I can't Believe It!!!!

Today, I rode with Nelson Vails, 1984 Silver Olympic Cyclist.....

Nelson Vails and Me

Yep, I sure did.....

I am in Columbus, Ohio for the National Brotherhood of Cyclists 4th Annual Major Taylor Cycling Conference.....

I did a 42 mile bike ride, today, with Nelson Vails.....

My body is tired, but my heart is happy.....

3 more days of cycling!

This is the day.....rejoice and be glad.

the Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

Quite often when someone realizes that I am a high school English teacher, he/she will ask me what books do I teach my students, and I will run down the list: Song of Solomon, The Kite Runner, Romeo and Juliet, Lord of the Flies etc. And then that person will normally tell me what they read in high school, and we will have an entire discussion on books. Quiet as it is kept, I love these conversations. (Yep, I'm a nerd!)

When I volunteered to help students at Relay for Lay, I had this lively discussion with a fellow teacher about everything under the sun, and of course we started to talk about books. This teacher told me that he really liked the Catcher in the Rye. There was no way I was going to admit that I have gone to some pretty good schools and have been teaching for a LONG time, and I had never read the Catcher in the Rye. So, I smiled at him and put the Catcher in the Rye on my list of books to read.

Well, I just finished reading the Catcher in the Rye, and I will not subject any student that I teach to this book..

Okay, Okay, Okay... I do love the classics; I really do! But, the Catcher in the Rye has no point, and I found that it might be a bit inappropriate for high school students...

The main character is Holden Caulfield, and he is a sixteen year old boy who is in a hospital or sanatorium. He tells this story of being kicked out of high school and not wanting to go home. The entire story is basically written in stream of consciousness, or Holden's random thoughts, that at times are very inappropriate for school age children. Some of these topics need to be discussed between parent and child and not student and teacher.

Life has been happening, and I have not had much time to read so it took me quite a long time to finish the Catcher in the Rye, but maybe it took me quite a long time because this book just did not hold my interest.

I am happy that I read it, because I would bet that almost every English teacher in the WORLD has read it, and now I can at least have an intellectual conversation about it, BUT it ain't my cup of tea....

J.D. Salinger (1919-2010)

My next read is Annie John by Jamaica Kincaid! 

Wish me luck this time.... 

I Woke Up Super Excited This Morning,

Mom waiting on me to pick her up!

and I dropped my mom off at her exercise class, and I went back to her house to delight myself in this joy.

With age, I am learning that serving others really does bring me a lot of joy...

This week, I have been serving my mother, and it has caused my happiness and energy levels to go to the sky.. My happiness and energy levels are already high, but you should see me now...

I have been dropping her off for her exercise classes, taking her to her doctor's appointment, cooking, running errands, shopping, relaxing, and getting a little exercise in for myself AND......

Seems like this would make me tired right? But, actually it invigorates me.

What an honor it is to serve!!!!

I wonder if this is how parents feel? (Hmmmmmmm)

Mom with her new dress!

On another note, I've been thinking a lot about my biking trip that is coming up next week, and I can not contain the joy. I am traveling to Columbus, Ohio to participate in a biking summit that is being put on by The National Brotherhood of Cyclist. I love to bike hard and do it with other people, and that is exactly what I am going to do next week. I am having a tough time containing the joy. (Thankful, Thankful, Thankful to always have something to look forward to.)

This summer is going better than I ever planned, and I can't contain the excitement...

I'm super excited this morning, and I hope that you are too!

What I Know For Sure Thursday: Karma Is Not Mysterious.....

This past school year, my seniors and I talked a lot about Karma. In one of our conversations, and finally, after 40 plus years of living on this earth, it dawned that Karma Is Not Mysterious.....

Actually, Karma is quite simple, and it goes something like this..Whatever you put into the world, comes right back to you.

If you smile at someone, that person will normally smile back at you...

If you frown at someone, that person will normally frown back at you...

If you are a giver, people will give to you....

If you share, people will share with you....

You get the point?

Oprah once said that we are responsible for what we bring into a room. I love people, and I love to laugh, and this is what I normally bring into a room, and I normally get it back.

