Latest / DA CREW Podcast / NATIONAL POETRY AWARENESS MONTH _ OPEN MIC SHOWCASE_ LIVE 6-9PM EST

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NATIONAL POETRY AWARENESS MONTH _ OPEN MIC SHOWCASE_ LIVE 6-9PM EST · DA CREW Podcast

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Oh persons, All things ain't what things used to? Where all the blue
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sky that's from boys into blue, from the North South things? Whoa person
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nurses? All things and what they used Dallas? What work A A L
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A c. The Chance of your Dream Book Tour in Expo is coming to
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your area. Mark your calendars May eighteen eleven a m. To three pm
0:50
Central Standard time. We have some amazing authors, some amazing business owners that's
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going to be sharing about their brand. We have some workshop for you that's
1:00
going to be coming out. They're going to be teaching on branded marketing and
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network I want you to plan to be in the building, to be educated
1:11
and power and in charge. Come out support. At Wings of Transformation Publishing,
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we are committed to helping our authors reach their goals and pursue their dreams
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of becoming published authors. We work closely with each author to ensure a successful
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publishing experience, and we are dedicated to helping them tell their stories in the
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most meaningful and impactful ways. We look forward to putting you on the path
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to writing your book. Well. Hello, hello, hello, hello,
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and welcome, Welcome, Welcome. I want to welcome you guys to the
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Crew podcast I tell you, I get excited every time I get to come
2:46
from behind the scenes. Y'all know, I am the visionary of the Crew
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Podcast, and I tell you we're on our second season and I cannot start
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this tonight without just giving those queens over there a shout out. Y'all.
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We had an open show tonight, so I say, you know what,
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It is a National Poetry Awareness Month, so why not bring on some poets
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and allow them the opportunity to share their brands. I want to share a
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little bit about poetry before I bring you up, before I bring them up,
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and allow you an opportunity to get to know them. On tonight,
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y'all, we're gonna have an amazing lineup of queens tonight. Each hour we're
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gonna have somebody on. We're gonna be on tonight from six to nine,
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because y'all know usually we're on at eight pm every night except for Tuesday nights.
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For those that have never tuned in to The Crew Podcast, y'all,
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make sure that you are following us. You can follow us on LinkedIn,
3:43
on YouTube, and Facebook, and when we go live, you guys will
3:46
be notified when we go live because stream yard they've set it up so good
3:52
now, y'all where every time you set a streaming broadcast, they share it
3:58
out on the platforms that you're to be going streaming live on, and they
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create events so that you can interact with those participants and those that support you
4:08
and follow you, and you can share little tidbits about the upcoming event.
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So y'all utilize these opportunities to connect with those that you support, you know,
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get to know them, y'all. I tell you, it's nothing like
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getting to know those people that you follow on a personal level. Sometimes sometimes
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you may not want to get personal with everybody, but some of those that
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you know have that type of platform where you can connect with them and truly
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get that opportunity to get to know who they are. It's a good time
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to get to know who they are, y'a. I'm gonna share something with
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you guys. Y'all know I gotta have it. I had to start writing
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stuff down because y'all know me, me and me and me, and I'm
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gonna tell you I will run my mouth. Y'all know I like to talk
4:50
and I can talk about anything. So I got me a list tonight.
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I ain't gonna sit on him and run my mouth tonight, I'm gonna stick
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to the subject, and the subject tonight is poetry and showcasing these amazing queens
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and allowing them the opportunity to share some of their words, because y'all know,
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words speak, words speak, So I'm gonna read this really quick and
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then I'm gonna move out the way. April's National Poetry Month at time to
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celebrate the power and beauty of words. Today, we are excited to bring
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you an open mic showcase featuring some incredible poets who will be sharing their work
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with you live. Poetry has the ability to touch our hearts, stir our
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emotions, and inspire us in ways that few other forms of art camps.
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It is a medium through which we can express our deepest thoughts and feelings,
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making sense of the world around us, and connecting with others on a profound
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level. As we come together to celebrate Poetry Awareness Month, we invite you
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to join us in experiencing the magic of poetry. Share. We are sharing
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lives tonight, and we want you to share this out with your family and
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friends so that they too can tune in and be a part of these queens
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sharing on tonight. Throughout this showcase, they will be sharing a little bit
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about themselves their journey with poetry as they dive into their original works. These
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are their thoughts, their words, and their voice coming together to create something
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truly special. So sit back, relax, and let the power of poetry
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watch over you as we celebrate National Poetry Months with this open mic showcase.
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So get ready to be moved, inspired, and capital by the art of
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words. I put together a little piece. I don't know if y'all don't
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like it because I'm not a certified poet, I'm gonna say that. I'm
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gonna say that. I can say that I am Queen Angela, a poet,
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author, I said it, podcast hosts, and much more in the
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world of podcasts. I rang supreme, a visionary queen with a dream,
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with passion and drive. I lead the way, goding those that dare to
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succeed, come who may. My voice is strong, my spirit is bold,
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A leader, a mentor worth more than gold. I bring many together,
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Alie, I believe in family, a tightningque one. In my presence,
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you will feel nothing but pure wit. With each encounter. I light
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up a room, sharing stories, laughter, and dispelling gloom. Thank you
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for tuning in to the Crew podcast. Adore we adore you. You make
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us better and we are forever warning and given more. So tune in and
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that's that piece. I hope y'all like this. Y'all want me right the
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way, and I'm gonna bring up my three poets poet ask for tonight.
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I'm gonna bring them up one by one and allow them to introduce themselves.
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I'm gonna bring all three of them in the studio though, and then I'm
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gonna move on o the way so they can introduce themselves one by one,
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and then y'all we're gonna allow them to share their pieces. So y'all let
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me hold on. We w wasn't on, Simon. I don't know why
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I won't let Simon. It's not letting her in the studio. Mm hmm.
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Now I'll tell you. But it's okay, it's okay. We're gonna
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start. We're gonna start. Since it wanted to keep someone, we're gonna
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we're gonna start with them first. It wanted to keep us, we gonna
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let her start first. So Simon, if you would please tell us a
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little bit about yourself, Okay, my name is Simon. I am uh
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kind of new to the poetry uh scene. I'm enjoying it immensely. And
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UH I am also uh in ministry. I'm an author and I'm also a
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publisher, and I do also have uh a hair business uh break with Brady
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Wiggs and so on top of that, I'm a mother, grandmother, and
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a wife. So that is uh and the just me. Wow. Well,
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welcome to the Crew podcast open my poetry showcase on tonight. And now
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we're gonna allow miss Brenda to come on and tell us a little bit about
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her sin. Hi, miss Brenda, how are you? I am blessed.
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I am so honored to be on your mic show tonight, Visionary Angela.
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It is a blessing that you just open up your arms and just push
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us. But I am a pastor. I'm under the leadership of Michael Rose
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here in Los Angeles, California at the Wrecking Crew for Christ Church. I
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am a playwright, producer and director of my own stage play and it is
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called The Five Foolish Virgins and you can find us on Facebook. We have
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our own Facebook page. I am also a poet. I dabbled in a
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little poetry. A couple of years back, I had a business and it
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was called Prophetic Plaques, so I had kind of put it on the shelf,
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uh, And I would do poems and poetry for people. And you
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know, I found out that those that were not believers, the way I
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could tap into their work was to poetry. And that's how I discovered that
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I could do a little poetry. So later on I am going to share
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a little poetry that I wrote. I am also a grandmother. I have
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five grandchildren and four great grands and I love them. So that's just a
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little bit about me. So if I can get Trevino in, she said
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some connection, but she's having some connection problems. It's not that it.
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It's not letting her in, but she'll be back in. I'd say,
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the enemy, I don't know. The enemy always be visiting when it's time
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for people to come forth and share those that He always be trying to keep
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silent. But I bind that spirit in the name of Jesus. Jesus,
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We're gonna keep on pushing. We keep on going. We don't stop,
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we keep on going. We're gonna Hello Latanya, Hello Shannette, Hello Melanie.
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They say Hello, ladies. We're gonna go ahead and get some poetry
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going. I say, I I dibble and dabble a little bit. As
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soon as we can get Terita in, we'll allow her to come on and
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introduce herself. But I can tell people a little bit about it. But
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I want her to come on and tell it, because ain't nobody tell like
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she can tell it? You know what I'm saying, nobody tell. Can't
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nobody tell our story? Like wen? I always like for everybody to tell
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their own story because I might leave something out. Even though I want to
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tell everything, I might leave something now. I might leave by something important
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that needs to be told. So we're gonna wait. We're gonna wait for
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her to come on. But I wish I could bring both. I'm gonna
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get out of this screen because I want to bring both of y'all up.
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I don't want to see. Okay, Yeah, I like this better.
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I like I know, I like the spotlight. Some people like to be
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on the spotlight, but I like I like them. I like that one
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better right now, So I want I want to know. So for me,
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I'm gonna talk about why I got into poetry. So I kept hearing
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you know, a lot of people. This was some years ago. I
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want to say, back in two thousand, eighteen, twenty nineteen, right
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before the pandemic was hit, and I was hearing a lot of people talk
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about how Portal was dying out. You know, I was hearing a lot
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of people saying that portrait was dying out, and me, I was like,
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it can't be dying out the way I see all of us. It
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was more of us, you know, really, you know, we were
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starting to have open mics, were having poetry. You know, I was
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starting to hear podcasts with nothing but poetry and just different stuff around poetry,
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you know, just popping up and being in my miss And now I see
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every time I look on a platform. Now I guess it's because I'm always
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posting stuff about poetry. But every time I look on a platform, I
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see something that has to do with poetry. So when people were thinking that
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poetry was dead, it is yet alive. And you know, I'm keep
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it, you know, I'm just trying to keep it. You know,
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I'm just trying to keep it out there because it has been very it has
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been very important and detrimental for us as Brown people because we use poetry back
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doing slavery. You know, that was you know a lot of how we
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expressed, you know, And then with poetry, poetry is not like writing
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a structured center sentence. Poetry not like you know, having to worry about
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grammar, having to worry about a structure, because your word and that word
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may mean something different to you than it means to the next person. So
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everybody that reads something, we may read the same poem, but we may
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not get the same thing from it. Right, You know that thing I'm
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telling you because I've been in a place where someone has been spitting poetry and
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then somebody people have been drawing and they're supposed to have been drawing what they
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were hearing, what the point was speaking, was what they were supposed to
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have been drawing and painting. Like somebody was painting. Somebody was drawing,
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somebody was sculping, like they was knowing different stuff and they was coming out
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with different And then you may have two people doing the same thing, but
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even they whatever they was doing was still different. And then I've been in
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a place where people have just painted, and they've painted what the poet was
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speaking, and you got two different pope you got two different poetraits even coming
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from this. You know, I say, it's all upon the beholder,
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who hears it, who's getting it, who's grass being said? I think
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let me see if at least she can come over. Trieda. I know
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it was some technical difficucause we've been trying to get you on, but it
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wouldn't let me pull you up if you would introduce yourself that those that are
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tuned in know a little bit about you. Okay, I'm gonta try,
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y'all. My camera will not connect now. I don't know what happened,
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but I am here. I'm gonna try to log in on my phone and
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see what happens there in just a few minutes. But I am Trevita.
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I am the smallest one in the bunch. I'm smallest at you, but
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big in spirit, big and heart, big and everything else. Even though
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I only stand four feet eight inches tall, you never know that. I
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am a mother of three, grandmother of two. I am a stroke survivor.
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I am also a br my information. I call myself a warrior because
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that condition. I never know how I'm gonna be from day to day.
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I've lost my speech, my ability to walk, but God said, I
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have something else for you to do, so you will get all of those
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things back. So I am a author, a publisher, an editor,
17:22
a podcast host. I don't know what else there is that I don't do,
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because I also do hair. I do a whole bunch of stuff.
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So that's me in a nutshell. That's it. Wow. So I guess
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it's almost that time for us to go ahead and share our piece and allow
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some people to to hear some of y'all words. So I want to start
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with We'll start with miss Amone. Okay, the poem that I'm going to
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share with everyone today, it's a poem about my son. He was killed
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in twenty twenty from with gun from gun from gun violence, and it's called
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Missing Ashton. In the quiet of the night, this mother does weep for
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the sorrow in my heart was so deep. The vibrant life of my son
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is no longer near. His embrace and love I can no longer feel.
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At twenty three, gun violence took him away. Oh how I wish he
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did not go to that party that day. His infectuous smile has touched so
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many I did not know during COVID his homegoing with people overflowed. My God,
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how could this be? My son is here no more. God offers
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me this scripture a promise, so dear that in the midst of grief and
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lost, his presence is near. For I am with you always, he
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said, and also declared, he said, praise me, because at that
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party, your second son was spared. In every shadow, in every tear,
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you will never be alone. So at that moment I said, depression
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be gone. I began to praise and shout. I knew that he would
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never leave or forsake me, no doubt. He is in heaven with our
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Savior and King, and I will forever let God's praises ring. For God
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has truly kept me through this journey and have helped me and have through this
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journey. And I've helped more than one, two or three, and have
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learned not to let grief overtake me. You see what the devil meant to
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destroy me failed. I'm no longer. I'm stronger than ever. I know
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in my heart that all is well, beautiful, beautiful, nice Comida.
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Can you share a piece? Yes, me and I can definitely share one.
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Let me. I got so many. I'm trying to decide which one
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I want to share. Let's see this one is called how many more pieces?
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How many more pieces of me? Are you going to take? I
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am tired. I've just about reach my breaking point. I have given up
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so much, and yet there's still it. Still isn't enough. My body
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is weak and so is my mind. Yes, I've prayed so many times,
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look at the damage that I've left behind. The more good I create
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for those around me, the less of it is left for me. I
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know that I have to wait my turn, But exactly when will that be?
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God? I know that you are Are you even listening? Do you
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even hear me? I know that the journey can be long and hard,
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but does every single step have to be that way? I know that I
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should not question you because you have brought me through every single thing that was
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meant to break me, and I am still here. I just feel like
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myself. I don't feel like myself, and I'm breaking and I don't know
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how much more I can take. I understand that I've been through worse and
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I overcame it all. How much more must I endure before I can take
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a break? Will it be on this side or the other? I'm physically
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and mentally exhausted. How many more pieces of me will be left to share?
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I'm trying to figure out just how to maneuver this current situation. Please
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God just help me stay focused and to get to the other side. Wow,
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this Brenda your turn? Okay. My poem is about I wrote a
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book It's called Breakdown to Breakthrough, and this poem is written from what I
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went through. My personal testimony is about myself going through a mental breakdown from
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a divorce. It was a horrible breakdown. I almost went to a sanitarium,
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but through the word of God and through the power of God, God
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delivered me. So this is the poem I wrote. Trust in God.
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When you are in a dark place, it seems like time slows everything down.
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The challenges of life can take you around and around. You must keep
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fighting daily to stay above water, for life itself just gets harder and harder.
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When trying to dig yourself out of the storms and the rain, you
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must call on God to deliver you from your pain. Sometimes you may feel
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like no one really cares, But how can anybody help you? If you
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do not open up and share The cares of this world can cause anxiety,
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depression and fear. But you must remember that Jesus is all as near.
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When the fog of life dims your light, you must pray and the Holy
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Spirit will give you insight. Not saying it's too hard and why did this
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happen to me? It is time to take authority and tell the devil to
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flee. You must stand on the word of God and use Jesus' name,
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for God will never leave you or let you be put to shame. That's
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the point. Wow. Wow, So you said you wrote this in the
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midst of almost sven are nervous right now? No, I wrote it when
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you know you had advertised about the poetry and that you know we should write
24:57
something with a brand. So this goes along with the brand I just wrote
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wrote the poem wow, about what I went through from my book Breakdown to
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Breakthrough. Wow. So your book encouraged that poem. Yes, Wow,
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that's amazing, Glory to God. M So what was your process of writing
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that boom? I want to feel like, what was your process of writing
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that poem? I want to get into you as a poet. Okay,
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yes, ma'am, Well you know I knew my topic. You know was
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breakdown to break through m HM, and so my thoughts were, Okay,
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there was darkness, so I have to bring the poem show the darkness and
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also bring in light, positivity and hope. So those were my thoughts when
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I first sat down to write, uh, and then I just my thoughts
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came and I just started writing. That's how I write, as I as.
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It's almost like, uh, Like I told you before, my business
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was a prophetic flow. So it's like when I start to write, the
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Holy Spirit gives me the sentence structure, and I hear words and I tie
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them in. That's about the best I can tell you. I mean,
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I mean, it's your truth. I mean, you tell you how I
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get it. That's it. Yeah, I appreciate you sharing. I appreciate
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you sharing it with us. You're welcome. Thank you. Now we want
26:57
to talk to I want her to share why that piece? The reason I
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shared that piece, So, I think it's because as moms, we're always
27:11
given more of ourselves than we ever get back. It's always another piece.
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And even in relationships and friends, family, we give so much all the
27:22
time. And at that point, I was giving so much and I just
27:29
needed to get that off of me. So I just decided to write it
27:33
so that I can get those feelings out. Even if no one ever heard
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the poem ever did anything with it. I wrote it down so that I
27:41
could express how I was feeling. And you know, a conversation with God
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is basically how it started. And I was just talking to him asking him
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how much more of myself am I going to have to give up to find
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out what it is that I have left for me? And that's where that
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one came from. Right, Wow? So you just sit down when you
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write? How do you write? Do you just something that has come to
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you and you write, or you sit there and you think about what you're
28:18
gonna write? Is it carying out? No? I never really think about
28:23
what I'm gonna write or anything. It'll come to me. What I've learned
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to do when I'm having moments of because anything will come to me and I'll
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have I've learned to keep my phone close by our notepad somewhere because the beginning
28:38
of a poem will come and I'm like, I need to write this down,
28:42
and I never would have anything close by, and then I will forget.
