O

Ok so....I wasn't going to comment on the Oprah in Switzerland story but after talking with a younger colleague I had to write.  We got into a full blown discussion about it and she just missed the point. Since I now know that sometimes you have to pull up your big girl panties and walk away, I decided to do just that.  Here is an excerpt of how the discussion went...we will call her X...

X:    Hey there, what's going on?

Me:  I'm well. What's good?

X:    Nothin' much...did you hear the story about Oprah Winfrey?

Me:  Yes, I did. (I have found that you can learn a lot about people if you just shut up and listen).

X:    Girl that was crazy wasn't it?

Me:  .................................PAUSE..........................awkward silence........breathing....3, 2, 1.

X:    I mean what is wrong with those people? How in the world did they not know that was Oprah?

Me:  (me talking in my head AHA!!! I knew it was going to go there) I'm not sure. What do you     think? (Yes....I was still on PAUSE).

X:    Everyone knows Oprah...really what is wrong with them? And even Oprah said she had on all of her "Oprah regalia" and they should have known it was her.

Me:  So, you take issue with the fact that they didn't notice Oprah?

X:    Yes, I mean really.....OPRAH!! 

Me:   I see.

X:    Oprah has the money and she should be able to spend it however she likes even if it’s on a $35,000 pocket book.

Me:  True

X:    I mean Oprah is Oprah....everyone knows her and they should have given her the bag.

Me:  (I could hold out no longer)   So you're telling me the real issue here is that the salesperson in the store did not notice Oprah and you are ticked off?

X:     And your not?

Me:   Ummm...no I’m not. Not about that.

X:    Why not?

Me:  The issue is not that they didn't notice Oprah.

X:     How do you figure that?

Me:  The issue is that they did not think that Black Woman could afford to buy from their store. It had nothing to do with the fact that the Black Woman was Oprah.

I could go on for hours but I'm going to end the dialogue between me and X there.  I can tell you I could not bring her around and decided to walk away.  Why are we so blind? Black woman are still looked upon as second class citizens despite all that we do:  look up Patricia Bath, Mae Jemison, Minnie Joycelyn Elders, Edith Irby Jones, Maya Angelou, Angela Davis.  We are intelligent, unique, loving, exceptional, diverse, charismatic, and stinkin’ AWESOME!  We hold down the house, are the back bone to our men, run businesses, shoot we even help to run the WHITE HOUSE. Read the archive blog:  Who cares? 

Hold your head up Black Woman…you matter despite their perception. If only we could get this through to more of the new generation of Black Woman. 

 

High five a Black Woman today and tell them they are awesome!!

 
Lovin’ you is easy,

 

J

Connections

Ok so I was getting on the train yesterday afternoon and saw the most interesting thing. There was a priest (of the Caucasian persuasion) dressed in his clerical collar and his Cassock (tell me why I remembered the name of the clothing from the show The Flying Nun…however I did check online to confirm the spelling). He was sitting rather comfortably on the A train enjoying the ride. Side note - Why is it that when we see a "man of the cloth" we straighten up? We are like oh shoot he's gonna tell on me so I better act like a child of God for the few minutes he is staring at me.  Lol  At least we feel like he is staring right into our souls even if he barely notices us. It was hilarious watching other people get on the train pushing others out of the way and coming to a dead stop once they noticed him sitting on the train. Back to the blog - So anyway, seeing him on the train was not the most interesting thing. He was sitting next to a brown girl and.....wait for it....they were sharing....headphones. Yes she had one side in her ear and he had the other one in his ear. They were bobbing their heads to the same tune. Isn't New York magical? Where else would you see something like that? I thought it was just awesome. It's just a reminder of how God connects us. He can use music to cross color lines, ethnicities, and politics. I mean music transcends it all. I just thought seeing them was so awesome that I had to smile.

 

Ok so what's my point? I recently found some papers and felt compelled after discovering them to share a poem with you. I have not shared my poem book with anyone so you are truly getting a special treat...YOUR WELCOME!... J  I wrote this poem back in the day, well actually it was April 25, 1983. Yeah I know I was only 2 and just a sweet little babe, but I was brilliant. J Now wait this is a no judgment blog so don’t start thinking “man she is a pack-rat”. So what if I keep a few things. (Interesting Side note - My daughter who is a lover of words like her Momma was born on April 25 but not in 1983). My love affair with music perfectly connects with what I saw on the train. So here it goes…

He touched me again and I liked it

What do I do with this feeling?
Not sure who I can tell
What will they think of me
It’s my fault I let him in.
Every time he knocked I opened willingly…who can I tell?
He creeps under the covers with me and we do that dance…I’m elated.
I think of him all the time
I can’t get him out of my mind
Why won’t he just go away…it would be easier for me
Then I won’t have to tell
He creeps
Through the chaos of the day or the silence of the night and I am under his spell.
I can’t escape him
Oh no here he comes and I just………………….LET GO
Because
I have no choice but to give in
He got me
And I let him
Music has again touched my soul.
 

Listen to some music and dance today!

Lovin’ you is easy,

 

J

Obituary

 

I had a conversation with a wise friend of mine. I talk to her often and with her calming spirit she always leaves me with a word or phrase to think about.  At our last think tank session she told me “write your obituary”. I was like...wait...hold up...do you know something I don't? (And you know I said it with attitude and a little bit of fear).  Are you about to take me out? Did you peak into my future and find out some things and this is the best way you see fit to tell me, friend? What you tryin' to say? She looked me straight in the eye and said "yes I know some things and you my dear are not living in your purpose even though you wear it on your sleeve everyday". I was taken aback for a minute and really did not know how to respond. Then she said, "write your obituary then live it". Again I could not respond. I was now in my thoughts not really hearing what was going on around me. I was picturing someone standing attempting to tell my story and describing the person that I was not. I was slightly offended that they did not have much to say and that it wasn't the story that I wanted told about me nor was it the satisfying life I know I should have lived.

We all have a mission, a purpose, a goal. Everyone has something that their heart is telling them to do. Ask yourself, what is that thing? Meditate and put some thought into you and do it.  If money was no object what would you do today? If the bills were taken care of what magnificent thing would you encounter and how would you let the world know how well you are living?

Live your obituary…. Don’t let someone else define, describe or try to tell your story. Write it yourself and live it.

 

Here’s the challenge…I know you were waiting for this  :)  Write your obituary and comment back on Mocha Minute. I’m interested to know how you wish to start living your life today.  I can’t wait to hear of your exciting endeavors.  We are going to keep this going and may even add a “look what I did”  section on the blog so you can post pictures of you doing something amazing that is all about you. Now get to it!

 

Lovin’ you is easy,

 

J