Last weekend for my sororities national convention, I stayed in the hotel room with three friends. We would go to bed around 3 or 4 each morning. You know that it is difficult for me to sleep late, plus I was excited about celebrating 100 years of sisterhood and service, so I would wake everyone up around 8:30 full of joy. Because we all went to Tuskegee, one morning, I played our favorite TU song, and of course everyone woke up laughing and talking about how silly I am...KARMA.

I know people who appear hostile and never smile, and they wonder why no one ever speaks to them as they walk the streets, or why people never ask them to go to lunch at work, or why unpleasant things happen to them.....KARMA

I use to go to McDonald's every morning for a cup of coffee before I got the revelation about artificial sweeteners, and I never realized that I did not speak or smile at the people who were working at McDonald's and fixing my coffee in a timely fashion. (You Know Sometimes It's Not Personal, but We are In Our Own World.) Well, one day the worker at McDonald's let me have it. She asked why I never spoke or smiled, and I wondered why when I asked for more napkins or asked for anything else, they would have an attitude....KARMA

I love the favor of God, and I know that the favor of God is all about KARMA!

Recently, I heard my brother-in-law, Pastor Rex Ricks, preach about getting rid of toxic people from our lives. When I need to release someone from my life, I will reach out less or limit my conversations, and guess what? KARMA steps in. The people that I need to release normally give me exactly what I give out; they start to reach out less and limit their conversations with me... KARMA!

It took me quite awhile to understand KARMA, but now I think that I finally have it.

This Thursday, I know for sure that KARMA is not mysterious; it's really simple...

Ohhhhh Child, with age, things are really starting to get easier!

God Is Merciful.......

Life is going to get even better; I am going to have even better days???

I love that man called God, who sent his son named Jesus, so that we can always have soooo much more to look forward to.

God is Merciful!

Enjoy this Wednesday...

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated was "TURNT UP!"

If you were anywhere near the Washington DC area around July 10th thru the 17th, then you know that the ladies of Delta Sigma Theta were "TURNT UP!"...

I have been hearing this new slang term, "TURNT UP" a lot lately, and I like it. From the way that I have heard it used, "TURNT UP" means your stove is on high and the water is boiling over; it is "TURNT UP." Or, when a kid has eaten a lot of candy; that kid may be running around acting crazy; that kid is "TURNT UP!" Or, you know that friend or cousin who comes into a room and everyone knows that person is in the room, because he/she is extremely loud; that friend or cousin is "TURNT UP!"

Well, for our National Convention which happened to be held during our centennial year of sisterhood and service, Delta Sigma Theta was "TURNT UP!"

Almost every plane that came into the area's airport was filled with Delta women literally. The Deltas had the airports "TURNT UP!"

I believe that this plane was coming from Jackson, Mississippi.

We "TURNT UP" DC by having a portion of a street named after us...

We "TURNT UP" the convention center with Red and White day after day....

We "TURNT UP" the sorority even more by inducting some phenomenal honorary members....

WE "TURNT UP" The White House by meeting with The President of The United States in the Oval Office.....

You had to see for yourself how we "TURNT UP" The National Mall....

We 'TURNT UP" the campus of Howard University, where we were founded, by having a stained glass window dedicated on the University's campus.....

Stained windowpane in the background!

WE "TURNT UP" The King Memorial; the ladies in Red and White were all over it....

OH yea, and we "TURNT UP" the streets of DC...Red and White was everywhere......

ALL of those events were "TURNT UP," but we also "TURNT UP" Sisterhood....

The entire time, I was "TURNT UP!"

And you know what?

I am sooooo happy to be alive for "Such a Time as This," BECAUSE.......

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated was "TURNT UP!"

Everyone Wants To Be Heard....

My Neighbors and Friends: Jerry and Ed Bernier

We all want to tell our stories, and we all want people to listen.

Being heard is a basic survival instinct, and most of us want and need to survive.