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And so now I keep my phone to where I can get to my
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notes and jot something down and just keep it going that way. But that's
28:55
how I usually write whatever it is. The beginning of a poem is always
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because I'm in the middle of doing something else, like if I'm driving or
29:07
something like that, I can pick up my phone and do a voice record
29:11
so that I can remember that thought process and continue on, because driving in
29:17
the car in some mornings and I'll think about, you know, how traffic
29:21
flows, and how people are racing to get to their destination, not understanding
29:26
that wherever that destination is leading them, they're gonna arrive at the time that
29:32
they were designed to be there, regardless of whatever it is, because God
29:37
designs our scheduled for us any anytime we're moving, and it always comes to
29:42
me and it's like, Okay, what are they in the rush for?
29:45
Doesn't matter. You know that you woke up late and you thought you were
29:48
going to be somewhere at this particular time. There was a reason for the
29:52
delay, there was a reason that you overslept, so slow down. And
29:56
so that's usually what a poem or some something will come along those lines.
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When I'm just minding my business, as I say, I'm minding my business,
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but got put something like that in the atmosphere and I'm like, okay,
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let me write this down or let me do a voice recording so that
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i can continue on with that. But that's my writing process. I don't
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really have one that's a steady one, but that's usually how it works for
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me. Wow, wow, the mom. Let's talk about your form and
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your writing process. Okay, so my writing process on this. How this
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poem came about was when you had the poet feature for the magazine and it
30:52
was about a poem that represents your brand. Even though I've written two different
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books, they're both encouraging books, but I find myself more of working with
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people when it comes to grief and death, especially you know, mothers,
31:15
the same as as I've gone through. So when I went to sat down,
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and I sat down, and you know, I thought it would be
31:22
nice if I could tap into the book that I had already wrote. It
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was called I Choose to Live, Pushing through the Grieving Process, which kind
31:32
of basically explained my journey as a mom losing her son and also giving people
31:38
encouragement and hope. So that's how this came about, and so when I
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went to sit down to think about my son, I just was thinking about,
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you know, basically what his death took from me, you know,
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being able to be near him and missing him and missing his smile, missing
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his voice. But at the same time, the story doesn't end right there.
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God basically picked me up and he gave me an extra push, and
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he gave me, uh, he gave me a will and a push to
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continue to live this particular journey without him. Uh. So that's where towards
32:25
the end of the poem came and to also gave to give people hope that
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that God is there with you and through this and and he'll guide you and
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he you know you you will you know you will get get through this journey.
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And so that's how basically the thought process of this particular poem came came
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about. Uh, you know, it's just basically losing losing my son.
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And so, like I said, I'm kind of new to the poetry.
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Uh. I didn't even know I could write a poem maybe about two months
33:00
ago. But that's the thing about stepping out. Sometimes we have gifts and
33:07
things inside of us that we haven't even tapped into that we don't even know
33:12
that we can do because we don't try. So so that's that's that's basically.
33:17
And I've I've written maybe two other poems for another anthology, and it
33:22
just it just blew my way that I could even write something. So that
33:25
this is my journey as in the poetry scene, and I look to write
33:30
many many more poems to come. Awesome, awesome, awesome, awesome.
33:37
So I'm going to share. Let me let me come back over there.
33:44
So I'm going to share a poem that I wrote. I want you to
33:49
be thinking of if y'all don't have poems together, I want you to be
33:54
getting them together because I want youry to share another poem like we got time,
34:00
We still got it's not even seven o'clock. We still got plenty of
34:05
time, y'all. So next, oh yeah, So I want you to
34:09
get comfortable and ready to share after I shared this one, I want y'all,
34:15
I'm gonna go back and bring each one of you up and I'm gonna
34:19
let you guys share again. But this is one that I wrote in this
34:24
book. This is book number one of the Silently Hurt Inside, Hurting No
34:30
More series bringing awareness to mental brown and black mental illness. And I wrote
34:37
this poem. It's called My Soul Cries Out. It says, my soul
34:42
cries out. It's a sound of pain, a plea for help, a
34:46
silent reframe. It's a voice of anguish, a cry of despair. It's
34:53
a plea of understanding, a silent prayer. It's a call for help,
34:59
a plea for relief. It's a desperate cry for a life of belief.
35:05
My soul cries out. It's a sound of hope and plea for help,
35:09
a silent elope. And that's that piece. And it's called My Soul Cries
35:15
Out, And it is one of the poems that I wrote for the Silently
35:22
Hurt Inside, Hurting no More series. This book was find Finding Forgiveness was
35:29
the subtitle of this book. And everyone in here, you know, we
35:34
wrote. We wrote about different things, you know. Some wrote about just
35:42
the rising of the sun, you know, and and how that was able
35:47
to help them forgive. We had some that you know, they were looking
35:53
for motivation. They they wrote about, you know, where they were.
35:58
Some wrote wrote a out they tried and how they had to learn to forgive
36:02
themselves and forgive. Others wrote about letting go, venting and letting it out
36:09
and sharing, you know. But I have found through poetry that it is
36:17
a way for me to release and not be concerned about the cares of grammar,
36:24
the cares of a sentence structure, because these are my words, these
36:30
are my thoughts, this is how I feel, you know, And who's
36:36
to say that this is right or wrong. So that's the one thing about
36:39
poetry that I have loved. You know that they have different I mean there's
36:45
probably about twenty five thirty different ways that you can write a poem. But
36:52
I love freestyle. You don't have known nothing, you don't have to worry
36:54
about nothing. That's my favorite year. I love writing that. I am
37:01
the visionary of I think. I have nine poetry books and all of them
37:08
are collaborations because I truly believe and allow individuals to share and to be a
37:16
part of the things that I do. I am currently working on a three
37:22
book series. It's about legacy and leaving a legacy. The first one is
37:29
called The Seeds of Immortality, the second one is called The Footprints and the
37:36
Sands Sometimes. The third one is Echoes of Eternity, and it just gives
37:45
people an opportunity to share about legacy as well as life, you know,
37:52
and you know understanding that this is this is not our home, you know,
37:55
but we have to leave a legacy. We have to leave you something
38:00
that would be able to live immortally, that will live on, you know,
38:06
even when we're gone. And and and we have to understand that.
38:08
So I God dropped that in spirit. And then I had the opportunity to
38:15
work with some amazing people that helped me put together the book covers. For
38:19
them, I like them, they happen to be amazing to me. And
38:24
and it really resonated to what each section was about and about different things.
38:31
So that's what I'm working on. And and and that's a little bit about
38:36
me, but those that were wonder wn and that's and that's why I that's
38:43
why I write. I just want to express. And then I just want
38:45
to give people an opportunity to see all sides of me. You know.
38:51
They see me doing a lot of these podcasts, so they think that hey,
38:53
that girl got it together. No, I don't have it all together.
38:55
Sometimes I be having some issues, so sometimes I have to write it
39:00
out and sometimes I have to deal with I have to sit back, and
39:02
I have to look at them, you know, And it's all about being
39:06
transparent and people understanding that, you know, hey, she real, she's
39:09
she's a human, just like I am. She's no different than I am.
39:15
So hey, that's what this is about. So y'all got them poems
39:19
together. But before I go, I'm gonna do a commercial. I'm I'm
39:22
gonna go to a commercial, and then we're gonna come back, and then
39:25
we're gonna allow everybody to share peace. And then I know they wanted they
39:30
like I was time go by. They trying to rush time by, but
39:34
it ain't going nowhere. I'm going. We got twenty more minutes and we're
39:38
gonna enjoy them. Twenty giving away one of Robert L. Horton's it is
39:47
called Imagine Yes, And I have to, Yeah, I have to show
39:50
this book out because guess what I am on page I am the very nast
39:57
poem in this book. I'm very like in this book. And then I
40:00
am a bonus poem. So that means I was I was at it because
40:06
I was worthy enough. I guess. I don't know, but it's cause
40:09
and when I tell you, this thing spoke to me, and it spoke
40:14
of me, and it spoke up about me. And this man didn't know
40:19
nothing that I was going through because I had not spoken to him. When
40:22
I saw this book, I cried. He had no way of knowing it
40:24
because I had not talked to him, didn't even though I was going to
40:28
be in the book. But when he handed me this book and I read
40:30
that poem, y'all broke down and I cried. I teared up because it
40:35
was everything that I had been going through. And just to read these poems,
40:39
y'all. And when I tell y'all, when y'all hear history, this
40:45
man had poems, wrote books or poems just over twenty years wow. His
40:51
wife said, what are you going to do with these poems? And he
40:54
began to publish them. And when I tell you, these poems are speaking
40:58
to the now generation, I call him the Prothetic poet because he definitely prophesied
41:07
and some of that, because he wrote them things some time ago, and
41:10
they speaking to the now generation and they still gonna speak. And it's just
41:15
amazing. But I have these books that I'm gonna I'm gonna be giving these
41:19
two books away. I want Trevida and Mss Barbera to pick two numbers,
41:27
and then whoever gets them numbers, I want you all to put them in
41:30
the private chat. They can't see them, only I can see them.
41:34
And you guys, y'all put the numbers in there, and whoever guess them
41:37
or come within two of those numbers before we end this broadcast, they're gonna
41:44
win one book, and then we're gonna be given another one away during the
41:47
next hour as well. And then I'm gonna give one of my poetry books
41:53
away as well to someone. And then of course everyone is gonna be able
42:00
to put a number. So it's gonna be two numbers. Whoever gets just
42:07
in case we have ti. Okay, so I got which one't your reader?
42:15
You get one because somebody else got one. Okay, so we got
42:22
two numbers. We got the two numbers. They have until seven o'clock to
42:27
guess the numbers if whoever comes within. So we got miss Brenda's number up.
42:32
Now I want you all to guess miss Brenda's number. If you're if
42:37
you're chimed in. Now you guess miss Brenda's number, You're going to win
42:43
a copy of mister Roberts book. I don't know why it's not showing.
42:46
It won't show good when I'm on the background. But I have to turn
42:50
it a certain way so I hope y'all can see it. Oh so while
43:19
they we're gonna go to commercial, and when we come back, we're gonna
43:21
let them drop those pieces. Y'all be thinking of them numbers while we at
43:25
on commercial. Y'all nowhere near the numbers. You know, you may be
43:35
okay, you'll be ready for ready, they ready, they said they ready.
43:47
They wait on me to go to commercial. Go to commercial, angela
43:51
mm hmmm, mm hmm, don't take commercial angel Love. Hiring Authors Magazine
44:00
is a founding sponsor for Doc Crew podcast. Get featured inside the magazine and
44:07
allow your voice to be heard around the world. Aspiring Authors Magazine turn off
44:28
the Dallas What Work AA l A C. The Chance of your Dream Book
44:42
Tour in Expo is coming to your area. Mark your calendars May eighteen,
44:47
eleven am to three pm Central Stentard time. We have some amazing authors,
44:53
some amazing business owners that's going to be sharing about their brand. We have
44:59
some workshop facilitators that's gonna be coming out. They're gonna be teaching on bad
45:07
We bat we bat, we back, we bad bad. Let me see.
45:15
Oh wow, I guess I should have. Somebody said sixty two.
45:20
Somebody said, funny, they're not close. They know what's close on.
45:22
Y'all. Well, we gonna let them drop them pieces. We gonna let
45:27
them drop them pieces. We're gonna start with wan'na start with Charita. Don't
45:31
start with Charita today, just go around. We're gonna start with Charita.
45:37
Let's see what she got, y'all. All right, this one is entitled
45:42
our Little Black Boys. Our little black boys are not viewed as the same
45:45
as your little white boys. Please don't tell me that. To stop making
45:51
this about race, because we are not the only ones bringing it. We
45:54
are the ones that aren't being heard. There's definitely a difference between these two
46:00
little black boys and little white boys. Yet it's their innocence that gets stolen
46:04
from them in the beginning. Stop talking and just listen for a minute.
46:08
If you put these two small children into a room together without the interference or
46:15
influence of the adults who are filled with nothing but hey, you will see
46:20
love, compassion, sharing, hearing the sound of children laughing, and yeah,
46:23
maybe even a brief little argument about the rules of a made up game
46:28
that changes. But that's what children do. Unfortunately, our little black boys
46:32
don't get a chance to be looked at as innocent. He's simply already being
46:37
accused of a crime, and that is simply being born black, which is
46:40
a choice he didn't have, excuse me, So every single move that he
46:47
makes has to be strategic so that it doesn't cost him his life. Oh
46:52
wait, the simple thing that your white son can do, like driving,
46:55
listening to music, buying skittles, riding in a car, doesn't cost him
47:00
his life. But our little black boys it could cost them their lives.
47:05
So please don't tell me about how many black friends you have, because if
47:08
you can count them, that means that they are just numbers to you and
47:12
not truly friends. Don't even say that you don't look at color and you
47:15
look at character, because that speaks volumes too. Let your actions speak for
47:21
you. By standing with us and speaking up against the senseless killing of us,
47:24
maybe you will understand when your child's name is behind a rest in peace
47:30
hashtag. Wow Wow, it's Brenda Okay. I wrote this poem for another
47:49
anthology and the name of the poem is stop saying you do not know what
47:55
to do. Stop saying you do not know what to do, for God
48:00
Almighty lives on the inside of you. Look inside yourself to see hidden treasures
48:07
God has to bestowed. You have generational gifts and talents waiting to unfold.
48:16
Stop saying you do not know what to do, for you are worth more
48:21
than rubies, diamonds and gold. God gave you all things and the world
48:27
to withhold. You are God's kings and priests ordained to walk in victory because
48:35
your Lord and Savior died on the cross at Calvary. It is time to
48:40
wake up and walk in your God given authority. You can cast out devils,
48:46
for you have the ability. Stop saying do not know what to do.
48:52
For God hath put his anointing solely upon you. Just take your imaginations
48:59
and dreams and spread your wings. God is going to show you witty inventions
49:05
and do a new thing. All you need to do is decree God's word,
49:13
pray and fast, for what you have decreed will surely come to pass.
49:20
Divine knowledge and wisdom reside on the inside of you. The Holy Ghost
49:25
is waiting to make things happen just for you. You can do all things
49:32
through Christ, who strengthens you. Just listen to God's voice and he will
49:38
tell you what to do. Down in your spirit is denymous power waiting for
49:45
you to demonstrate God's chain breaking power. Demons and devils have no real power.
49:52
It is time to set the captives free. At this very hour,
49:58
people are dying and are waiting on you. It is time to break the
50:01
change that only you can do. Now you can stop saying I do not
50:08
know what to do, because now you see you have so much work to
50:15
do. And that's that one wow wow com This particular poem is called Salvation's
50:30
Salvation Plea. It's Lord here, I am standing here with the plea.
50:37
Throughout all that I have done against THEE. Do not take your holy spirit
50:43
away from me. You are my joy. You are my love, joy
50:46
and peace, my God in my king. How do I love THEE?
50:52
In Your presence is where I long to dwell. Your glory came and filled
50:57
the whole atmosphere. Is where I found my peace. No longer will I
51:02
allow the devil to defeat me. You healed my body, soul and mind.
51:08
Your love for me is truly divine. My prayers are that you have
51:15
and encounter with God so new he will come and rest in your heart like
51:21
the new morning dew. Give your life, care and sorrow to Him today
51:27
for Jesus, It's the only way. Wouldn't you love to walk in the
51:30
streets paved in gold, no longer be sick, and never grow old.
51:37
And heaven is where I strive to be. So I work on my salvation
51:42
daily. Just say, Jesus, come into my heart today. I believe
51:50
that you are the only way. I believe that you died and rose on
51:54
a third day, and I am giving you all of me today. Thank
52:00
you Lord for saving me. Now I have a new life in you,
52:04
and I have the victory. Just know, if you said this prayer today,
52:09
you are now saved and now bless his name. Mhmm a man.
52:19
And that's the point. Beautiful, well ma'am. Wow, Wow, amazing,
52:28
amazing, amazing, amazed hm. So wow. I definitely want to
52:37
thank you guys for coming on and sharing tonight and allowing those that tune in
52:43
and those that we get this replayed. Just a little bit about you,
52:45
guys, and here's some of your work, and here some of your We're
52:51
gonna go around and as we you're ready to close this hour out, allow
52:57
you guys to share with those How can they connect with you guys? How
53:00
can they follow and support the things that you go. I'm gonna start with
53:04
Travida Okay. You can find me on Facebook, of course, Trevida Harris.
53:13
You can find me on Instagram as Trevida Underscore Harris seventy eight. You
53:17
can also follow my business page, which is Wings of Transformation Publishing. You
53:23
can find me on TikTok as Trevina Harris. Pretty much t R i v
53:29
E d A. Harris is pretty much where you're gonna find me. I
53:35
ain't no difficult person to find. Well, if I'm in the crowd,
53:37
of course you'll be. It'll be a little difficult because I'm small, But
53:42
as long as there's no crowd, you'll always find me. But reach out.
53:46
If you need something edited, you need help with even starting a book,
53:52
just reach out to me. I'm here to walk you through it one
53:54
step at a time. You need something edited, document at me, not
54:00
quite sure where to get started, you know, reach out to me.
54:02
I'm happy to help. That's what I do. That's what guy said do.
54:06
That's what I'm going to do. Amen, Amen, mis Simone,
54:12
how can we connect with you? Yes, you can find me on Facebook
54:17
under Simone Williams or author Simone Williams Young. I do also have a link
54:25
tree which is uh link t R dot E E forward slash Simone Williams Young.
