Keep Swimming
Traci and Marlon Hayes It’s easy to instruct someone else not to give up on their hopes and dreams, but it’s not so easy to soldier on in our own lives. There are times when it seems as if life will be a consistent string of losses…
Perspective
Our Plates are Full
On holidays, we invite family and friends to share the day with us. Of course, the backdrop is the backyard where we grill meat— barbecue ribs, shrimp, maybe chicken or steak— and add three or four vegetables, potato salad, side dishes of fruits, and corn on the cob….
We Are Built to Endure
Nelson Mandela “The ability to withstand hardship or adversity especially the ability to sustain a prolonged stressful effort…” Meriam Webster Dictionary The phrase “Still strove, with his last ounce of courage..,” from The Man from La Mancha, Impossible Dream (preferably the Luther Vandross version) never fails to stir my soul. It…
Exploring the Soul’s Sovereignty
Medical advances have yielded a tremendous understanding of the intricacies of our bodies, and yet, we have limited understanding of the soul’s interaction with the body. The exploration of the soul is a voyage that I had begun to consider, but never so deeply, as when my mother…
The Season of My Discontent
I step onto this stage using a phrase based on William Shakespeare’s famous play, Richard III, where King Richard expresses his feelings of discontent regarding living in a world that hates him. He begins his soliloquy by stating, “Now is the Winter of our discontent/Made glorious summer…
Finding New Paths
When I was 26, I got a job, which I thought would take me all the way to retirement. It was /is a great job, and for most people, it would be enough. I’m a truck driver with a job that allows me to be home every…
You My Mama!
So, everyone that has had any recent contact with me knows that my digital magazine, Garden Spices Magazine, was hijacked. Yes, directly after the George Floyd verdict, my site was hit and left with articles written by the devil itself. The tunes sung were about Black trans athletes,…
UNTIL THE BITTER ENDS: A Song by Belinda J. Jackson
Photo by Gayatri Malhotra on Unsplash (First Verse) Where is your conscience? Does it still work? Who made you bitter? Does it still hurt? You know the difference Between right and wrong Karma will chase you Until it hits home (Chorus) You pass down the madness The…
ABUNDANCE IS PERSPECTIVE
Growing up in the 40s and 50s on a farm in North Alabama laid the groundwork for my current perspective of how abundance and gratitude are actually an inseparable pair. The pending invitation, reader, is to stroll with me for just a glimpse into why this is…
The Treasure of Serving
Dr. Joyce Brown “As long as we remain vigilant at building our internal abundance—an abundance of integrity, an abundance of forgiveness, an abundance of service, an abundance of love—then external lack is bound to be temporary.” ― Marianne Williamson, Leading up to the deadline for submitting this article,…