In response to my post titled We Must Be Allowed To Tell Our Own Stories, my neighbor and friend, Ed, wrote this poem:

"Ed's Tale"

based on a poem by Nikki Giovanni

titled "Nikki-Rosa"

childhood remembrances are always a drag   

if you’re from a French family in a valley full of Scandinavians, Selah, WA

you always remember things like living in Selah 

with no inside toilet (yes we didn't have an inside toilet until 1944, 5 years after my father finished building the 16' x 32' wood frame house using lumber from an old house he dismantled on our property, and we were 5 kids and 2 parents.) We heated in the winter with a pot-bellied wood stove in the linoleum-floored living room and cooked on an ancient wood-fired kitchen range.

and if you become famous or something

they never talk about how happy you were to have   

your mother, father, brothers, and sisters

all to yourself and

how good the water felt when you got your bath   

from one of those

corrugated iron tubs that Mom put down on the kitchen floor and filled tea kettle by tea kettle so we three boys could bathe each Saturday night.   

and somehow when you talk about home   

it never gets across how much you

understood their feelings

as the whole extended family of grand parents, 8 uncles, 3 aunts, mother and father, and we five kids got together at least once a year

and even though you remember

your biographers never understand

your father’s pain as his father and 9 sons lost everything in the depression and he had to go to work for the WPA at 12 Cents an hour plus a bag of flour once a week, but he didn't give up on his dream and neither did we.

Yes, we were taunted for being poor, and often left out of things other kids did because we didn't have any "party" clothes, just simple cotton coveralls, one pair of shoes per year, and maybe a couple of cotton shirts your mother sewed together using empty flour sacks (yes, that happened)

And though you were  poor it was not poverty that

concerned you, nor was the fact that your father was out of work for months on end. What made a difference was that your grandfather, grandmother, 8 uncles and 3 aunts, plus your parents and sisters

and your brothers at Christmas got together once a year at Christmas.  Though not once in your childhood did you have a "birthday party, your mother baked a soggy chocolate cake for the occasion, and Uncle Maurice and Uncle Sidney stopped by and gave you a $1.00 bill and said, "Don't spend it all in one place."and I really hope nobody ever has cause   

to write about me

because they never understand

what it means to be brought up poor, no, poverty-stricken yet to succeed in live beyond any childhood expectation, being happy all the while.

My neighbor and friend, Ed, I hear you!

Everyone Wants To Be Heard......

We Must Be Allowed To Tell Our Own Stories

Today, in this country, with its terrible history of mistreating people of color, OUR African American President of The United States Of America, spoke about being African American in American. (Epic Moment!) I listened to him, and he got it right.....

I really think that you have to be African American in the US in order to know what it is like to be African American in the US. I have always wanted people to understand this extra weight, called Black in America, that we carry around. And rest assured that is a weight that I carry with honor, because it makes me stronger, and I would not trade it for anything. But, to hear The President of The United States say that he knows how it feels to be racially profiled, because it has happened to him, speaks volumes. I hope the world was listening as he spoke about the Trayvon Martin verdict and being Black in America. (We finally have a leader who knows this walk!)

After listening to The President, I listened to Nikki Giovanni recite her poetry on CD, and I must share this poem "Nikki-Rosa," because I think that it is quite appropriate right now:

Nikki-Rosa

BY NIKKI GIOVANNI

childhood remembrances are always a drag   

if you’re Black

you always remember things like living in Woodlawn   

with no inside toilet

and if you become famous or something

they never talk about how happy you were to have   

your mother

all to yourself and

how good the water felt when you got your bath   

from one of those

big tubs that folk in chicago barbecue in   

and somehow when you talk about home   

it never gets across how much you

understood their feelings

as the whole family attended meetings about Hollydale

and even though you remember

your biographers never understand

your father’s pain as he sells his stock   

and another dream goes

And though you’re poor it isn’t poverty that

concerns you

and though they fought a lot

it isn’t your father’s drinking that makes any difference   

but only that everybody is together and you

and your sister have happy birthdays and very good   

Christmases

and I really hope no white person ever has cause   

to write about me

because they never understand

Black love is Black wealth and they’ll

probably talk about my hard childhood

and never understand that

all the while I was quite happy

We Must Be Allowed to Tell Our Own Stories...

What I Know For Sure Thursday: Ain't No Bond Like The Tuskegee Bond....