54:37
And you can also contact me through my website is y'all published dot com
54:46
y a h publish dot com in there. That is my publishing company's website.
54:58
So I do publish books if you if you do have any publishing needs,
55:01
and then I also have she Unique LC and as she then U n
55:07
I q l l C dot com if you have any if you like any
55:14
Brandy wigs, I do also have that website as well. Thank you,
55:25
Branda. Yes, you can reach me on Facebook as well under Brenda Williams
55:35
or author Brenda J. Williams. The name of my book is Breakdown to
55:43
break Through, which is on Amazon and Barnes and Nobles, our second book.
55:50
I will let my daughter the visionary tell about that book. I guess.
55:55
So you can reach me any of those ways, Amen, Amen,
56:07
Samon, I think your mama wanted to share about the book. Okay,
56:09
Yes, I have a collaborative book. It's called Stronger, Better Wiser,
56:16
Walk into the New You. And I don't know because I kind of have
56:21
that background too. We'll see if this shows and this is the book.
56:30
Yeah, but this is the book Stronger, Better, Wiser, Walk Into
56:35
the New You. It's basically about using your past experience to make you stronger,
56:39
better wiser, not to stay stuck there and to move forward so that
56:44
God can continue to give you everything that he has for you. And so
56:47
it's a very encouraging book, very powerful. You can get it on we
56:52
are on Amazon and then also if you go to the y'all published dot com
57:00
uh you can also publish. You can also purchase it there as well as
57:06
well as my book I Choose to Live Pushing through the grieving process, and
57:09
you can also if you know anyone that's grieving or if you are grieving,
57:14
you can definitely go online and purchase that book. It will definitely encourage you.
57:21
Amen. Amen. But I definitely want to thank you guys for stopping
57:23
by and sharing your words on tonight and sharing just a little bit about you
57:28
as we celebrate National Poetry Awareness Month. Again, I thank you guys for
57:32
stopping by y'all have a great rest of your evening. Afternoon. I know
57:40
y'all are out in beautiful California, so but just now for a for a'clock.
57:47
So it's afternoon out there, were getting ready to were getting ready to
57:53
start transitioning to sleep because five am come early in the morning. So I
58:02
want to thank you guys for stopping by and taking this time to share with
58:07
us as we celebrate National Portrait Money. Y'all have a great evening, you
58:12
too, you too, Thank you so much, thank you. Good night,
58:15
y'all. Good night everyone. We're gonna prepare for the next group to
58:29
come up. While we're waiting on the next group to come up, y'all,
58:30
I want to share another commercial. That's all we do. I wanna
58:34
share another commercial. We didn't have anyone to win the book the last go
58:38
round, so it's still on the table. The two is still on the
58:42
table. It's still on the table. The numbers were the number seven and
58:47
the number two nine. MS Brenda our Brenda had number seven and Treda had
58:54
number twenty nine, so no one was close. So y'all will be right
59:00
back and we're gonna move on to our next group of amazing poets, all
59:15
things and what they used to be? Where has it? All? The
59:21
blue skyts? But boys from the north, the southing well persons, all
59:36
things ain't what they used to be. Well, welcome back, welcome back,
59:44
welcome back, welcome back. And I know y'all probably wonder why does
59:46
she keep playing that particular commercial. Well, I promise one of our hosts,
59:53
who is a injustice advocate, that I would share that clar as much
1:00:00
as I could to help put a face to some of these stories that we
1:00:05
have been sharing across our network. Of course, we do a lot for
1:00:07
injustice for those that are on for incarcerated or over incarcerated. We understand that
1:00:14
some people do make mistakes, but for some of these sentences that they are
1:00:16
handing out across these United States of America, it's it's ridiculous. You give
1:00:22
someone already a life sentence and then you hand down another one hundred and ninety
1:00:28
two years. How do you expect them to ever come home with the sentence
1:00:30
like that? And especially in the state of Texas, they'll want you to
1:00:34
do fifty percent of that. If you give somebody one hundred and ninety two
1:00:39
years and you want them to do fifty percent of that, and then they
1:00:42
got the fight like h ell to come home, and then everything is steady
1:00:47
denied. It's crazy. People right now in the state of Texas are doing
1:00:52
thirty three forty years. I have someone now that I'm helping share his story
1:01:00
is done forty years like and these people didn't kill nobody. That's the crazy
1:01:06
part. That's a crazy part about it. But then I see, well,
1:01:08
there's a gentleman that they gave ten years and he shot his wife with
1:01:14
a sound I've shotgun and told her that she was going to see her maker.
1:01:19
Y'all. This the world we live in now. But I'm thankful that
1:01:22
we have an opportunity to express some of these things through our works, and
1:01:29
just so happened poetry has to be the outlet for some of us. We're
1:01:34
able to share through poetry. And again I want to thank you guys for
1:01:38
tuning in as we celebrate these amazing poets that us sharing their their journey with
1:01:47
us in a little bit about their brands. So I see that we have
1:01:51
miss Martine backstage. I'm gonna go ahead and bring her up and allow her
1:01:55
to introduce herself, and then I hope she's prepared to share some poetry,
1:02:00
because she's gonna have an opportunity to share some poetry. If y'all don't know,
1:02:06
and if y'all are a regular to the network, then y'all have seen
1:02:10
some of her commercials. Back in March, we shared a little bit about
1:02:15
her newest book that was coming out, so hopefully she's I'm gonna share some
1:02:22
of that with us tonight. So I'm gonna bring her up, y'all.
1:02:27
Hi, Hi, Antella, how are you. I'm good? I met
1:02:32
it through another week? Thank God, beautiful, I'm going good. I'm
1:02:37
doing good. I can't complain. Wow. Well, like I was telling
1:02:45
everyone before, I had the opportunity to share through the commercial a little bit
1:02:53
about your latest release. I know that you were also on the podcast earlier
1:02:59
with one of the hosts, Patrice, and she shared about your book The
1:03:05
Phoenix, an amazing book. So I'm just excited to just hear about this
1:03:09
newest book. I'm excited. So I'm gonna move out the way and let
1:03:15
you share for those that may not know who you are, a little bit
1:03:22
about yourself, and then we as the other poets come up, We're gonna
1:03:27
allow them to share a little bit about themselves as well. But today it's
1:03:30
about getting to know the poets, allowing them to share their brand and some
1:03:35
of their work, and then them just talking about why they why they wrote
1:03:38
those pieces. So the floor is yours. Ms. Martine Hi, and
1:03:45
she stated, I'm Martine Moore. I am located in Dallas, Texas.
1:03:51
I'm a poet author based out of Dallas. My preferred trade is a human
1:03:55
resources director and that indirectly, like influence, helped me to write my poetry.
1:04:04
And I currently have had a bestseller, well actually two best sellers.
1:04:09
I can put that on now on Barnes and Noble, The Phoenix Heart and
1:04:13
Reflections Rising, which, as Angela stated so eloquently, its Poetry and Reflections
1:04:18
Rising is my newest book on Barnes and Noble. Wow. Wow, So
1:04:27
out of all the different jerals that you could have wrote in, why did
1:04:32
you pick poetry? Poetry picked me? I was. I actually didn't know
1:04:42
I could write a could write a poem until when I say, thirteen years
1:04:46
ago, when I was going through my divorce, and it was actually therapy
1:04:50
for me. It was a way for me to get my feelings out on
1:04:55
paper. Without you know, doing too much uh craziness, And so it
1:05:01
helped heal me. And so, as I said many times with the Phoenix
1:05:06
Heart, it was an evolution of the heart. It was actually a process,
1:05:11
a step by step over thirteen years of me healing myself. And God
1:05:15
works in amazing ways because who would have known that he turned such a terrible
1:05:19
situation into something so good. And this came through the poetry and writing and
1:05:25
healing and finding myself. And so by sharing this, I'm hoping that it
1:05:30
helps other people. You know. Wow, that's amazing because you said it
1:05:36
was a thirteen year journey, and like a lot of people, thirteen years,
1:05:42
they probably would have gave up. They probably would have said no,
1:05:44
I don't forget this, and that book probably would have never got published.
1:05:48
Yeah, my aim wasn't to write a book. I'm sorry if I cut
1:05:53
you off. I just was writing. I just was writing poems and just
1:05:58
saving him and I cheer them with girlfriends every now and then, and they'd
1:06:02
be like, oh, you have a gift, you know. But it
1:06:06
just turned into a collection. And once I just gotted you publish the book,
1:06:12
it actually told a story and it was all the poetry that I had.
1:06:15
I never thought i'd be an author. Oh wow, never wow.
1:06:23
And that's just the just us being us, you know, not you no
1:06:30
he people don't understand that there's so much that's on the inside of us and
1:06:34
we would just allow it to just come out and be because a lot of
1:06:40
us we don't sit out to do none of the stuff that we do,
1:06:42
and it just happens. And when it happens the way it happens, and
1:06:46
it's so beautiful. Like, no, you didn't set out to be a
1:06:49
poet or an author, but it happened. And over that thirteen year process,
1:06:55
over that thirteen year process, here it is. You have the opportunity
1:06:58
to do it again with second book like it if if you had to do
1:07:04
it again, would you do it again? Oh? Most definitely. Yes.
1:07:13
That's an amazing feeling to be able to put your words out to the
1:07:16
world and this, you know, disregard what what, just your feelings and
1:07:24
sharing yourself with the world. That's awesome. That's an awesome feeling. Yes,
1:07:28
I would do it time and time and get in I'm thrilled every time.
1:07:30
So this is my second book. I was thrilled like I was you
1:07:33
know, I always say like I'm having a baby. I felt like I
1:07:35
had a baby when I had to when I put out the second book.
1:07:41
It's just a joy, it really is. Wow. Well, we have
1:07:45
our second poet backstage. You're going to bring her up in a lot of
1:07:49
introduce herself, and she introduced herself. We're gonna start sharing some of our
1:07:58
work. So gonna like mm hmm, is it gonna bring her up?
1:08:20
This Internet or whatever it's doing whatever it wanted to do, so hopefully it
1:08:26
will allow her to stay. Hey, how are you? Hey? Can
1:08:31
you see me? Can't you hear me? Yeah? I can't. Internet
1:08:35
wanted to do what he wanted to do, or whatever it wanted to do.
1:08:39
I said, the powers that be something else, Boy, they be
1:08:44
when it seemed like every time it was something good supposed to come, like
1:08:48
they don't like it that the powers that we don't like for people to be
1:08:54
seen and and for people to be recognized and for you know, they don't
1:08:59
like good stuff, uh, and to come together. Yeah. And and
1:09:08
and heal, because poetry can be healing, like literally like it can be
1:09:14
like people don't know that just being able to release, being able to get
1:09:17
stuff out sometime to do your life just like it can. It can do
1:09:24
so good. So please introduce yourself. Let those that are tuned in know
1:09:30
who you are and a little bit about your brain. You would Hello,
1:09:36
everybody. My name is Carack. The title of my my up and coming
1:09:45
book is called Rudy Child. It's a part of a series. I'm sorry,
1:09:49
I'm getting used to this new phone. My bad. This camera just
1:09:54
killing me. But I've been writing for pretty much as long as I can
1:10:00
remember. I was a little girl when I first started writing poetry, and
1:10:03
I when I first started writing, I wrote just just for what I was
1:10:09
going through as a child, you know, like all the different things that
1:10:16
that I experienced in my childhood and foster care and different things like that.
1:10:21
And it became therapeutic for me. And like as I got older, it
1:10:28
grew on me and it was like I had a story that I wanted to
1:10:32
tell and I wanted to hear you know what I'm saying, because it was
1:10:40
like being growing up in foster care. You get silenced a lot, You
1:10:45
barely have a voice. Sometimes nobody really want to listen to you, Nobody
1:10:48
really want to hear what you got to say. So when I took on
1:10:53
poetry, poetry was everything for me. That was my way to get out
1:10:57
everything that I felt, everything that I dislike and all of that, you
1:11:00
know, Like even as I got older, became a mom and stuff like
1:11:05
that, and started dealing with relationships and stuff like that. It helped me
1:11:10
through a lot of different things outside of having God on my side and making
1:11:14
sure I acknowledged that you know what I'm saying, and it helped me,
1:11:23
but a whole entyite of theories together of just experiences that not only I've experienced,
1:11:32
but a lot of other people women, men around the world have also
1:11:36
experienced, dealing with having messed up childhoods and crazy adulthoods and going through different
1:11:44
relationships and stuff like that. You know. So when I started writing and
1:11:48
I wanted to tell my story, it was important because it was about not
1:11:55
only me telling my story, but letting other people hear that they not bad
1:11:59
itself and what they go through. A lot of people go through a lot
1:12:01
of stuff and it's get hushed, you know. But it was like I
1:12:06
wanted people to understand, You're not out here by yourself. You don't gotta
1:12:11
go through this this mess alone. You know what I'm saying, And a
1:12:14
lot of people didn't really didn't really have that, and I just wanted to
1:12:18
always be that voice for for those you know, wow wow. Well,
1:12:28
I already know y'all that these poems right here's gonna be deep, y'all.
1:12:32
There's gonna be some deep poems. I'm telling you right now, y'all better
1:12:35
sit back. I hope y'all got y'all something to sip on. I ain't
1:12:38
got nothing, y'all. I hope y'all got y'all something to sip on,
1:12:42
because I can tell these gonna be deep. We're gonna start with Miss Martine.
1:12:46
We're gonna allow her share her peace, y'all, y'alls yourself yourself,
1:12:53
because I know the's gonna be deep. Well, I'm I'm gonna start out
1:12:58
with her. I'm gonna start out with a light with a lighter, lighter
1:13:02
poem. And it's called it's called Bonded. He is the fire that warms
1:13:15
her heart. He's the water that quenches her thirst. He is the air
1:13:20
that fills her lungs, the one who fills her soul. He has made
1:13:26
her a hole. He is She is the one who ignites his passions and
1:13:31
lights the flame. She is the one that brings harmony to him. She
1:13:35
soothes his soul. She is a piece he never found. She is Is
1:13:42
it possible? Is this true? The two have found each other, bonded
1:13:47
souls connected. They are melodic, They breathe life into each other. They
1:13:54
are love. They are one. They are that'sponded. Wow. Wow wow
1:14:06
Wow. We're gonna talk about that in a minute. We're gonna talk about
1:14:10
that in a minute. Shay. Let's shay. The first one are with
1:14:18
is called think understand that. You know what I mean. It goes like
1:14:24
this. Someone once told me, what you reap, you will also sew
1:14:30
and outpouring of positivity is sure to send back positive vibes. Yet when you
1:14:36
conscious consciously resort to negativity, your life will be played that with negativity.
1:14:45
Lots of times, these two differentials go above people's heads, with one with
1:14:49
the ones doing wrong seemingly not understanding why nothing's going right for them, and
1:14:56
the ones doing right praying then nothing will go wrong. When you f up,
1:15:02
just sayf When you f up, you must clean up your mess.
1:15:08
And no, I didn't say whatever happened to a past you is your fault.
1:15:15
I said, for the wrong you do is your fault. So you
1:15:19
will be blamed. I mean, these were your actions. You either agree
1:15:26
and both be right, or disagree and you be wrong. You only become
1:15:32
more bearable by changing from within. If you do not like thinking negative thoughts,
1:15:39
take time to think positivity. If you don't like how you act,
1:15:44
start changing behaviors. Start from within and find the will to deal with every
1:15:50
reason why we had rather run from ourselves, you would change the person you're
1:15:59
running from. M hm, wow, what was the inspiration behind that piece?
1:16:10
It's like accepting sometimes you have to accept the fact that you the problem
1:16:17
in the situation. No matter what the situation is. It's not always somebody
1:16:21
else's fault. Sometimes you just got to accept that I messed up a little
1:16:26
bit too this part. I could. I did play a party. You
1:16:30
know what I'm saying, It's just for me. It was just accountability.
1:16:34
That's what that was for me. Just accountability. Sometimes you just gotta just
1:16:40
say, you know what, that's my that's my fault. You know.
1:16:45
Wow, Wow, transparent moment. Nothing like accountability. So it's what inspired
1:16:57
your piece, well after what inspired my feet peace was finally being hold and
1:17:04
knowing that I finally had met someone that accepted me from me. See,
1:17:09
because you you don't you don't know true love, not unless you've experienced something
1:17:15
bad. And so when you walk through something bad, you can appreciate something
1:17:20
more. So that's why in the stanzas, all right, what what what
1:17:25
he is to her and what she is to him? That make them come
1:17:28
together? And that's what that was. That's what makes uh harmonic, uh
1:17:33
relationship work. That's that's in harmony. If you know, two people come
1:17:41
together and make each other hole wow mm hm oh wow. Yeah, you
1:17:47
have to experience the bad so you know the good. Yeah, that is
1:17:53
true. That is true. Wow Wow. So I did earlier and in
1:18:02
the first hour hour I was sharing with the young ladies that the poets that
1:18:09
was sharing and those that tuned in that I also I write, so I
1:18:13
shared a little bit about some of the things that I've done. We actually
1:18:16
did this book. We we shared this this little book here, but we
1:18:21
actually since y'all are talking about love and accountability, like I was like,
1:18:27
well, let me pull out this one, because this is the finding love
1:18:31
seeing The first part of the series was finding forgiveness. So we we went
1:18:36
through the stages of you know, we forgave ourselves, we forgave other people.
