in for a week because they were waaay too heavy on my head. I don't know HOW women wear those things for months). If so, then I guess we can check off "1" in the weave category.

I like my hair and I am thankful for it. For those who've followed the blog for any time you'll recall my hair loss a little over a year ago as a result of great stress that I was under at work. Never in my life had I experience anything like that. First, one patch. Then another. Then another. And it stopped with patch #4. FOUR huge bald patches in my hair because my body didn't know how to react to the stress that it was abnormally under.

Thankfully, my situation at work changed and with the change, my hair grew back. What a "coinky-dink".

Usually, I wear my hair straight. "Pressed" as Black people call it. And when it's "pressed" it's long and flowy...bouncin' and behavin'. Really pretty.

But recently, with the onset of Summer, I thought I'd try a "new thing". I thought I'd try wearing my hair "natural"...the way it grows out of the follicle. No heat applied.

Gotta tell ya...this has been a REAL science project. Who knew that wearing my hair "natural" was going to be such a challenge.

Yeah, I could do the "wash & go" thing, but when I do that, it's not pretty. Maybe after years of "pressing" my hair it's lost it's natural curl. So it ends up just looking stringy, like rats have sucked on it. Not quite the look I'm goin' for.

My kids keep describing my new look as "wild". Ummm,no...wild isn't gonna work for me.

I've asked some of my friends who wear their hair natural to advise me on the hair care products they use. I'VE TRIED THEM ALL. My bathroom looks like a beauty supply store. Yet I've still not been able to get my desired result.

I've even watched You Tube videos of women applying the product and showing their end result, but the problem with that is that the women are either "mixed" so they have naturally curly hair anyway, or they have very kinky hair. My hair lives at the intersection of the two.

So the search continues and through lots of "trial and error" I will hopefully get the naturally curly look that I'm goin' for...before Fall sets in (which is when I will probably go back to straightening my hair). We shall see.

Let the DIALOGUE begin! Is there a hair style that you've been trying to get but haven't quite been able to perfect it yet?

Talk to me!

Til next time...

PRAYER...plain and simple

Today I felt the need to post about PRAYER. Not because it's Sunday, because for me, prayer is an everyday event, and often occurs many times throughout the day.

I have a friend who I hadn't heard from in a while and I had become concerned. It wasn't normal for this person to just drop out of contact. The more I thought about the person, the more concerned I became, until I got to the point where I had to stop what I was doing, and PRAY. For me, prayer always gives me comfort and calms me down.

About 10 minutes after my prayer, I from my friend. TEN minutes! And the prayer was answered. Just another reassurance for me that PRAYER WORKS!

Mind you, prayer is not a magic wand that you can just wave, and all that you ask comes to pass. Prayer is unique in every circumstance. Some prayers are answered immediately, some take a bit longer to be answered, and there are others to which I never (or have yet) to receive an answer.

This doesn't mean that God has not already answered the prayers, it just means that I have not received the answer.

For me, prayer is a vital part of my day. And on a typical day, I pray many times. As soon as I open my eyes in the morning...I pray. Before I go to sleep at night...I pray. And somewhere, during those hours between waking up & going back to sleep...I pray. In the car. Washing dishes. Folding clothes. Shopping. At work. Wherever I am, no matter what time of day...if the desire to pray comes upon me...I do it.

Contrary to what many think, prayer doesn't have to be some long drawn out process. Sometimes, I simply say "thank you" to God. And that's the entire prayer. Other times, the prayer is more lengthy because I begin recollecting all that God has done and continues to do for me.

Every prayer is different. In a nutshell, Prayer, is plain and simple.

Let the DIALOGUE begin! When was the last time you prayed?

Talk to me (better yet...talk to God FIRST, then talk to me)!

Til next time...

SEW What?

I like to think of myself as a "creative", "artsy fartsy" type. I love to write. I love to sing. I love photography (capturing time just as it is at that moment). And I love to sew even though I haven't sewn a thing in YEARS.

After my visit with "Dr. Doom (the retina specialist)" back in 2009, I didn't want to do anything that had to do with my eyes. I felt like, why bother, since I wasn't going to be able to see for much longer anyway...according to his diagnosis. So, I didn't want to watch movies. I didn't want to read books (the only book I read is my Bible, and I thank God EVERYDAY that I can still see the words on the page). And I certainly didn't want to sew.

Looking back now, I realize what stupid decisions those were. How many movies have I missed out on? How many great books? And how many lovely hand-made creations have gone un-created because I stopped sewing??? Too many!

I had to snap out of that mentality quick, fast, and in a hurry and remind myself of He who created these eyes, He who sustains my vision EVERY DAY!

As soon as I did that, I was back in business.

I have been so inspired recently by my two nieces Nicole & Brandyce, and all of the lovely creations they've sewn. Nicole has an amazing talent for knitting and sewing. You can check out her lovely creations at www.knitcole.com

Brandyce will have her own Etsy shop soon.

So you see, I have inspiration all around me and I have decided to sew again. The big guestion was, SEW what?

And then it came to me. I'm not yet ready to reveal what it is that I'll be making but as soon as I complete the first one, I'll post it here in "The Den".

Now, Let the DIALOGUE begin! Do you sew? If so, what's your favorite thing to make?

Talk to me!

Til next time...