(This post is about the Historically Black Colleges and Universities experience. So, if you went to a HBCU, Enjoy. If you didn't  go to a HBCU, learn.)

People who attended Historically Black Colleges or Universities, typically LOVE their schools. The love runs so deep until people will almost come to blows if you talk to much trash about their schools. I vividly remember one of my friends, whom I met at Michigan State, saying something about Tuskegee that I did not appreciate, and I will not even repeat the things that I had to say to her. We happened to be visiting Cincinnati at the time, and I was driving, and she almost got her butt left right in Cincinnati while I made my way back to Michigan. You don't talk badly about Tuskegee.....

All TU People!

Now, I have seen the bond among people who attended other HBCU's, but Ain't No Bond Like The Tuskegee Bond. For some reason, our bond runs deeper than most.

I saw Sabrina while driving in DC, and I had to stop traffic in order to speak to her:
Three TU Women

Many people who attended Tuskegee feel that this tight bond exist because of the location of the school. Tuskegee is located in a very small town and the only thing in the town is The University. There are no outlets for fun except what the students create, and boy did we create a lot of fun. Many are convinced that the fun that we created caused us to bond and bond deeply.

Two TU graduates and an adopted member!

I have heard others who think that the Tuskegee bond is spiritual. They believe that something about the founder, Booker T. Washington, being buried on the campus, caused us to bond with the University on some type of spiritual deep level that we just can't shake.

Four TU graduates

I'm not really sure why, but Ain't No Bond Like The Tuskegee Bond....

Brandi with three TU ladies

When Tuskegee people run into each other, even if they did not know each other in school, there is some sort of excitement in the air. We will hug and normally scream and talk like we have been knowing each other forever. And, if there is a lot of us together, we will talk and reminisce about Tuskegee and forget that there are other people in the room. The love is real and genuine. Also, if you marry someone, or date someone, or hang around someone who went to Tuskegee, you will get adopted into our family and the bond, and you really don't have a choice about the matter.

TU Grads

Many people, even those who went to other HBCU's, do not understand the Tuskegee bond, and many think that we are some type of Cult. This always make me chuckle.

For instance, in DC, we are fortunate to have a TU graduate who is an event planner. And, this weekend for the Delta's Centennial celebration, Chee Chee, the TU event planner, threw two parties. Now, if you went to Tuskegee, you would definitely try, with all of  your might, to attend one or both of these parties, because Skegee folks would be in the house, and we were. At the parties, all of the TU folks gravitated to one part of the room and we hugged, reminisced, sang Tuskegee songs, and literally forgot that other people were in the room. Man, it was literally like a mini homecoming. Love was all over the place. 

Two TU graduates!

I know other folks who went to HBCU's, and their bonds are deep, BUT...

What I know for sure on this Thursday is Ain't No Bond Like The Tuskegee Bond!

It's CRAZY and not easy to understand, but IT IS GOOD!

Peace, My People.

I'm going to leave you with one of our FAVORITE school songs: Ball and Parley!

Love, Not Fear, Is the Answer Maybe????

Since the 4th of July, my life has been filled with lots of people whom I actually really like, creating memories that I will cherish forever. However, today, I woke up and did not have one place that I needed to go or one person that I needed to see. So, I sort of did not know what to do with myself.

I ate my breakfast and cooked my favorite brussel sprout recipe, and I needed to leave the house. I am not one of those people who can sit in the house all day. I need to go out and see 'what the world is doing,' then I can go back home and relax. And, that is exactly what I did today; I had my eyebrows waxed and my car cleaned, and now I am in my one of my favorite places, my balcony, doing what I love to do, write.

I learned of the Trayvon Martin verdict during my Sororities' National Convention, and when I saw an older, Black woman with tears streaming down her eyes as I left the bathroom on Saturday, that image struck me in a way that I could not quite process at that time.

However, on my way back home from seeing 'what was going on the world,' I was listening to this song that says "An Incredible God Deserves Incredible Praise," and I started to cry uncontrollable. I was thinking about the fact that Trayvon Martin never got the chance to know "How Good Life Is!" I thought about a boy, walking home from the store, probably talking to a friend about something light and fun on the phone, and suddenly being robbed of life, and I thought about my own life....