1:18:42
We found hope, and then we moved on. I said, well,
1:18:45
since they talking about I love, I said, let me pull out,
1:18:47
Let me pull out my little books. They may pull out my thet
1:18:51
me put out minds and share one of my poems. So the one that
1:18:57
I'm going to share tonight is called on wavering Embracing my self. First,
1:19:02
in the depth of my soul, I found soulless and unwavering love that gives
1:19:09
me grace. I chose to love myself unbanished. For in this journey,
1:19:15
my spirit remains steadfast, resilient. I arise from the trials and door equipped
1:19:20
with strength my ex secured I'll embrace my flaws, my imperfections, and let
1:19:28
self love guide me. So my soul's reflection for and loving myself, I
1:19:35
find the key to cherish others unconditionally. With open arms, compassion will flow,
1:19:43
delivering love wherever I go. In this journey of life, we all
1:19:46
embark. The foundation of love begins with a spark of self acceptance and unwavering
1:19:55
care. For only then can love truly be shared, and that's that piece
1:20:01
that I like him. Ah Well, I included that in the Soundly Hurt
1:20:14
Hurt No More series Finding Love with this particular book, and it is a
1:20:20
part of a mental health series that we did because a lot of times,
1:20:26
you know, we go through stuff and we deal with stuff and we don't
1:20:30
find the forgiveness. We don't. We we hold a lot of stuff in
1:20:36
and during the joint journey we lose hope, We lose hope and a lot
1:20:43
of stuff. And then when we lose hope, we we forget how to
1:20:46
love and we forget how to allow people to love us. So in this
1:20:51
book, I want to share that you know, no matter what we go
1:20:57
through, if we hold on, we can on wavering love because you know,
1:21:03
that's one of the things that I think that you know, he wants
1:21:08
us to walk in, you know, because you know, we love is
1:21:12
an action word and we move an action. So yeah, right, So
1:21:16
that's that piece and I want to share that. So I want to share
1:21:18
that while y'all think of something else that y'all can share. I hope y'all
1:21:24
ready, because tonight is about y'all sharing y'all. Y'all voice and y'all words.
1:21:29
But you know, I throw a little bit in there every now and
1:21:31
then. But it's about y'all and people being able to connect with you,
1:21:35
y'all. Yes, I want people to know who y'all are, so ms
1:21:41
mart saying you have something else for us? Yes I do, So we're
1:21:47
ready. This poet is called morphed secret identity. Who am I? I've
1:21:56
morphed? I've changed only for him. I've taken on his likes and his
1:22:00
dislikes. But I wonder does he know mine? I'm morphed. I've changed
1:22:08
my friends even noticed. I'm not the same, my personality, my looks,
1:22:14
my glow. I've changed something beautiful in my mind. But to the
1:22:18
people on the outside looking in, I've morphed into something new but strange.
1:22:25
The people say, he too is to blame. My identity snuffed taken away.
1:22:31
The true me has to be hidden away, morphed away, conforming to
1:22:36
thoughts, ideology placed by him. The people on the outside simply state,
1:22:43
you're not taking the time to realize that if you have to morph for the
1:22:47
person you are with, they're not the correct choice for you, not worth
1:22:51
your time. I've silently analyzed taking the advice in slowly realizing the words are
1:22:59
true, because the question is with he morph for you? Wow? Wow,
1:23:08
that's deep. That's deep. But that's so true because a lot of
1:23:15
time we find ourselves changing for our mates and we get out and trying to
1:23:25
change for our mate and we lose ourselves. We lose ourselves. And that
1:23:31
that's deep. That is deep. Wow wow yeah wow Morphed? All right
1:23:44
now somebody said Morphed all right now wow that yeah, yeah, So go
1:23:54
ahead, because I want you to talk about that more. Well, I
1:23:58
want you to give me some some some backlight, some background on that poem.
1:24:03
Okay, that poem was inspired through conversations with my girlfriends, because I
1:24:11
mean a man or a woman can more. Let me preface that, but
1:24:15
majority of the time, we as women change, we change and take on
1:24:18
the identity of who we're with. And so I was talking to one of
1:24:24
my girlfriends, a couple of girlfriends, and we have a friend that whoever
1:24:29
she's with, she's changes, she's fishing, she's swimming, you know,
1:24:33
she's doing stuff to meet his identity, but yet she hasn't found herself.
1:24:39
So my point of the point is, you know, whether it's a male
1:24:43
or female, think about it. Are they meeting you halfway where you don't
1:24:47
have to change yourself Because if you can't change, but if you have to
1:24:50
change and they don't accept who you are as a person, that's not that's
1:24:56
really not love. No, that's not love because if someone loves you,
1:25:00
they accept you for with your flaws. You're good and you're bad. Because
1:25:04
that's what love really is. It encompasses all the good and the bad.
1:25:10
So if you have to change and hideaway, think about it because a lot
1:25:14
of times your family and friends notice the changes before you, you know,
1:25:17
before you do, and by the time you realize that you've morphed, as
1:25:23
I say, you know, you're all the way down that rabbit hole,
1:25:28
right, So that that's really what is what inspired it, you know,
1:25:31
And that can be, like I said, for a man or a woman,
1:25:34
because men can change too trying to please a woman, you know.
1:25:41
So it's just yes, I got that because I see it all the time,
1:25:45
you know, like when you start doing that right a new girl like
1:25:56
I don't have cousins. I don't have Look, I don't have male cousins.
1:26:00
Yes, brothers that have done it right, Yeah, they accept stuff
1:26:05
that they normally wouldn't except because they want to be with her. Yeah,
1:26:10
I've I've seen both sides of the spectrum. Yep. Yes, this.
1:26:16
I love for us to be able to have these these these these these come
1:26:20
together and these little opportunities because we can really break down and give people an
1:26:26
opportunity to to see what they're gonna be getting out of our brands and out
1:26:31
of these books when they purchased these books. Like you're dealing with relationships,
1:26:38
you're dealing with step issues, You're dealing with a lot of different stuff.
1:26:43
Like I've heard so much like Wow, we're gonna let shape and then we're
1:26:49
coming back to you like we got time. Oh yeah, we got time.
1:26:56
We got we got time. We're not going nowhere to the next come
1:27:01
on all right. This one is called Don't Turn On South from a race
1:27:14
of people bought and sold from a country not sure what the hell they were
1:27:18
thinking, people held against their will and forced into slave ships and said set
1:27:25
out to a foreign land that was stolen also that was also stolen from a
1:27:30
race not their own, forced to work, beating into submission, rape mained,
1:27:38
selling mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters to the highest business,
1:27:42
not caring about ruin in our family. They have been ripping apart black families
1:27:47
long before the government housing. Don't be daffed. We all know better than
1:27:53
that shit. Pay attention to the livelihoods of stolen black neighborhoods beating up and
1:28:01
burned down. Let's not forget all the lives they stolen, every single victim
1:28:06
of their brutality, the blatant disregard for Black values and Black lives. And
1:28:14
then they'll lock us all, lock us up, stealing our time when we
1:28:18
take to the streets and protest, screaming Black lives matter, stealing opportunities to
1:28:26
be confrontational. Then go and cry for the cameras when you get smacked with
1:28:32
that same confrontational energy you brought into the room, Stop sing wis shit.
1:28:42
Don't get so offended by Black lives matter. It is not to say we
1:28:47
matter more than other people. We also don't matter any less than them.
1:28:54
There's no one there's no one man above the other. And you, you
1:29:00
with your coarse hand, your bronze skin, walking with that gun in your
1:29:03
pants, looking for trouble. You I know better than the others. While
1:29:09
you making every black man that you meet your enemy the goal. Haven't you
1:29:15
seen enough of that? Haven't you worried enough of your own having balloon releases,
1:29:20
candle lights and parents and agony screaming over a close casting wins? Enough
1:29:28
enough? Stop selling yourself short? All right? Wow? So what was
1:29:40
the charge behind that? Well, it was a lot. It was a
1:29:47
lot. It was just like a lot of men like me and a few
1:29:55
of my friends, was having a home a conversation about like when all the
1:30:01
students and the killings and stuff was going on, and people just really quick
1:30:11
to play victim a lot a lot of times. You just saw a lot
1:30:15
of people playing victim. And then it's like when you go in certain neighborhoods
1:30:18
or whatever, it's like you see them walking around, they fighting, and
1:30:29
you know, this person got a gun or that person got a gun or
1:30:31
whatever what have you. You know what I'm saying. And it's just like,
1:30:35
at what point do y'all get enough of this? Like y'all ain't buried
1:30:40
enough people yet? Like when do you say that's okay, let me stop,
1:30:45
let me go take care of my kids or go see my mam muslin.
1:30:48
You know what I'm saying, it's just like people just it's just like
1:30:53
they didn't want to see nothing positive. Understand your words. When you're gonna
1:31:01
know your value when you when yourself. You know what I'm saying as a
1:31:09
pole like, you gotta value you before you expect somebody else to. If
1:31:12
you not bringing no value to your own life, why you think somebody else
1:31:16
will? You gotta gotta play. You know what I'm saying. You gotta
1:31:19
do better, to be better, to do better, do better, to
1:31:23
be better, to have it to come. That's saying, go, but
1:31:25
you gotta do that to be that right. But if you're not doing what
1:31:30
you gotta do and then you're screaming in the streets about that, they got
1:31:36
to get. They have to get put themselves in a position to where they
1:31:40
can see we've learned a lot of this stuff is learned, and it keep
1:31:45
getting danced down from generation to generation. You know, this is what I'm
1:31:53
gonna say, dude, this is what you know. And and if you
1:31:56
come from those families, what you do what they tell you to do,
1:32:00
and not what they do. What they tell you to do is what you
1:32:03
do. So what you do what they say in the house, you know,
1:32:06
don't go outside the house. So whatever happened, he'll stay here.
1:32:11
And a lot of us walking around here with trauma, a lot of us
1:32:15
walking around with trauma that we don't really know what we're dealing with because a
1:32:18
lot of it happened to us in our non consciousness when we was young,
1:32:23
stuff that we can't remember. We knew it happened, we kind of experienced
1:32:27
it, but because you were young, you you didn't really remember it all.
1:32:31
Because now that you've grown and you start developing, start learning stuff,
1:32:35
and then you can block some of that stuff out, but still it's back
1:32:39
there, it's behind you, and it's just ready to come out in any
1:32:45
given opportunity. You know. That's that trauma, and that's that's that stuff
1:32:49
that you know they try to brush under the rug and they want to give
1:32:53
you a pill for, or they want to label you crazy for, they
1:32:55
want to put you they want to you know, do our kind of stuff
1:32:59
to us as brown people, you know, but just be crazy and just
1:33:05
being able to like speak to people Like now, I'm seeing so many people
1:33:15
writing that I never would even imagine writing books, you know, I'm seeing
1:33:20
a lot of people being able to, you know, say okay, I'm
1:33:25
gonna I'm gonna put this on paper. I'm gonna put this down because somebody
1:33:29
needs don't care what walk of life they've come from, that something in their
1:33:32
life, their experiences can help somebody else. And I tell you, poetry
1:33:40
has been that outlet for a lot of people. Has been that outlet.
1:33:45
A lot of people have given people opportunities that may not have have stepped out.
1:33:51
You know, because I listened to these open mic contests when when they
1:33:58
are just spitting and they having these these slams, and they're just going back
1:34:02
and forth and people expressing of their childhood and how they grew up and things
1:34:09
that they've experienced, like it's just amazing. Like I again, I have
1:34:14
to thank you guys for just coming on here and sharing and just allowing people
1:34:20
to tap into your words because words speak, and people just don't know how
1:34:29
powerful words are and how your words can change. They can change life,
1:34:38
they can change your situations, it can change things. And people just staying
1:34:43
that, like, Wow, I want to hear some more. So we're
1:34:46
gonna bring miss Martine up and and and allaha, get your piece read to
1:34:51
shame, Get your piece ready, Miss Martine. You'll turn again, y'all.
1:34:56
We got some time, we got about Look, we got over twenty
1:34:59
minutes. So oh that's good. I'm armed, I'm ready. So this
1:35:06
one I'll share. It's called Devil's reflection. The devil's reflection is always in
1:35:13
your eyes. Who is it you despise? Fix what's inside, Make yourself
1:35:18
whole. Don't let the devil own your soul. See, the devil is
1:35:24
tricky. Remember he was God's right hand man. He loved playing and protected
1:35:30
God until he fell. He fell long and hard from grace, lost his
1:35:35
place. So now he tries to own anyone who will open up and be
1:35:41
owned. Lost soul, desperately seeking someone in a plight that can't be undone,
1:35:48
steady falling, and he's calling to you. Get him out of your
1:35:54
soul. Make yourself whole. You still have time to reconcile and rise.
1:36:00
Leave that devil behind. So wow wow, So yeah, So that one,
1:36:17
That one was written because people have a lot of vices that they deal
1:36:23
with and they're and and they're always around, and people are unaware of daily
1:36:28
vices. It could be specifically that was written because someone that was dealing with
1:36:35
a drug problem that was in a hospital and his mother at his foot of
1:36:43
his bed, crying, why are you doing this? You know what I'm
1:36:47
saying, get out of that. You let the devil have a grip on
1:36:53
you, right, And a lot of people do that, and I call
1:36:56
the devil anything that's that's holding you from what you're doing. It be money,
1:37:00
it could be drugs, it could be another person you know in a
1:37:02
relationship that's holding you back, that's hindering you. So I'm sorry, I'm
1:37:10
trying not to get this one is just like it really cuts. It's deep
1:37:13
to me, right, it cuts, because yeah, that's the double owning
1:37:17
you. Just like you know, a lot of people don't like to acknowledge
1:37:20
that there's a Lucifer, Saintan or whatever you may call him, but he's
1:37:24
there because it's like it's a god above, it's a it's a double blow.
1:37:28
And so you know what I'm saying, behind he is very he's real.
1:37:39
We know that he's very rare. And I tell you, yeah,
1:37:42
I definitely can't relate to what you're saying. And I'm over here. I
1:37:47
get to y'all, but I'm gonna try not to cry. But I get
1:37:51
sentimental too because I remember having a cousin was dealing with battling with this drug
1:38:00
issue, you know, and I would I would be praying for him.
1:38:06
And I remember having conversations with their parents, and you know, they saying
1:38:14
that they don't see the prayer work. And you know, they don't see
1:38:15
the prayer work. And I say, well, God's time, and is
1:38:18
God's timing? And I say, I can pray all day. I said,
1:38:20
but until God get ready to move, I said, it's not gonna
1:38:24
happen. But now what God has done, you know it took a minute.
1:38:29
He don't always move on our time. But we got to be willing
1:38:31
to take those steps. I allow those negatives because we have that power.
1:38:35
If we speak positive, positive would happen. But if we're always speaking,
1:38:41
if we were just making room for that thing to come on in. But
1:38:44
then you got there speaking, we have negative to you. Yes, we
1:38:50
be positive, be positive because guess what he said over in Proverbs twenty one.
1:38:56
We got well, we got the power up, we got eighteen.
1:39:00
We got the power of life and death in our tongue. So I mean
1:39:04
we got the power to speak that thing. We can speak it into we
1:39:09
can speak it into fruition. But if we speak it negatived those negative things.
1:39:14
Now I'm telling you we can serve those negative things. But I I'm
1:39:17
grateful because you know, everybody may not go to church, and everybody may
1:39:24
not open a bible and read their Bible, but they can pick up these
1:39:29
poetry. They can pick up these these poems and they can be blessed because
1:39:33
it's a lot of what has transpired throughout this show has been based on your
1:39:41
spirit and your wholeness and in your body. Like the last the last three
1:39:46
poets, I mean it just about everything was was was about spirit and and
1:39:51
about the creator and and and just being able to share because everybody ain't picking
1:39:59
right and everybody ain't going in the church. You know a lot of people
1:40:02
feel a lot of different ways about religion right now, you know, so
1:40:06
we having to get it. We're having it. You know, people don't
1:40:10
understand when he's saying we should do greater works. Guess what these are?
1:40:13
The greater works? These are these, these are the greater works. Because
1:40:19
he knew what we was going need. He knew everything about us, so
1:40:21
he knew that it was gonna be a follow way. It was gonna be
1:40:25
a following the way of the church. But how do you keep people connected
1:40:28
to him? Because it's not about the church. Because at the end of
1:40:30
the day, we are the church. The people are the church. And
1:40:34
we forget that, you know, we forget that. We talked about some
1:40:38
buildings, were talking about these buildings that people be going to that ain't no
1:40:41
church. When they realize that they gonna, man, they'll be blessed,
1:40:46
they'll be blessed. But it ain't about me, y'all. I'm gonna not
1:40:49
the way Shay. It's your turn, girl, it's your turn. The
1:40:56
next one that I'm reading is it's tit of cess and here goes. I
1:41:03
have wept in the wee hours of the night, sighing into my memory foam
1:41:08
pillow for the shortness of sight, wrestling with the thoughts to take flight,
1:41:15
thinking that someone else's needs had made me blind. Maybe I'm losing my mind.
1:41:21
But nonetheless I've never felt a tinge of regret and a kind gesture,
1:41:28
never letting bad moods faster the warmert smell may melt. The cold is hard
1:41:33
like butter given a sense of serenity like no other different flowers around you.
1:41:42
Cultivating your garden with loving kindness. Make plans for the future as if happiness
1:41:48
were all there ever was all. The bad days will get better and the
1:41:54
good days will be back soon. Don't give up before or giving yourself time
1:42:00
to start. It's okay to follow your heart. We tend to allow people
1:42:06
who let us down to fester in our minds. Although our time on theirs
1:42:12
has passed. We try to make it last. But that start a new
1:42:26
find solidarity you'll have You'll you'll find someone who keep their word, just like
1:42:33
you kept yours. Can y'all hear me? Yes? Allow you allow them
1:42:41
to show you differently. Open your mind, let it melt your heart,
1:42:45
and embrace the new start. Uh need to see what may come of it.
1:43:00
I mean it just may be a hit. What if is the only
1:43:04
way to short circuit our self fulfilling prophecies of glowming dome each time after another
1:43:13
meeting, become let each time after another meeting, becomes less fearful of what
1:43:21
if and more comfortable with what is knowing. The purpose is to do this
1:43:29
for our kids. It doesn't matter that others have denied you. Make sure
1:43:41
that you don't give up on yourself. Have affirmation of self and the thoughts
1:43:45
of those that don't matter, won't matter. Listen to a higher power for
1:43:50
strength, hope, and guidance. What's stopping you from making plans and taking
1:43:55
risks except the fact that our character defects, fears, actions, and defenses
1:44:00
were all constructed before adulthood. Learning who we are takes time, and so
1:44:08
the sifting out the ship that will defeat you and remain detrimental to your health
1:44:13
while keeping some bits of yourself worth leave behind talks to situations and relationships because
1:44:19
self carrying all at all selfish, it's essential to your survival. The new
1:44:26
user rival. Wow. Wow, I'm telling y'all, so, y'all we're
1:44:35
gonna do. Don't bring up a little commercial real quick, y'all, and
1:44:41
then we're gonna come right back, and then we're gonna close. But I
1:44:45
won't before we close, y'all. I want y'all to share how people can
1:44:49
connect with y'all, because, like, I really want people to be able
1:44:54
to connect with y'all, because y'all, I know they're gonna be one like
1:44:57
what can I get? What can I get? This? Like really like
1:45:00
y'all gonna drop some stuff tonight, like and and and and and some people
1:45:05
need to hear this, and and and they need to tap into this because
1:45:10
like I said earlier, you know, we all a lot of stuff don't
1:45:15
happen out in this world. Life be happening. That that's what the children
1:45:17
saying now, like life be happening, So be happening. Then, you
1:45:24
know, we're trying to keep up with what's going on, and we're trying
1:45:27
to draw these kids. We're trying to you know, we want to share.
1:45:29
Like I I know that if these books got into the right hands and
1:45:33
and the parents, you know, if if people could really see that some
1:45:40
of this stuff. Look, maybe I need to look at me. Maybe
1:45:43
I need to maybe I need to go in here and sit down and check
1:45:46
me out and see what I know. You know what I know straight what
1:45:51
I don't messed up, you know what I'm saying. So like a lot
1:45:56
of this it's reflection. And that's look. Let me bring her on up
1:46:00
here because that's the name of her book, right, that's right, perfection
1:46:08
It Just imagine going through the book and just reading those poems and just having
1:46:16
a reflection of yourself just pop up. You You come across this poem and
1:46:20
you read this poem and then you're like, oh, wow, I went
1:46:24
through that. It is an opportunity like this this, We well be being
1:46:29
transparent in these books. Y'all like that that, You like, Wow,
1:46:34
I didn't know she was going through that. I didn't know she expend right.
1:46:41
Yeah, that's when when they pick up these books they be like wow,
1:46:45
oh wait, no, I didn't know who's going through that. Like
1:46:49
yeah, So y'all, we're gonna we're gonna be right back and y'all be
1:46:53
ready to share how people can connect with y'all. And then if y'all have
1:46:56
something that y'all want to, you know, share with the people before we
1:47:00
leave, this is gonna be your opportunity before we go into the next group.
1:47:04
Okay, so let's go to this brief in a mission. It's gonna
1:47:09
be brief, y'all. It's gonna be real quick. How about seventeen seconds,
1:47:12
y'all be ready. Aspiring Authors Magazine is a founding sponsor for doc Crew
1:47:16
podcast. Get featured inside the magazine and allow your voice to be heard around
1:47:21
the world. Aspiring Authors Magazine is an international magazine founded in May of twenty
1:47:27
twenty by Queen Angela Get featured, so it was quick, quick, Queen
1:47:38
Angela is that's me, y'all. That's me, that's me. That's me.
1:47:42
I am the visionary here of the Crew podcast. And I tell y'all,
1:47:45
I just like to have fun. I just like to provide a atmosphere
1:47:48
where you can be yourself and allow you the opportunity to share. I'm not
1:47:55
one of those professional podcasters. I may be there on one of the other
1:47:59
networks now my host now, I can't tell you now. They they are
1:48:03
some professional people that they like to be professional, but hey, the visionary
1:48:08
I ain't got to be professional. I I I play around. So we
1:48:12
be playing that what we be doing like they say they be lifing, We
1:48:15
be playing over here. I be playing over here because I like to have
1:48:18
fun, y'all, and I like for people to see that side of me,
1:48:21
not all the time. You got to see that that that professional person
1:48:27
that's always trying to, you know, be professional behind the scene, that's
1:48:30
not me. So we're back. We're back, Lechee. How can we
1:48:35
connect with you? How can we support the things that you have coming up?
1:48:39
And if there's something that you want the people to know on tonight,
1:48:42
please share that You can always connect with me on on Instagram Leche Underscore the
1:48:55
Underscore Author, Underscore Writer. It's my Instagram handle on Facebook, my Facebook
1:49:02
page is a Little Black Beauty l I L B l a Q Beauty b
1:49:06
e a U T y and my email if you want to email me Lesha
1:49:16
dot the dot author dot writer at gmail dot com. That's my email address.
1:49:25
And be looking out for us in the Chicago, Illinois, Indiana area
1:49:32
this summer for our book Xpo coming up that we are I'm very happy to
1:49:41
host and be a part of this year for the first time with Queen Angela
1:49:45
here. I know this is gonna be a super exciting event and we're gonna
1:49:51
have some of some great vendors there, some great authors there, some great
1:49:59
speakers there, and it's gonna be an all around great event to come out,
1:50:02
meet people, do some networking and get to know some of the authors
1:50:11
and get to hear some great poetry and listen to some some great people speak
1:50:21
for sharing. Hey, it's Martine, Hi, Well, okay to reach
1:50:29
out to me, you can follow me on Facebook under my name Martini M.
1:50:34
Dot Moore. TikTok is Martine M. Dot more No Marsine dot m
1:50:41
Moore. I'm simple and on Instagram. It's at that real miss m Z
1:50:47
Moore and I have a linked tree under Marsine Martine Moore and my books can
1:50:55
be found. That's Reflections Rising and Phoenix Hert They're on Barnes and Noble and
1:51:02
to I have a book signing tomorrow with the doc which when you come to
1:51:09
Dallas, miss Angela will be will be at the Dock May May seventeen,
1:51:15
and then she and then May eighteenth, I will be with her at the
1:51:20
book tour in x FO. So please come out to Dallas. If you're
1:51:26
here, come out if you're if your local, come see me tomorrow at
1:51:30
the Dock. I'll be there from one to five. If not, come
1:51:32
catch me with Miss Angela May eighteenth at the AA L A A l A
1:51:40
C Book Tour and x FO. Did I get right? Yes? Yes,
1:51:46
I can't wait for you to go. Y'all got to be authors and
1:51:49
vendors. So yeah. And the one the expo from I can't wait.
1:51:58
I can't either. And my my email if you want to email me anything
1:52:02
is I Marcee them more at gmail dot com. So yeah, that's that's
1:52:10
that's all I have. I have a book coming out, a real book
1:52:13
book coming out, so yes, wow, wow, yes. And the
1:52:21
book for Chicago and the book Expo for Chicago and Indiana will be June twelfth,
1:52:35
June fourteen, fourteenth, and fifteen, fourteenth and fifteenth. I had
1:52:41
to make sure I threw that out there because I didn't say today I can
1:52:46
go okay, I but yeah, June fourteenth and fifteenth, we're going to
1:52:55
be in the Chicago, Indiana area. I'm excited about that. August we're
1:53:00
headed out to California. We're headed out to Angela's area. So then we're
1:53:05
gonna be headed back to South Carolina. We're gonna be back in my home
1:53:10
state. Of course, we're gonna be holding it down in Columbia Charleston.
1:53:14
Not sure where we're gonna be Columbia, h Charleston. We're still working on
1:53:19
Raleigh. I'm waiting to hear back from Raleigh and possibly Memphis, Tennessee.
1:53:27
So y'all, we we got a lot in the works. So just be
1:53:30
looking around and stay connected. I say stay connected. If you don't stay
1:53:33
connected to me, stay connected to some of these authors that's coming across this
1:53:38
platform. Y'all that that that's that's most important. If you don't stay connected
1:53:42
to me, stay connected to these authors that's coming across and sharing their brands,
1:53:47
go make sure you follow them when y'all jump off here. Make sure
1:53:50
y'all post y'all links so that people can connect with you guys and support the
1:53:56
things that you're doing. Again, I thank you guys for stopping by and
1:53:59
sharing with me on tonight, because y'all could have chose to be anywhere,
1:54:02
but y'all chose to be here tonight with me sharing. So thank you,
1:54:05
thank you, thank you, And I prayed that y'all this blessing you.
1:54:10
Y'all have thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you for having
1:54:15
me. Y'all have a good night too. We continue, it continues,
1:54:23
will stop. Y'all know the enemy he been busy, but he don't get
1:54:26
no victory here. He don't get no victory he gets. I tell you,
1:54:31
mister boy, she's been on the whole night. I tell you,
1:54:33
she she been on the whole night. I'm gonna go home and bring her
1:54:36
own up in the studio because she's been hanging around all night. She been
1:54:41
ready, she been ready, y'all and we have the poorous of the year.
1:54:45
We have the poort this of the year representing as fired Arsic magazine in
1:54:49
the building, y'all. She's in the building. She's in the building,
1:54:53
y'all. I want to thank everybody that's been hanging out with me tonight,
1:54:56
that's been hanging on, that's been hanging out, that's been hanging out.
1:55:00
Tell you, I truly have joy what has taken place, and I don't
1:55:04
expect this hour to be less than what has taken place throughout tonight. So
1:55:10
I'm gonna move them out the way, because y'all know I'll get the talking,
1:55:12
and that's not what it's about. I want to allow these amazing queens,
1:55:15
these poetists to tell us a little bit about themselves. And I'm gonna
1:55:19
start with Miss Doubleys, because y'all, she's been hanging out, she's been
1:55:23
hanging out with me all night. Go ahead, Naby introduce yourself. Hello,
1:55:28
everybody. Gratitude for being here, Gratitude for this platform and just the
1:55:32
network of all this black excellence in the room. I just want to thank
1:55:36
you guys so much for allowing me to be a part and to share.
1:55:41
Keep doing what you're doing. Queen, this is amazing and I can see
1:55:44
why you are the visionary for the Crew podcast. So blessings to you.
1:55:49
My name is Katy Hughes, aka the Voice, and I bring you greetings
1:55:55
from Jackson, Mississippi. So I always say I'm a Cali girl with a
1:56:00
sippy swag. So I was born and raised in Cali, but I am
1:56:03
a poet. I also am the owner and founder of Artist Streets LLC along
1:56:09
with the co host a co founder, Andre Blau, and we created that
1:56:14
platform in twenty twenty during COVID when everybody was virtual, everybody was at home,
1:56:18
so it was a perfect time to launch because it gave the people the
1:56:24
vibe of being outside while we was inside quarantine. But that platform allowed for
1:56:30
us to continue to get to know the people in our neighborhood who have evolved
1:56:34
into artists and started following their dreams and really putting themselves out there using their
1:56:40
God given gifts. So we've been blessed to also have heard interviews where we
1:56:45
could sit down and talk with them, where your feature Poet of Year Melanie
1:56:49
Johnson, has also been featured on our show, heard interviews and singers and
1:56:58
just what other business that we might come into contact with people who have small
1:57:03
local businesses, black owned. We use their products for giveaways on the show.
1:57:08
So it has allowed us to come around full circle and just be a
1:57:12
blessing while being blessed at the same time. Wow, that's amazing, and
1:57:16
thank you for being a boy and for all that you're doing. Wow.
1:57:20
Thank you and thank you of us tonight and sharing. Patrice, if you
1:57:28
would please introduce yourself. So, my name is Patrice and I am from
1:57:34
Chelsea, South Carolina. I am the host of sc Book Gals and Friends
1:57:41
and it is one of the members of the Crew podcast. What else can
1:57:46
I say? All Right? I am an author. I haven't routed the
1:57:50
full book. I put some points in some books, but I got something
1:57:55
in the works with a friend of mine, we got something coming up.
1:57:59
I'm a book reviewer. I'm now starting to promote books. So my world
1:58:05
is books. My show is about bringing authors and readers together and making those
1:58:13
connections. Every Saturday night, APM, see me tomorrow. Got another show?
1:58:19
I am. I do a review column for Aspiring Office Magazine. I've
1:58:25
been working at the library for nineteen years. Yeah, I got all kinds
1:58:30
of stuff going on. Over here. Wow. Well, thank you for
1:58:38
joining us tonight and being a part of the showcase. Miss Melanie. Wow.
1:58:44
Everyone, I could a book about her, but I'm gonna let her.
1:58:49
I'm gonna let her do that. I'm gonna let her do that.
1:58:54
Well, you know I'm not good at this part. Angela Queen, thank
1:58:58
you for inviting me on. I got a chance to meet Angela for the
1:59:02
first time when we were all part of a monologue, a virtual monologue,
1:59:10
and it was amazing to just work with you and to be a part of
1:59:15
that project and to see your spirit come out of you. And that's why
1:59:19
I knew that I was in the right place when I connected with you on
1:59:24
Facebook. And my name is Melanie Johnson. They also call me the Voice,
1:59:29
but that is my sister right there. Her voice is not only does
1:59:33
she have a voice for the people, but just to hear her sing,
1:59:35
because I don't even think that y'all heard a singing yet, but her singing
1:59:40
is amazing. But I don't know what to say about me. I just
1:59:45
do whatever I can to help people. I'm an educator, I'm a poet,
1:59:49
I'm a photographer, I'm a publisher, I'm an author, and anything
1:59:55
else I can do to help people. I'm a motivational speaker and I just
2:00:00
I allowed God to let me use my voice to help people. About five
2:00:08
six years ago, I had a cousin who was found murdered and I had
2:00:15
come from a domestic violence situation and I got out and she didn't. And
2:00:21
my aunt told me, she said, I think if you would have talked
2:00:27
to her, then she might still be here. And that day I said,
2:00:31
my silence can be deadly. So I vowed to tell the Lord that
2:00:36
I want to use my voice to be the voice of someone who can't speak
2:00:40
for themselves, because that was me one day. So I try to use
2:00:45
every platform I can, everything I can do to just get the awareness out
2:00:48
there that you don't have to be in the situation you in anything that you
2:00:53
can name. I've been there, suicide, depression, domestic abuse, I've
2:00:59
been there and God God brought me through. So I'm like a walking testimony.
2:01:02
So whenever I can do that, I just I just praise God and
2:01:05
give him the glory because I couldn't be here if it wasn't for him.
2:01:10
But thank you, thank you once again for me to share this platform.
2:01:15
Wow. But y'all. That was the voice of our twenty twenty for for
2:01:21
this of the year. So you will definitely be seeing a lot of her
2:01:27
throughout the Spiring Author's magazine. And she don't know, but I might just
2:01:32
put it on the spot tonight. But there's a spot on the Crew podcast
2:01:38
just waiting for you if you, if you are willing to take it.
2:01:42
It is one mon one Friday a night. I don't know if you are
2:01:48
obligated on Friday, but it's one Friday a month and it's the second Friday
2:01:54
a month that you would be able to take over if you want. It's
2:01:58
yours. It's yours to allow your poetry and your voice to speak as you
2:02:03
represent us for a Poetess of the Year. So I've been meaning to email
2:02:10
you, but oftentimes sometime I get caught up in stuff and then I say
2:02:14
I'm gonna do this, and now it'd be two three weeks later, but
2:02:16
I'll get to it. But I just I couldn't allow this moment to pass
2:02:21
without you know the knowledge and that and and letting you know that that is
2:02:25
available. So no pressure, no pressure, no pressure at all, but
2:02:30
know that it is available for you if you want it, But y'all will
2:02:38
move on along with this. This, of course is open mic night,
2:02:43
and this is the opportunity for you poets to be able to share your pieces,
2:02:47
to be able to share what represents you on tonight. So I'm gonna
2:02:51
turn it over to you guys and allow you to flow how you would like
2:02:56
to flow. So if you would, after you share your piece, you
2:03:00
want to, you know, talk a little bit about your piece, why
2:03:01
you wrote that piece, and tell a little bit about that piece, you're
2:03:04
more than welcome to. And look, it may not be like any other
2:03:09
open mic competition or whatever, open mic showcase or whatever, but it's about
2:03:15
y'all and about y'all being able to share. So that's just what the flyer
2:03:18
said. But hey, it's about y'all tonight. It's about your poetry,
2:03:21
about your brand and your voice. So of course I'm starting with the voice.
2:03:27
And if you want to sing a little bit, you can. The
2:03:30
floor is yours and we're gonna my way. It's yours. Huh huh,
2:03:45
thank you, thank you so much. So the first piece I am sharing,
2:03:49
it's called writer and I expelled it as in right w R, I
2:03:57
T E and her They call me a poet, but I say I'm just
2:04:02
a writer. Well not just a writer, but you got to write her.
2:04:08
I am the epitome of all she was and has yet to be,
2:04:11
becoming, constantly growing and ever knowing that it's in my best interest to be
2:04:15
about my father's business because he knows the plans that he has for me.