My life ain't perfect, but it is good. My love for everything is deeper than it has ever been before. I love people, outdoors, my health, more than I could ever imagine. And, the more I love, the more love seems to come right back to me with the same intensity that I give it, and it feels so good......

As I was driving, I thought about the idea that at 17 and 18 years of age, most people have not tapped into that type of intense love that makes life great. Most people at 17 or 18 are concerned with themselves and their immediate needs, and I am sure that Trayvon was no different. Think about all of the things that he will never experience deeply and profoundly...My heart truly hurts at that thought, but GOD!

I think about how this incident and the verdict evoke fear. I have heard many Black mothers say that they are not sure what they should tell their sons; these mothers are fearful....

I am not a mother, but if I had a son, I would want him to do what I believe Trayvon Martin did and that is fight for his life. But the thought that fighting for ones life, might end my brown boy's life early is more than I can wrap my mind around right now...Soooo, what does a brown mother tell her brown son?

My little seven year old niece, Tia, stated that a mother should tell her son "To Be Brave, and Trust in God!" (Out of the Mouth of a Babe!)

It seems that racial tension in this country is bubbling over, and I feel a little fearful. However, I've had to remind myself that acting in fear ALWAYS leads to negative outcomes. Maybe, I and this country need to focus on love more.

So, today I am sending love to Trayvon Martin and everyone who love him, to all brown boys in the world, to my friends, to my family, to Zimmerman and his family, to the juror and their families, to this country and its racial tension, to the judge who preceded over the case, to the universe.....

AND, when I focus on the love....Fear seems to leave!

Love, Not Fear, Is the Answer Maybe?

Friendship!

People, this past weekend was one that I will NEVER forget....

I spent time with so many people whom I have known for years and years...

I laughed until I could not laugh anymore.....

You know how I love to be out and about, and I have been out and about since Thursday....

I love sisterhood and friendship so very much.........

I won't take nothing at all for this life..... It Is GOOD!

I really hope that your weekend was full of love like mine!!!!

Quiet as it is kept, I'm telling the WHOLE story about my Sorority's Centennial Weekend real soon.

Have A Good One!

What I Know For Sure Thursday: Sometimes We Must Go With It, and It's All Right!

So, I got back from Chicago around 1:30 Monday morning, and I literally hit the ground running. I wanted to give you guys an update on how I did while there, and I also wanted to share a whole lot of other stuff with you. (By the way, I only had one shot of vodka, but I did have Chicago's famous Garrett's popcorn that really is a treat that I planned for.) But, there has been plenty going on, not big things, but things that kept me from sharing with you: a tennis match where Venus Williams was in attendance, dealing with a maintenance guy who is doing some work for me, a crazy bike ride that literally kicked my butt, a cousin that came to visit for a few days, washing clothes, and unpacking. Believe it or not, I have not even had a chance to read.

Venus Williams in DC

This week, I planned to spend lots of time reading, thinking, and relaxing on my balcony and at the pool in order to save my energy for the weekend. After 40 plus years of being on this earth, I realize that sometimes things don't work out like we want them to, and we must just go with it, and it's ALL RIGHT.

Yea, I would have love to have ridden with Babes On Bikes on Wednesday morning, because I need to start riding more, because my Tuesday night rides are kicking my butt. Instead, I waited on the maintenance guy to come and complete some work for me and that gave me time to sit on my balcony and relax, read, and write. Yep, I wanted to spend time alone this week, but it was also great to spend time with my cousin and another good friend.

What I know for sure is that sometimes things just don't work out the way that we want them to, but if we just go with life's flow, things normally work out just like they are suppose to.

Sometimes We Must Go With It, and It's All Right....

By the way, my sorority is holding its National Convention, and we're also celebrating 100 years of being in service, soooooo I won't be back here until Monday Maybe...

I'm Going to Go With It This Weekend!!!!

Always spend time with people who bring you joy.

Ain't This The Truth......

Enjoy this day; It is Summer.....

Check out a post from one of my favorite blogs!