2:04:19
So I don't mind the dirt on my name, because see, I am
2:04:21
the seed planted, allowing myself to be deeply rooted in my gifts. I
2:04:28
searched for my reflection in the mirror and found his image fearfully and wonderfully made,
2:04:32
yet still a mess. But when I surrendered my all to Christ,
2:04:36
my setbacks became wins, blessed, but not without any stress, because like
2:04:42
you, I get tempted and sometimes I feel pressed. Yet in Him there's
2:04:45
grace extended. So I pass test. Of course, Satan gonna try me,
2:04:50
because see, I've got a calling all my life. That's why I
2:04:53
won't settle for the friends with benefits hype, because I'll evolved into the Proverbs
2:04:57
thirty one prototype wife. Yes, weapons still may form, but they'll never
2:05:02
prosper. And even when I fall short of his glory. It doesn't change
2:05:06
who I am daughter. There's no need to physically fight. This is a
2:05:11
spiritual thing. So I learned to slay those giants from my knees, praying.
2:05:16
Friends may leave, but grace and mercy will follow me. So I
2:05:20
encourage myself and choose to believe the better days are coming. I let go
2:05:25
of the doubts and step into my calling, so I can see myself there
2:05:28
before my timing faith walking. Now I meditate from a place of gratitude,
2:05:32
adjusting my crown as many times as it takes to soften my attitude. And
2:05:36
because I understood the assignment, I know it all works together for my good.
2:05:41
Call it divine alignment. So when my own strength is failing, I
2:05:45
know the gods are still prevailing. So I lean not into my own understanding,
2:05:50
but I cling to His word that says touch not my anointed, and
2:05:54
do my servant no harm. I can rest on his promises without ever seeing
2:05:59
his plans, because I trust God's heart even when I can't see his hands.
2:06:06
And so that piece was just a reflection of everything that I am,
2:06:18
everything I was, and everything I've yet to become. So acknowledging the growth
2:06:25
giving myself credit, extending compassion to myself, and the same grace that God
2:06:30
has already given me. Because it's a journey. It is a journey.
2:06:34
Faith walk is not easy, right, It's not straight and narrow. We
2:06:41
refer to it as such, the straight and narrow way, But it's not
2:06:43
straight and narrow. There are some cricket paths, there are some detours,
2:06:45
there are some roadblocks where God says, no, not this way, this
2:06:49
way, and then you find yourself having those real challenges of questioning your faith
2:06:57
and questioning your belief and questioning everything you were taught and raised and asking where
2:07:01
is God in all of this? And so I chose to write because that's
2:07:09
what I am, a writer, and I am the writer, which means
2:07:13
everything is for my own good. Right, everything that's happening in my life
2:07:19
is not happening to me, it's happening for me. So I had to
2:07:23
shift my perspective so that I could change the narrative and take ownership of it
2:07:27
and find the power within it. Right, because in all struggles there's also
2:07:30
strength. And see, I would have never known that. I would have
2:07:32
never seen that if I hadn't had those setbacks, if I hadn't had that
2:07:40
what you call it slingshot experience where I'm pulled back so many steps ahead and
2:07:45
I'm yet so many steps far back. But it's really just a slingshot experience,
2:07:48
right, So I can launch forward and move forward and project further along
2:07:54
than I was. If I got so distracted on where I was and how
2:07:59
long I have been there, I would have never made it to where I
2:08:03
am right now, nor would I be focused on where I'm going. I
2:08:07
had to trust that no matter where I am right, God is there,
2:08:11
and no matter where I'm headed, He's already there. Right. My father
2:08:15
used to say, God rest his soul, don't worry about tomorrow. God
2:08:18
is already there. And so it's just the comfort in knowing that our gifts
2:08:22
are purposed for a purpose, and that we have this thing called divine alignment.
2:08:28
So meeting people and networking with them is not just for the awe of
2:08:35
it, all right, and like oh you do this and you do this.
2:08:37
No, no, no, And so we can come together in alignment,
2:08:39
in agreement, right, and still be about our father's business. Yeah.
2:08:45
And so that's why I extend the utmost gratitude for you and just seeing
2:08:50
how it's all connected because I recognize the faces even on this platform. I'm
2:08:54
grateful to Mike again, my brother, who put me on and just introduced
2:08:58
me to Angela and then I didn't even know Melanie had already knew it.
2:09:03
Just the Lord was already working. He was already working. And so I'm
2:09:07
just grateful, and I hope that our platforms continue to give people the opportunity,
2:09:11
like you said, to use their voices, because our voices matter,
2:09:16
and the things that we write about, like I write from experience, I
2:09:18
write from things that I've been through or going through because that's somebody's truth as
2:09:24
well. But I thank God for the ability to not look like what I've
2:09:31
been through, and I'm able to write it in a way that it resonates
2:09:33
with people. To show proof. Right, the Bible says to test or
2:09:39
to taste and see that the Lord is good. Right, So that test
2:09:41
that you're trying the Lord and testing him at his word to see right,
2:09:48
if he's going to show you, show himself approved and show you approved that,
2:09:52
yes, if you follow and study me, I'll show you better than
2:09:56
I told you who you were in me who you were. And yeah,
2:10:01
and so I wasn't always this way. I can tell you that from just
2:10:07
being honest. I wasn't always this way. Music was my first love,
2:10:11
singing, and I thought that's where I had to stay in order to keep
2:10:16
it safe. And then the Lord showed me like, nah, you're a
2:10:20
writer, you're a teacher, and you're gonna teach these young people how to
2:10:26
use their voice and speak their truth and walking their purpose. And so I'm
2:10:33
here now really owning that space and being open to people who allowed me to
2:10:39
share that space with them, and I've been blessed as far the Lord don't
2:10:43
disappoint. Wow. Wow, Wow, that's amazing, Like that is so
2:10:52
amazing. Like I'm in tears over here, but I'm gonna move home because
2:10:56
what you just said, like this is what I say say all the time.
2:11:01
And Patsea I saw over there doing all her emotions. I saw her
2:11:05
because what everything that you said, baby, And I say this all the
2:11:09
time. You know, this world is yet so big but so small because
2:11:15
you know, God know what we need, when we needed, how we
2:11:16
needed, and when we gonna need it, and He's already aligned it.
2:11:20
He said it in Jerby twenty nine and the eleven he declared it. In
2:11:22
this word he said it. He said, I got a plan for you.
2:11:26
He said, to prosper us, not to harm us, for to
2:11:28
have good health, hope in a future. He declared that. So guess
2:11:35
what, he declared that it has to come to pass. It's us God,
2:11:37
we have to align with that that he had already ordained for us,
2:11:41
because it's already out there, just like you say, just like your daddy
2:11:43
used to tell you, he's already in tomorrow because guess what, tomorrow I'm
2:11:48
gonna get here. You always gonna be in the now, baby, You
2:11:50
always gonna be in the now. So you're gonna have to deal with now.
2:11:52
Don't worry about tomorrow like you're daddy say, because it's gonna take care
2:11:56
of itself. He already promised us that in the word anyway. He told
2:12:00
us that. But yeah, God works in mysterious ways. He don't work
2:12:03
in mysterious ways. It may seem like mysterious ways to us, and it
2:12:07
may seem like, you know, it's just far fettered or whatever the case
2:12:09
may be, but he's always working. And yeah, he do that like
2:12:13
he would bring people together because he know what's needed for just that time.
2:12:20
You know, people voted for these individuals to be Melanie was voted in,
2:12:26
so people saw something in her. They they saw something in her and for
2:12:33
her to be here. You know a lot of people will say that I
2:12:39
had something to do with it, but no I didn't. People voted.
2:12:41
They saw it. I mean they saw the thousands of people that voted for
2:12:45
this young lady and was sharing her stuff and and and there. I just
2:12:50
want to be obedient, and that is to allow these platforms just like this,
2:12:56
to allow people to know that they have a voice and that you don't
2:13:00
have to be in no way. No, you won't have to be no
2:13:01
particular way to show up. All you got to do is show up.
2:13:05
Because he said over there ain't no Bible scholar. Now, don't get me
2:13:09
confused. I don't know a lot of I know a little bit. I
2:13:13
just know it's a little bit experienced from what I known been through. But
2:13:15
he says, somewhere over there in Exodus, he say, if you just
2:13:18
be willing, if you open your mouth, he said, he will give
2:13:20
you. He will tell you what to say. He's fad for you.
2:13:22
You'll get the talking, and you it'll be your your sound coming out.
2:13:26
But it's all him. But you just got to be willing. But see,
2:13:31
some of us, we won't move. Opportunity prevails, but we won't
2:13:35
move is always an excuse. But he don't have no excuse. Excuse us
2:13:39
for that competent. If you're not incompetent, you don't need to be trying
2:13:41
to come up with nothing. Let me move on, lock the way.
2:13:46
I don't wanna take up your time because this is about y'all. Because I'm
2:13:48
telling you, some people need to hear that. Somebody needed to hear that.
2:13:52
Baby, that that what you just that that word that you just spoke
2:13:56
through that poem. Somebody needed to hear that tonight. So thank you for
2:14:01
being obedient, thank you for reaching out, thank you for allowing God to
2:14:05
use you and to bring that fourthin you for truth. You're up, baby,
2:14:11
you next, it's mainly get ready, get ready? Wow? Oh
2:14:18
wow, that's that's wow. So I'm I'm not a writer, and my
2:14:28
writings start because of paint. You can tell me three years ago that my
2:14:35
world was the best thing ever. You can tell me that. You can
2:14:39
tell me I was on this natural high. But lo on my hold,
2:14:45
it was just a facade that someone pulled over me. So I was going
2:14:50
through a real it's real dark places. And so my poem is called d
2:14:56
I d a Diva And this poem was really a conversation with myself, like
2:15:03
okay, you gotta find yourself. You don't, you can't stay in this
2:15:07
pain. Okay, So it says, hey girl, where have you been?
2:15:11
I'm so glad I'm able to see you again. You are lost for
2:15:16
a moment, so understand by what everything going on. But look at you
2:15:20
now, d I b A is all I can say. Your skin is
2:15:24
clear, your smile is bright. I see you and the Father finally had
2:15:28
that long conversation you've been avoiding. But look at you now, d Iva
2:15:33
is all I can say. You finally see what the Father has placed you.
2:15:37
Yes, I understand you have. It was a lot to go through.
2:15:41
But always remember the Father had you trust and believe he saw every frown,
2:15:46
he saw every tear and on the other to whisper in your ear that
2:15:52
I'm here. Plenty of times you will not listen. Then they think he
2:15:56
was near. But look at you now, d Ida is all I can
2:16:01
say. Walking to power that he is placing you walking past, the hurting,
2:16:05
the pain, and finding new love in yourself for yourself DDA is all
2:16:13
I can say. I wrote that poem one night when I was I was
2:16:22
at a wall. I had placed my heart in a relationship, been through
2:16:26
so much with it, just to have it gone. And when I say
2:16:33
gone, I mean just like that. But it's funny because God used that
2:16:41
person to put me in so many terms where I am right now to say,
2:16:48
you know what, check you got this, I got you so what
2:16:50
you're worrying about. You've been had all this in you, but you're helping
2:16:56
somebody else out. And I had to bring out in you also, so
2:17:01
and she could tell you me doing this right here was never happening. And
2:17:07
I remember when she came to me and I was like, uh uh,
2:17:11
I ain't trying to do talk to who on a computer? No, I
2:17:15
ain't trying to hear that, but just me listening and listening to God and
2:17:20
say, you know what, I can't. I'm tired, I'm hurt,
2:17:24
this is pain. I've known this person for all these years growing up and
2:17:28
now I'm here empty handed because I don't give it all the way. And
2:17:33
he filled my cup up y'all. And when I say Phil, he overfilled
2:17:37
it. This past week, I was in a room with a bunch of
2:17:45
African American liberians, y'all. Me little on me. I'm a specialist.
2:17:52
I'm not. I don't even have a degree. But I'm sitting When he
2:17:56
said he's gonna make a seat at the table for you, he made that
2:18:00
seat, He created the whole table. I had to call Angela. I
2:18:05
did what was the voicemail I did or some voice sex that I sent Angela.
2:18:09
I was like, I can't believe this, Like I went through this
2:18:13
and he knew what he was doing. He said, I got to toughen
2:18:16
you up. He was a little too soft, you a little bit too
2:18:20
timid. So now I look forward to these Saturday nights. I look forward
2:18:22
to these conversations with God. Be like, okay, God, we were
2:18:26
gonna talk about today, you know. And to see my daughter look at
2:18:31
me and say, Mommy, I'm proud of you. This is the same
2:18:35
little girl who saw the tears that I cried when I was going through my
2:18:39
divorce. And it's like three years and now I'm here. You knew what
2:18:45
you were doing, You knew exactly what you were doing. You know exactly
2:18:50
what you've been doing. So I sit here and I tell him keep on.
2:18:56
So I see his blessings upon my kids, upon my job, upon
2:19:07
my son, like we were walking in blessings. And I told God,
2:19:13
please, don't ever take me from here. If you're gonna make me uncomfortable,
2:19:16
make it easy, which I knew you were gonna make it easy.
2:19:18
But come on, let me enjoy this for a little while before that next
2:19:20
you know, storm come along, because they're gonna come. They are going
2:19:24
to come, y'all, as God as our witness, the storms are gonna
2:19:28
come. But I asked God, come man, let me enjoy this for
2:19:30
a little while. This this, this feels good. Let me let me
2:19:33
buff up my man fou, and then you can bring the next one and
2:19:35
then we can slay it together. But where I am right now is so
2:19:39
beautiful, and I thank God because he knew what he was doing. So
2:19:45
yeah, all right, I'm stopped getting emotions because y'all about to cry.
2:19:50
Wow. And I just have to say something because this young lady about it
2:20:00
years about two years ago, I begged her to write a poem. I
2:20:05
I I had to like force her. I literally had to force this,
2:20:11
Like, she skipped on me, y'all. And she's into the books,
2:20:16
but she skipped on me in the middle book, y'all. So she's not
2:20:18
in the middle books, so she skipped out on me. So I literally
2:20:22
had to out of her comfort zone. See, that's how I tell people.
2:20:28
Don't come around me and and let me see that you got something,
2:20:33
because you don't get don't You don't gave me a to to see past all
2:20:41
that that that that fleshy stuff that you got going on. He don't gave
2:20:43
me an eye to see past that, because I ain't seeing that. I'm
2:20:48
seeing what's on. I'm seeing them gifts them gift is that he said he
2:20:50
don't give, y'all. He said he gave. He gave us gifts,
2:20:56
y'all. He gave us gifts and talent. And guess what he gave him
2:21:03
to us to use. He ain't gave him to us to sit on.
2:21:09
He gave him to us to walk around with with with our shoulders stuck,
2:21:13
our chests stuck out, and and and to be looking down on folks.
2:21:16
Anybody getting to y'all. He gave it to us to to help uplift somebody
2:21:22
and to share his goodness, y'all, because guess what that that you've been
2:21:26
through, guess what somebody else went through it too. They got over there,
2:21:31
they overcame. He had, he hung on the crowd for us,
2:21:35
y'all. What he bore in his hand, the God hands for us,
2:21:41
so that, y'all, we can have the right to not even have to
2:21:45
go through half of the stuff that we put upon ourselves. Yeah, a
2:21:48
lot of this stuff we we we put upon ourselves. When we have the
2:21:52
power. He's given us the power. How you better know that breath that
2:21:56
he breathed into you Jenison two and seven. Yeah, that right there when
2:22:00
he stepped down. Yeah, he brings that into you. That's that's life.
2:22:03
You didn't need no you didn't need no along to wake up this morning.
2:22:07
You didn't need nobody to come tap you and wake you up. He
2:22:09
did that. He did that, and just as he would woke you up
2:22:13
this morning, because he extended that grace in that mercy, that that talent
2:22:16
that you got, that thing that you sitting down on, because see somebody
2:22:20
out there, and I'm gonna have to say that somebody out there that was
2:22:22
supposed to be on here tonight because they had books, they had stuff that
2:22:28
God has put in them that they were supposed to share. And this was
2:22:33
supposed to be in the platform, but you chose not to. Why you
2:22:37
sitting on you ain't sitting on me, baby, You sitting on the one
2:22:41
that created you, the one that put it in you. That's why I
2:22:43
keep we better stop picking and choosing, because what somebody donna say, you
2:22:48
better find out if that's what you're supposed to be for yourself and stop worrying
2:22:54
about the next person. I'm telling y'all, y'all, I'd better get that.
2:23:00
But y'all, I don't move on out the way because y'all know,
2:23:01
I'll go somewhere else, like I don't know what it be, but it
2:23:05
just gets on me sometime and I don't know, y'all, But I'm gonna
2:23:09
move on out the way because this this next one, y'all. Y'all think
2:23:15
that first one, y'all, that that that that that woke you up.
2:23:18
I'm telling you, y'all shook something. I just imagine what the next round
2:23:22
gonna be. But this one right him, y'all, I can just imagine.
2:23:26
I can just imagine because y'all she said. We was in a monologue
2:23:31
together. We were. We did a monologue together, a virtual monologue,
2:23:35
a play, y'all. I don't have to call this lady name. I
2:23:39
don't have to be mean to this lady. I don't have the old y'all.
2:23:43
I don't, y'all, I don't have to be mean to her a
2:23:46
part of that play. I didn't want to do it like I used to
2:23:50
be, Like, is you okay? I got y'all. I had to
2:23:54
be to her. I had to call her name. But God tell you,
2:24:03
Tarita too. Charita had to to so I ain't by myself, y'all.