This article made me sooooo happy!

Please read and enjoy this wonderful article about minorities and biking...

I love my bike and riding it!

I am begging you to find things that you love to do, and do them often........

Beer, Wine, and Cocktails....

Having a drink, which for me is beer, wine, or a mixed drink, is completely social for me. I am never in my house and think that I want a beer, glass of wine, or a cocktail.

Well, a few nights back, I met some friends out for happy hour, and since I have 'renewed my mind' about my health, I normally can resist a drink even at happy hour. I go to happy hour, because I love to socialize and not to drink. Anyway, at this happy hour, they were serving FREE Grey Goose vodka, and how could I resist a free drink. So, I had one. Then one of my friends brought me another drink, and I refused to let myself drink another drink mostly because I was thinking about the calories, about how Berhane and I are working like crazy to get my stomach as flat as possible; operation six pack is in full force, and I was also thinking about how I like to wake up feeling energetic in the mornings, and drinking alcohol takes away some of my morning umph! My mind would not stop and I was thinking about how alcohol dries the skin out, it is a poison, I have just as much fun whether I have a drink or not and on and on and on.....

The next morning I got on the scale and looked at myself naked in my full length mirror just like I do every morning, and everything was fine, but I mentally felt bad. I felt horrible when I thought about how that drink set me back, just a little, on my 'operation six pack mission,' and I also felt like I let  free alcohol control me, and I strongly dislike the idea of anything controlling me.

Yesterday was the 4th of July, and you know how people in this country eat, drink, and be merry on the 4th. However, I am determined to be concerned about my health, even on holidays. So, I met some friends at this awesome bar near my house, and I drank water. We all went to my place after we left the bar and there was LOTS of wine flowing, and I did not have one sip. I also did not eat the pizza, ribs, chicken, or the potato salad; I did eat a few pita chips with hummus, but overall, I did great on the 4th of July, which is really National Eat and Drink Whatever Day!

So, not having beer, wine, or a cocktail was easier than I thought in a situation where lots of wine was flowing.

This 'renewing of the mind' thing is working!

Let's see how it goes in Chicago this weekend......

I'll keep you posted!

Happy Friday, My People.

What I Know for Sure Thursday: Freedom Really is Wonderful......

Today is the 4th of July, and it is the day that our country celebrates its freedom.....

Today, on 'What I Know for Sure Thursday,' I think that it is quite appropriate to write about what I know for sure about Freedom, because I know a WHOLE lot about Freedom. I value freedom about as much as I value life, and you know how much I LOVE life....

However, Freedom, just like change, must take place in the mind first; freedom is such a mental thing, and this I know for sure.

I am going to use two extreme examples to show that Freedom can be achieved in almost any situation: Nelson Mandela and Malcolm X

In an interview with Oprah, Nelson Mandela stated that:

Before I went to jail, I was active in politics as a member of South Africa's leading organization—and I was generally busy from 7 A.M. until midnight. I never had time to sit and think. As I worked, physical and mental fatigue set in and I was unable to operate to the maximum of my intellectual ability. But in a single cell in prison, I had time to think. I had a clear view of my past and present, and I found that my past left much to be desired, both in regard to my relations with other humans and in developing personal worth.
Read more:
 http://www.oprah.com/world/Oprah-Interviews-Nelson-Mandela/4#ixzz2Xzpdr1O6

Now, even someone who is 'locked up' can experience freedom, because someone can only control our minds if we let them.

Malcolm used the time behind bars to educate himself in the prison library where he learned the fundamentals of grammar and increased his vocabulary. Malcolm basically taught himself to read and and write while 'locked up.'

Now, isn't this some true Freedom! Freedom is in the mind, and nobody can control our minds unless we let them.

Freedom is being able to buy a new dress and not having to hide it in my car; Freedom is waking up and deciding to eat whatever is in the refrigerator even if I do not like it as long as it good for my body; Freedom is going for a bike ride; Freedom is knowing that people are viciously taking about me and not really caring; Freedom is choosing to be with people who allow me to just be me with all of my crazy ways that I am working on urgently; Freedom is choosing who I want to intimately love as my husband forever; Freedom is taking off from work just because I feel like it; Freedom is not allowing my current situation to make me feel un-free, because freedom is in the mind; Freedom is knowing that the situation that I am in is not right and having the Freedom to work to change that situation; Freedom is living in a country where as a woman, I can wear my favorite tank top and be all right..........