2:24:07
She had to do Chareda had to do it too. But y'all did
2:24:11
it in love. We did it. Other people. We did it other
2:24:16
people that had it happened. But because it happens, look at her now,
2:24:20
look at her now, because y'all, y'all don't understand that a lot
2:24:24
of stuff that that that that that we prayed in this monologue, y'all,
2:24:30
it happened in our lives. Indeed, y'all, this this this happened going
2:24:35
through this like okay, As we were training and practicing for this play,
2:24:43
I lost my cousin and that thing rich my soul, y'all, because it
2:24:48
was unexpressed that it was something, and that just shook me. It's my
2:24:56
part of the play was about our sister Cheryl. Her part of the play
2:25:03
was about getting a diagnosis. She was gonna get diagnosed with cancer of the
2:25:11
lead. But yet, y'all, she ended up getting diagnosed with breast cancer.
2:25:16
In real life, every trial and tribulation we endured in that monologue,
2:25:22
y'all, happened in our lives. Yes, but yet we did. But
2:25:28
yet we are Yeah, we are yet. Yeah. See, everything happened
2:25:35
for a reason. God bring us all together for a reason, because he
2:25:37
knew we were gonna need to pull on each other, and we were gonna
2:25:39
need to share these stories with somebody else because what we overcome by hearing the
2:25:43
testimony. And if you don't share it, how can somebody here? Aymen,
2:25:48
let me move on that way. Melanie up your turn now, Cater
2:25:58
You know I'm a crier, so if i'll see me wiping tears, yeah,
2:26:01
yeah, y'all already know this poem. I wrote it because it's based
2:26:11
on my experience being a domestic abuse survivor, and I wanted to share it
2:26:18
live on Caterroos platform once, but I had another prior previous engagement, so
2:26:24
I recorded it. But I wanted to do this one tonight because it embodies
2:26:30
what a woman like me had to go through. And I wanted others to
2:26:35
know that they're not alone in this plight. And it's entitled the Light in
2:26:39
Darkness, Let there be light. That's what I was waiting for, hoping
2:26:46
for. I could take no more darkness. I lost my fight, I
2:26:52
lost my sight. No, I was not all right. I wanted it
2:26:58
to end, no longer to pretend that I was just fine. I wanted
2:27:03
to breathe again, not just shallow deep. I could not keep sucking wind.
2:27:13
I wanted to just sleep without weeping. Yet these thoughts were seeping into
2:27:20
my mind. But why couldn't the light just creep in and show me there
2:27:26
was hope? Before I felt like I couldn't hope anymore. Wait, I
2:27:31
see a door, But I'm stuck to this floor in a paralyzed state,
2:27:39
paralyzed by the fear, paralyzed by the pain, paralyzed by the unknown.
2:27:45
But what would I gain from leaving this life? Wait through the door,
2:27:52
I see a light in the deep darkness, it shine so bright, I
2:27:56
can't let go. I fight in spite of the fact that my own actions
2:28:01
put me here, regurgitating pills that could have ended me, and act so
2:28:07
severe for a wish to just disappear of what turned out to be a mere
2:28:11
catalyst for the rebirth of me, A woman previously bound who fought to be
2:28:18
free, who laid all the pain aside to experience when she could not seek
2:28:24
a life of unknown opportunity, no longer afraid to live and unafraid to die,
2:28:31
now confidently able to search for her while all because she desired to endure
2:28:37
the pain. Influenced by her mentor and supporters, a healthy mindset she did
2:28:41
obtain and vowed to remain faithful to the one who loved her truth, the
2:28:48
one she barely knew. But through this light she began to view as powerful,
2:28:54
knowledgeable, and courageous too, because she made it through what many couldn't
2:29:01
do, and strives every day to begin anew with love, kindness, and
2:29:07
a clear sense of who she is to be a woman who loves herself,
2:29:13
a woman who loves life and vows to live it unapologetically. Thank you now
2:29:26
that piece I wrote from the pain of being a domestic abuse survivor, and
2:29:37
I was remembering the last time, not the only time, but the last
2:29:41
time I attempted to take my life by taking pills, and it was I
2:29:50
wasn't supposed to be here. It was only me there in that house with
2:29:56
a dog, and I laid there and planned it that way because at the
2:30:01
time my husband wasn't supposed to show up for about three days later. So
2:30:07
I planned it that way. But God had a different plan. So I
2:30:13
wanted this poem to remind people others out there who are thinking the same thing.
2:30:20
Our plan is not our God's plan. His way is not our way.
2:30:24
Sometimes life can look so bad and you can say I'm never gonna get
2:30:31
out of this, and you feel like you can't have you don't have anyone
2:30:35
you can talk to, reach out. Don't be afraid to talk. It
2:30:39
is not your fault. Don't blame yourself for the situation you're in. Because
2:30:46
my thing was I kept hearing in my head. You made your bed hard,
2:30:50
you kind of lay in it. God said, no, bring it
2:30:54
to me, come to me. I got you, and he put people
2:30:58
in my life that had me. And you're looking at a person that couldn't
2:31:03
look themselves in the mirror about eight years ago. But God has saw a
2:31:07
fit now that not only can I look at myself in the mirror. I've
2:31:13
written books, I've written poetry. I've been on podcasts, and I'm actually
2:31:22
using my voice and my image to help build others up because there was a
2:31:26
time when I needed someone to build me up. And we have a habit
2:31:33
of keeping silent because we don't want people to think bad of us. Nobody's
2:31:37
gonna think bad of you. Reach out, don't suffer in silence. You
2:31:41
cannot do this alone. God sent us here as testaments for each other.
2:31:48
So speak. Let your voice be heard because you don't know who needs to
2:31:54
hear what you have to say. And I'm gonna stop because I'm crying out.
2:32:00
I try to do my makeup, but it's gonna be gone by the
2:32:01
end of the night. But I just I thank everybody. I want to
2:32:07
say this. I think everybody who voted for me, because I never and
2:32:11
you you'll see my article in the April edition. The first words of my
2:32:18
article is I'm not a poet, because that's what I told C. T.
2:32:22
Miller, who told me I was a poet and who pushed me to
2:32:26
write some poetry. I told I said, I'm not a poet. He
2:32:30
said, you just don't know what yet, Yes you are. So I
2:32:33
just like to thank him, Katery, all of you guys for pushing me,
2:32:37
supporting me, voting, everybody who voted for me. Thank you because
2:32:41
I asked God to put me in situations that I normally wouldn't be in so
2:32:46
that I can help somebody else. And if my poetry can help somebody,
2:32:48
God knows, I'm going to share it. So thank you guys so much.
2:32:56
Wow, Nelly, I just I just have to chime in right here,
2:32:58
because I remember when you said that we inspire you. And I remember
2:33:03
when I did my poem broken Records Still Spin, and you turned around and
2:33:09
wrote broken Mirrors Still Reflect and I was just in awe. I said,
2:33:13
look at this poet that say she not a poet? My God today,
2:33:22
Yes, I was so inspired by that. I wrote a journal and needle
2:33:26
right there. Everybody knows I am knowing pull out my phone and taking pictures
2:33:31
of books. Got you girl, And this is actually a journal has portraying
2:33:37
it, but it has pages for you to write. But I was so
2:33:41
inspired by her peace. Broken records still spin and it just resonated with me.
2:33:46
And I thought about those broken records and I felt broken at the time.
2:33:50
So I was like, you know what, I can't even look at
2:33:52
my own image because it's broken. But you know what, those broken images
2:33:56
show the full version of me. I just can't focus on those. So
2:34:00
that's why I wrote that piece. And yeah, I was gonna remind you
2:34:03
of that. Thank you for bringing it to my rememory. Wow Wow,
2:34:11
that's that's that's that's amazing. Like I'm just sitting here listening to all of
2:34:16
y'all, just different pieces and just like wow, wow, wow, because
2:34:31
a lot of time, like I got a three book series over here,
2:34:35
soundly hurting inside, hurting no more, you know, because we we we
2:34:41
hurt inside, and we hold it in and we think that nobody else is
2:34:46
going through what we're going through. But I, like you, I refuse
2:34:50
to hurt in silence anymore. I refuse to be embarrassed by the things that
2:35:01
I had go through to make me who I am today, Like I had
2:35:05
to go through that domestic violence, or I couldn't tell nobody about my experience
2:35:11
because somebody's going through just what I went through. But if I not going
2:35:15
through it, I couldn't tell nobody. I can't tell nobody how I tried
2:35:18
to end my life. If I not going through suicide, I wouldn't have
2:35:22
been able to tap into the other twenty people that rolle in that suicide awareness
2:35:26
book. If I had not been able, if I had not experienced these
2:35:31
things. You know, we sometime we go through these experiences and we think
2:35:35
that it's it's always the enemy him, it's always the enemy at us.
2:35:41
But sometimes God got to allow us to go through these things to build that
2:35:46
character that we say we got or we won't. He had to allow us
2:35:52
to go through these things. But guess what he said. He will never
2:35:54
He was not gonna leave us no safeer. So guess what while we're going
2:35:58
through and he right that way up? Look at them footprints in the sand.
2:36:03
About them time when you thought you was alone you only saw when you
2:36:07
only saw one set of footprints, Guess what the other one? Guess Guess
2:36:11
who footprints they was? They wasn't yours because you wouldn't carry yourself. Humh,
2:36:18
I'm telling you He always know what we need and how we needed,
2:36:22
and he would always send the right person. See, No, you may
2:36:24
not thought that that you you you, you you are a a I say,
2:36:28
a wordsmith, a words person, because you may not. You may
2:36:35
not have the rhyme. You may not have the flow, because I'm telling
2:36:37
you I'm not. I'm not a I used to say I'm not a poet,
2:36:41
but I guess I am a poet. I got poetry, y'all,
2:36:43
so I'm a poet. And I said, now I'm a poet. Yeah,
2:36:48
I say something. I'm a poet. I may not rhyme like you.
2:36:52
I may not have that flow. I ain't no spoken word artists.
2:36:56
I can tell you. I ain't finn allwed about that. I ain't even
2:36:58
the step out there in that water, because that water is another hole.
2:37:01
You got to be ready for that. I'm talking about. You got to
2:37:05
be on your p's and q's, and I tell you got to be a
2:37:07
special person for that, because you got to be able to feel that in
2:37:09
order to fort to flow away. By she was doing when she first come
2:37:13
on here, showing out. But I know she was just being horse.
2:37:15
She wasn't showing out, she was just being hark. But that's what I
2:37:18
say, showing out because she was on point with it, you know what
2:37:20
I'm saying, And she just showed up and he showed out. Humh.
2:37:24
So it is what it is. But you got to be in a special
2:37:28
place for that. But for you guys to just allow God to use words
2:37:33
to speak and be that voice, I thank y'all for that, because y'all
2:37:39
could have chose to do any other thing like she said she did music.
2:37:43
She could have chose to put that in some lyrics and put it in a
2:37:46
song, but she decided to put it in poetry for that person that may
2:37:52
not that may not you know, listen to music, or that person that
2:37:58
needs this because these are these greater works that he talks about. That that's
2:38:03
what y'all are doing. And y'all allow those gifts to come for So I
2:38:07
thank y'all. And and those pieces like I'm gonna need the I'm gonna need
2:38:13
some copies. So I don't know what y'all wanna have to do to get
2:38:16
me some of that. If they in books, then I guess I'm just
2:38:18
gonna have to buy the book, but I need to. I need some
2:38:22
of those pieces. I got Diva, I already got that, but I
2:38:26
need that first piece you spoke. We finished fit some more, so y'all
2:38:30
get ready, but some of these pieces. I need some of these pieces,
2:38:31
y'all, because not only that I want to hear them, to hear
2:38:35
tonight, I want to be able to share them like I can put them
2:38:37
in on the blog, I can put them in that in that magazine like
2:38:41
I don't mind sharing. And that's one thing you gonna know. I don't
2:38:46
mind sharing, y'all. Ready, y'all, ready, y'all, all ready,
2:38:50
we ain't gonna do no commercial. We ain't got I'm a commercial,
2:38:52
y'all. So if you wait for a commercial, they your commercial. We
2:38:54
ain't got no more commercials. I want to hear you. I want to
2:38:58
hear the words. So we're gonna go back up here to the boys,
2:39:01
and we about to let her fit y'all about y'all be ready? Come on,
2:39:03
come on, come on, all right, so let's share another piece.
2:39:18
But before I do, I'm gonna give you a little snippet of music
2:39:22
since y'all don't put me out there. All right, darlin N love you.
2:39:39
I think the world of you. I'm nothing with her. You,
2:39:48
Yes, your everything to me, darling N Love you, and every day
2:39:58
with you, it's more beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. We stood
2:40:18
at a distance, with even greater distance between us than we could explain.
2:40:22
Seems all that we know now is resistance and pain. I mean, we
2:40:26
sacrifice and expected to gain. We took turns casting the blame and still struggled
2:40:31
to let the past remain the past, feeling the pressure of will we last
2:40:35
and never having the courage to ask, what's it gonna take? Because See,
2:40:39
you and I have made so many mistakes and compromised on things that we
2:40:43
never thought we would. And I dreaded being more than your girlfriend because by
2:40:48
the time I'm your wife, I best be understood from moments to memories,
2:40:52
while life makes a fool of you and me. But like splattered paint,
2:40:56
we were to find the beauty and the chaos. I knew no matter how
2:41:00
I pictured us, you would never frame it. You'd wait until it's too
2:41:03
late and let someone else claim it. See, we've conquered battles together and
2:41:09
still managed to find ourselves at war. Both of us want out, but
2:41:13
no one walks away. Both of us are fed up, and yet we
2:41:16
find reasons to stay. Hmm. These issues are so deeply rooted, causing
2:41:22
you and I to constantly stay into it. You're right, I'm wrong,
2:41:26
I'm right, you're wrong, they right, We wrong, they wrong,
2:41:30
and we right. Hence, while we fuss and fight and try to balance
2:41:33
our lives between opinions, truths, and lies, change came like a thief
2:41:39
in the night, stealing our hearts with fabricated dreams, allowing us to see
2:41:43
that things are not always as it seems. But we believed it made each
2:41:48
other feel invincible to it and became the depenovity of what we thought we needed.
2:41:52
Imagine that you and I putting our love on the map, giving it
2:41:56
a location so much that we trust at each other's navigation, without ever questioning
2:42:01
the direction of this relationship. Because see, we both know how to set
2:42:05
sell, but we lack the understanding of how to anchor it. So now
2:42:09
we just afloat into our closest friends and family. We a joke, unstable
2:42:15
and unhappy, frustrated and disappointed, but we made the executive decision to move
2:42:20
forward. I mean, we acted on it with plans of being together forever,
2:42:26
without a blueprint for the hearing now dilemma. So that piece I always
2:42:35
start off with that song, which is an original song that I wrote,
2:42:37
but it's just a snippet of it's not the whole thing, but it's just
2:42:41
saying, I love you, and I feel like I'm nothing without you,
2:42:46
and every day with you is more beautiful, right, learning and growing together.
2:42:50
And that's usually how it starts, right, that infactuation pades at puppy
2:42:52
love. But then we get into the think of it, as these young
2:42:56
folks say, into the think of it, and it starts wilding, and
2:43:01
you start to question, what are we doing? What is this? Who
2:43:07
are you? Who sent you? Right? Because it shouldn't be this complicated,
2:43:13
and love isn't complicated, and love defined by the word of God show
2:43:18
enough and complicated. It's unconditional, right, it's unapologetic, it's it's in
2:43:24
good and bad times right, it's without ego. It bears all things right.
2:43:31
But a lot of us aren't in relationships with people that equate to that.
2:43:37
We settle. We settle because I saw a quote that said, you
2:43:43
settle for people, places, and things because you think that's what you deserve,
2:43:52
because you think that's what you deserve. So because we don't know we
2:43:56
deserve better we don't even realize we settling. I'm gonna let y'all let that
2:44:01
marinate. That's a whole nother word. But it was so profound to me,
2:44:07
and it made sense because, yeah, we are what we attract,
2:44:11
and so if I'm attracting hurt people, broken people, it's because there's still
2:44:15
some part of me that's unhealed. There's still some part of me that I'm
2:44:18
still growing through or haven't even acknowledged, right, And so when somebody triggers
2:44:24
you, they bring it out of you, and now you wonder why you're
2:44:26
flustered and why you keep having problems because there is two unhealed people trying to
2:44:31
be together instead of two unhealed people trying to heal and love and be loved
2:44:37
by the ultimate love, which is God. So I used to say that
2:44:41
you know, it's okay to be broken, and it is because you have
2:44:45
pieces that fit, but you also have to be mindful. There are some
2:44:48
people who are broken and they're okay with being broken and staying broken because they
2:44:50
like to cut, and they cut deeply. And so when it comes to
2:44:54
relationships, we're not asking the right questions. We're not asking what are your
2:44:58
in tensions, right, And we're just allowing people to be in our lives
2:45:03
and take up space. We're not praying with discernment and asking God is this
2:45:07
purpose? Is this person meant to be in my life? Is this my
2:45:11
person? Or do I have somebody else's person? Right? And so when
2:45:16
I wrote that dilemma, I was very symbolic about how we find the beauty
2:45:24
and the chaos, or how we you know, try to reason with ourselves
2:45:28
and say, oh, I don't know a couple that doesn't argue, or
2:45:31
I don't know a couple that's not having problems or Yes, but I also
2:45:35
say I should be worth the heaven and hell that I come with. It
2:45:39
should not be this season of drought, this season of struggle, this season
2:45:48
of looking and wondering where is God's favor and wondering if I'm still a part
2:45:52
of his will now that you are here. Yeah, So I feel like
2:45:58
that really is why a lot of our relationships don't work. It's because number
2:46:03
one, we don't love ourselves. Number two, we don't know who God
2:46:07
is, which is the ultimate love. And number three, we settle for
2:46:09
anything that we think is love because we don't know that we're settling and that
2:46:13
we deserve better and that's a problem. So therefore, the title of the
2:46:18
poem is called dilemma. The dilemma that that that I love that and yes
2:46:24
you can't sing if you can, and I love that poem. Like like
2:46:31
I'm telling the people, like y'all, y'all getting a snibbet because I know
2:46:35
that this is just a snibbet of what these amazing people can can bring to
2:46:41
the table, Like we just you're just hearing a snibbet. You ain't even
2:46:45
getting the whole effect. Like, come on, y'all got to go follow
2:46:50
them. I've been shing, I've been sharing it. How they can follow
2:46:54
you? Tell them one more time. Because I on facebo Bok Family,
2:47:01
you can find me as katore Ugh's just my name. You can also find
2:47:05
artist Streets LLC on Facebook. On Instagram you can find artist Streets and it
2:47:09
is spelled A R T I capital s T R E E t Z.
2:47:16
And then on Instagram you can find me the voice d A V O I
2:47:20
C E p Q and that's my uh name on Instagram, but on Facebook
2:47:26
it's just Kature Hughes. But artist Streets is on both Facebook and Instagram and
2:47:31
so when we have our herd interviews with different artists, poets, singers,
2:47:35
rappers, storytellers, and people who own small businesses, you'll be able to
2:47:39
see it stream live, just like you're doing here on YouTube stream yard and
2:47:43
all that. Wow, that's cool. I like that. I'm gonna have
2:47:48
to make sure I follow you guys to if I'm not following y'all, I
2:47:52
have to make sure I following you guys. I want to thank you for
2:47:56
about tonight. Patricia's you ready? You read it? You you ready?
2:48:00
You're ready? You up next, y'all. It's almost over. It's almost
2:48:03
over. I don't want to let y'all go. I don't want to let
2:48:05
y'all go, but I know y'all gotta go. I know y'all gotta go.
2:48:09
I know y'all got other stuff to do. But I truly truly appreciate
2:48:13
y'all stopping by and sharing with me tonight. I don't want this to be
2:48:16
over, but I know Fortterca y'all who looing this, this company is just
2:48:24
oh wow. Okay, So if you really know me and then you follow
2:48:31
me, you know I love erotica books. Okay, he ain't through with
2:48:37
me. Yet he understands. So this one I actually wrote for a friend
2:48:41
of mine. Like I said, I'm not a poet, I'm not an
2:48:48
author, So okay, it's called for one night. For one night,
2:48:56
I want to be in your arms. You're holding me tight, never letting
2:49:01
me go through the night. For one night. All my dreams are peaceful
2:49:05
because of you holding me in your arms just like you do for one night.
2:49:11
Your lips so so much more sweeter tonight. I wish I kiss can
2:49:16
last forever, longer than last night. It's something about to night. You
2:49:24
holding me in your arms like you do that one night is now just about
2:49:30
to night. When we first met, I never knew I would feel this
2:49:33
way. As I look into your loving eyes, I see love and the
2:49:39
love that I hope would never die. You hold me in your arms with
2:49:43
a warm embrace for one night that turned into to night, and your arms
2:49:50
is the only place I want to be. But for that, I don't
2:49:54
want that to be to night. I want that to be forever, to
2:49:58
be with the one that I lo which is you holding me in the arm
2:50:01
just like you do tonight, for one night and forever. I feel like
2:50:07
now my dream has come true. So I do like to get a saucy
2:50:15
and I am hoping that I can truly feel this love that I have.
2:50:22
But I do feel that God has love out there for me, even after
2:50:28
what I went through. But the love that God is showing me right now
2:50:31
is just way more than anything else I can get. So I'm waiting patiently,
2:50:37
but that dream will come true. So that's it. How can they
2:50:46
follow you and support you? Oh? So on Facebook, I am Patrece
2:50:54
Grumble. That's Pat and Rice and my last name grumbled. Gr I am
2:51:00
B A L L. And everything on other platforms is sc book yet there
2:51:07
too, So I am sc book y'all A four three and my group is
2:51:15
sc book yalls and friends. So follow us on TikTok, Instagram, Twitter,
2:51:22
Yes we're still on Twitter. What's the last name again? Grumble?
2:51:26
She r I M B A L L, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter,
2:51:33
YouTube. If you want to get your book review, come on over here.
2:51:39
And also I will see everybody in either charcen or Columbia when we get
2:51:46
a spot for AA L A C. So that's me. Well, thank
2:51:54
you for sharing, thank you for sharing and being transparent, because I tell
2:51:56
y'all, I had to push her. She didn't, she didn't think she
2:52:00
had anything to share, but I knew that, you know, her journey
2:52:03
and the things that she had been going through, that she needed to share,
2:52:09
you know, she needed to let somebody know that in spite of me
2:52:13
going through I'm pressing, I'm still showing up, I'm still doing you know
2:52:18
what He's purposed me to do. You know, maybe I've had a set
2:52:20
back, maybe I've had a let down, maybe I've had a disappointment,
2:52:24
but I can't allow that to stop me. Because see, sometimes we allow
2:52:28
things to stop us in the track, in our track, and then we
2:52:31
never recover from that. We keep making excuses and it just go year after
2:52:35
year after year, and then we wake up one day and then we wonder
2:52:39
how we got there, how we got there, and then we fighting to
2:52:43
get out, and then sometimes we can find our way and sometimes they don't
2:52:48
find their way. But I definitely thank her for stepping out the box.
2:52:54
I'm gonna move on out the way because Melanie got to share another piece before
2:52:58
we go. I can lead without hearing another piece for Melanie. Thank you,
2:53:05
Thank you. Now this last face going to do It's a little lengthy,
2:53:07
but one of my students asked me to share it, and when a
2:53:11
student asked me something to do something, I try to be obedient. This
2:53:15
one is entitled I Am. A name is more than a label. It
2:53:20
describes the character of you, the emotions you feel, the thoughts you have,
2:53:24
even the things you do. There's an important place on that title,
2:53:28
making it vital that you don't sit around idle, but instead do those things
2:53:33
that make you proud. To say up on your arrival, I am Harriet,
2:53:39
Harriet Tubman, conduct of the Underground Railroad. Born a slave, I
2:53:43
risk my life to escape and thirteen missions and help others find their freedom along
2:53:48
the way. Thirteen missions I helped to save, and not one life was
2:53:52
lost on either one. But saving slaves was not where I was done.
2:53:58
I work for the Union Army, from cook to nurse to spy, and
2:54:01
I wouldn't change any of it. Why because my name represents the strength of
2:54:07
a woman's sacrifice. And that's why I'm glad to say I am sojourner,
2:54:15
sojourner truth abolitionists and women's rights activists. I was slavery born, but that
2:54:20
I did not stay. Though my owner would try to have it the other
2:54:24
way. I endured harsh treatment and trading from several of them, until when
2:54:30
I fell in love with the love of my life. They tried to condemn
2:54:33
us, beating him and keeping us apart, and with a broken heart,
2:54:37
I escaped with my daughter. Having my son taken from me, I helped
2:54:43
to lead others to become free, traveling the underground railroad, helping them find
2:54:48
places to go. But I didn't stop there. Oh No. I was
2:54:52
the first black woman to win a case against the white man. Yes,
2:54:56
I sued to get my son back in home, him in my hands,
2:55:01
but that victory was not mine alone. Because my name is now well known
2:55:05
before I am Rosa Rosa Parks civil rights activists. Early in life I created
2:55:15
garments with my hands, But later I became known for taking a stand against
2:55:18
the corruptness of this land, segregating the world in black and white, indicating
2:55:22
to be right, your skin had to be light or you would suffer,
2:55:26
even without breaking the law, unless they saw an opportunity to change it,
2:55:31
rearrange it, like moving the colored signs on the bus, trying to make
2:55:35
them superior to us. Until one day I refused. You See, I
2:55:39
had heard on the news of the acquittal of the murderers of m Attill.
2:55:43
And on this day I was determined I will not move from my rightful place
2:55:48
just to make room for their race. Yes, I was tired of all
2:55:52
the mistreatment, and it shone on my face. This brave act started a
2:55:56
movement. With the Montgomery Boycott, we march for the improvement of the treatment
2:56:01
of all. And no, I wasn't the first to answer the call,
2:56:05
but together we stood and united we'd fall. So I vowed to never quit.
2:56:11
And I'm glad that on that day I decided to sit because I forever
2:56:18
will say I am Michelle Michelle Obama, former first Lady of the United States.
2:56:26
Coming from Chicago's South Side, I learned early not to let my situation
2:56:30
devalue my pride. My parents worked hard to provide for me the kind of
2:56:33
education which allowed me to think freely, working hard despite meager beginnings, meeting
2:56:39
our position that I wouldn't let alt of my position know. I was on
2:56:43
a mission to educate myself and not let this brilliant mind set on a shelf.
2:56:48
I worked hard to achieve the highest of honors in high school, college,
2:56:52
and even beyond. I did not sit back and wait to respond.
2:56:56
I went after what I wanted. Along with Barack and the city streets,
2:57:00
we pounded working for the betterment of the community. I did not know the
2:57:05
opportunity that would lie ahead. Nevertheless, I continue without dread to serve the
2:57:09
people, showing those along the way that they could achieve their dreams. No
2:57:13
matter what others might say, don't give up. Persevere to the end,
2:57:18
because one day you'll win on the world's biggest stage. Your life is remarkable.
2:57:24
You can compete, no matter the color, religion, or age.
2:57:28
I had no idea the title that would await First Lady of the United States.
2:57:33
Yes, I am Harriet, I am Sojourner, I am Rosa,
2:57:41
I am Michelle. I am you. Yes, you, just like those
2:57:48
before, you, have the ability to You can make a difference that can
2:57:52
change someone's course. Your strength and determination are formidable forces. The lives sacrifice
2:57:58
before you were there to reinforce that you can be what you want to be.
2:58:03
Live your life unapologetically free, blaze the trail for others to see themselves
2:58:09
in you, so they too can know what it's like to say hello,
2:58:15
ma'am. Allow me to introduce myself. I am thank you, and I
2:58:22
want to know when you're gonna make that into a children's book. I'm gonna
2:58:24
need you go ahead and do this. Wow, I'm like visualizing the pinges
2:58:28
as you're I'm gonna need you go ahead and make that in children's book.
2:58:31
Okay, I got you? Yes, yes, yes, yes, oh
2:58:37
my god, yeah, thank you? Wow? Everybody loving it? Well,
2:58:46
Melanie? How can people reach out and support the things that you're doing
2:58:52
and stay connected with you? All my links are on linked Tree, this
2:58:56
link n K t R dot e slash Melanie Johnson. But on Facebook you
2:59:01
can follow me using my name Melanie Johnson, and on ig I'm at Melanie
2:59:09
Johnson's Speaks. I do have other books that I wanted to show. This
2:59:16
is my poetry book. It's on Amazon. It's called Flavor of Melanie,
2:59:20
and it's my first poetry book. I'm working on the second one now,
2:59:24
so I'm trying to put it where you can get the pitch. There you
2:59:28
go. And the first book I ever wrote was entitled Womanly Wisdom, but
2:59:33
they couldn't tell me. Now, this is my book about my life as
2:59:37
a domestic abuse survivor. So just follow me on I G Facebook, connect
2:59:45
with me, look for me on linked Tree. I'm I'm on TikTok,
2:59:48
but I'm just getting started on that platform. But thank you so much for
2:59:54
this opportunity, and thank you queens for sharing your poetry, because it was
2:59:58
a beautiful for night, all of them. I've been I've been listening all
3:00:01
night and they were all beautiful. Yeah. I tell you I have truly,
3:00:07
truly been blessed to be in the midst of all of the queens that
3:00:11
have come forth on tonight. I tell you I wouldn't have it any other
3:00:15
way. And everybody being able to share how they share, and and and
3:00:20
not being feeling bad about how they share and what they're sharing, and just
3:00:26
being that boy. It's very important to be a voice. And I'm grateful
3:00:33
for poetry because I never thought I was a poet, never thought I was
3:00:37
a writer, because you're talking about a little country girl from Lovelands, South
3:00:41
Carolina, places people never heard of. One way in and one way out.
3:00:46
Never thought I would be a podcast and never thought I would be on
3:00:48
another network, never thought I would be done none of this. Four years
3:00:54
I've been podcasting, I celebrate four years on the being then next month.
3:01:01
I was the first host to hit twenty seven million over there, so y'all
3:01:05
got to come check me out. Hey, May first, y'all, I
3:01:09
was gonna be my next show, May first, I will have matter of
3:01:13
fact, this young lady is going to join us here on the Crew podcast
3:01:18
as a host. Her name is Simone Williams. Young. She's gonna be
3:01:24
joining us as a host, but she's gonna be one of my guests on
3:01:31
May first. She's gonna be stopping by. We're talking about purpose, y'all
3:01:33
know, I talk about purpose everything. Purpose is what I'm about. I
3:01:37
want to hear about your purpose and what you're doing in this world, and
3:01:41
we're gonna share it to over twenty seven million people, y'all. I'm going
3:01:48
for twenty eight for the next show. So now that means y'all got to
3:01:50
come and support me so I can get that next record, y'all. Was
3:01:54
the first host like I'm over there with my I was like, thank you
3:01:58
God, you did it. I should hold up. You told me to
3:02:01
go, so I went and you did it for me twenty seven me.
3:02:03
I was the first post on a network. The network has been in existence
3:02:07
for thirteen years. And I've only been over there four years, y'all.
3:02:11
Look at the Lord four years. I am truly when you just humble yourself
3:02:20
and just align to what God is telling you, even when you don't understand
3:02:24
and when you don't see it, if you would just be obedient, because
3:02:30
you ain't always gonna be able to trace him and you ain't always gonna be
3:02:33
able to see it, but you got the whole fast that his word is
3:02:37
true and that it's not gonna return to him void. And I'm telling you
3:02:41
I stepped out, and I believe that because I'm telling you I would have
3:02:43
been stealing that box over there, and we wouldn't be right here tonight,
3:02:46
y'all. But I let out on faith. And last year he saw fit
3:02:52
in November to allow me to get inducted into the International Internet Radio Hall of
3:02:56
Fame for broadcasting. I was named the Host of the Year, and y'all
3:03:03
ill wear that proudly because my peers, those that work amongst me, those
3:03:11
that are a part, and it's twenty one of us over there, y'all,
3:03:15
but I of twenty one host. They thought me worthy, Me me
3:03:20
somebody that don't press one all the time and get on there and talk,
3:03:24
but I be listening. They chose me that paran over that. Yeah,
3:03:33
they chose me as host of the year. So I try to show up
3:03:37
and I try to use those things that he's given me. So when he
3:03:41
dropped this in my spirit, I said, you know what I said,
3:03:43
Lord, you send those that need to be showcased on tonight and you allow
3:03:48
them to show up. And I tell you, I have truly been blessed
3:03:50
on tonight, and I know that everybody that has tuned in have been blessed.
3:03:54
So I just want to thank y'all. All. It is nine three
3:03:58
and I'm gonna in this tonight because I have had y'all on and some of
3:04:03
y'all been y'all. Some of y'all been riding the whole night. I'm talking
3:04:05
about. Y'all been on since six o'clock. And I appreciate y'all. I
3:04:09
appreciate y'all, and I just want y'all to share these queens out, share
3:04:15
their their links. And if y'all would if I missed a link, if
3:04:18
I didn't post something, if y'all would go in this thread later on and
3:04:22
post how people can connect with y'all, that's what I want to do.
3:04:26
I want people to be able to connect with y'all, and I want everybody
3:04:30
that was on here tonight to know if there's anything that I can do to
3:04:33
assist you on your journey as an author, poet, business, own or
3:04:37
whatever it is. If I can run a run a video on our podcast,
3:04:41
if I can put an ad in the magazine, whatever I can do
3:04:46
to help showcase your brand and to help people know who you are. Y'all,
3:04:48
just reach out. You know, it ain't about money. It is
3:04:52
about us doing what our part in the kingdom and the kingdom somebody out there
3:04:58
need to somebody out there need to hear and see what you got going on.
3:05:03
Again, y'all. I thank y'all. I love y'all. Anything y'all
3:05:05
want to say before we close out, I just want to say again,
3:05:09
thank you for this opportunity, Thank those who voted for me for a part
3:05:13
of the year. And I just asked that y'all continue to pray for each
3:05:18
and every one of us, that we continue to work the will that God
3:05:20
has for us in our lives. Amen. Amen, Amen, anything,
3:05:24
Patrica, Hey, I'll see you guys tomorrow night, eight o'clock. Here
3:05:28
with a new author. We just gonna chit chat it out, amen.
3:05:33
Amen. But I definitely want to thank all those that have tuned in tonight
3:05:37
all the comments. Tell y'all got to go check that thread out because y'all
3:05:43
have had some great comments. Some people have been coming. They appreciate y'all
3:05:46
just as I do. And I thank each and every listener that has tuned
3:05:50
in, that has watched, and those that's going to hear this as a
3:05:54
replay. I hope that you have been blessed by something that you have heard.
3:05:58
Go over support these amazing and queens because they are definitely doing what they
3:06:01
are called to do. Y'all have a great night, and please make sure
3:06:05
you are supporting the Crew podcast. Y'all have a good night. Good night,
3:06:11
you know,