However, I know that there is a price to pay for Freedom, but it so worth it, if we handle our Freedom responsibly...

It took me awhile to fully understand this Freedom thing, but after living for over 40 years and actively practicing Freedom for about 20 years, I can say for sure that Freedom Really Is Wonderful!

Happy 'What I Know For Sure Thursday!'

And it's the the 4th of July!!

ENJOY

This is how I feel.......

Most of the Time!

I hope that you laugh sometimes until you are in tears!

I sure do......

This is the day...Rejoice and Be Glad.

Welcome To Today!!

Today, I walked into this nine day class that I am teaching, and I told the students that we would be talking about the essay, and you should have seen the displeasure that was all over their bodies. I realized at this moment that I was going to need to work on changing their thoughts about writing before we could actually start the writing process.

And, that is how it is with most things! We must, according to The Bible, "renew our minds" before any change can take place.

You know those people who want to run, but they tell themselves that they are not runners; therefore, they will never be runners because of their minds and not their bodies. They will  never be a runner until they "renew their mind." Or the people who are miserable or uncomfortable in their current job, but they believe that this is how everyone lives, or they believe that we are in a recession and there are no jobs. Therefore, they will never get a new job unless they "renew their minds" first.

I believe in change so much, I have written several blogs about Change!

Now, don't even let me deceive you into thinking that change is easy, because it is not. Our bodies and minds love comfort, even comfort that is bad for us. However, change starts in the mind, and the more knowledge that we get on whatever we want to change, the changes that we want or need to make can happen for sure, but it starts in the mind.

"Write the Vision and Make it Plain!"

For instance, when I first started working out with Berhane, the greatest trainer in the world, I did not see any chances in my body at all. I was doing some crazy workouts with him in the blazing sun three days a week, and I was running and doing other exercises on my own, and my body was not changing AT ALL! However, Berhane had to help me to "renew my mind" in order for me to see results. However, once I changed my mind, the rest is history. Change starts in the mind first......

Bear with me for a minute, I am heavily relying on my memory....

Quite a few years back, I use to read this short story with my students by Coretta Scott King, wife of Dr. King, and I can not remember the title. Anyway, in that story, Coretta talks about how Dr. King was not sure if he should get involved with the Civil Rights Movement, because he was not sure if it aligned with Godly principles. She stated that after much prayer and thought, he nervously knew that being part of the Civil Rights Movement is what he had to do. Dr. King had to "renew his mind" in order to change this thoughts and lead one of the greatest movements of all time. I don't know about you, but I am happy that Dr. King saw fit to change his thoughts, which changed his actions, which changed our lives.

I know people "who do the same things all of the time and expect different results." Now, isn't that the definition of insanity? I am not calling anyone that I know insane, BUT.......

However, TODAY just might be your day and my day....We can change our tone of voice, our bodies, our jobs, our outlook on life, our perpetual lateness, our desire to always have the last word, the way that we treat people, our financial state, our living conditions, our passiveness, our negative thoughts, but we must renew our minds first by seeking knowledge.

My dear friend T.Smith, who is turning 40 today, asked me to do this 40 day journey where we will read a different quote every day for forty days, write our thoughts about the quote, and mediate on it. Well, when I read  about the program, and the first day assignment, my mind and body rejected the ideas, and I was going to call him to tell him that I was not going to do it. However, I thought about it and went back and read the Day 1 assignment, and I realized that I was rejecting the quote and the program, because it goes against some of the things that are are deeply rooted in me that I was not even aware of, but they are thoughts that I need to change. So, once I "renewed my mind" by going into deep thought about the principles and getting knowledge, I am ready for that 40 day journey, but the change had to take place in my mind first.....

So, today is your day....If what you are doing in your life is working for you, keep doing! if it ain't working for you, Today just might be your day.....

Feel Free to Change!

Welcome to Today....