A new year is dawning

I've been encouraged by many to start a blog. Blogs are a great way to share with the people you care about and anyone who just wants to receive and share information. I hope this blog will serve as inspiration and enlightenment to whomever that reads it. I hope and pray that 2009 will be a year of great prosperity for everyone.

As we draw closer to 2009, I wanted to reflect back on 2008 a bit.

The presidential election was one of the most exciting times in history. For the first time ever (in my lifetime), I saw people of all ethnicities coming together for a common goal and the result is we now have an African American as our President...President Barack Obama! Even more, the power that Mrs. Michelle Obama and their children will bring to the white house is priceless! I feel so blessed and fortunate to experience a time like this in our history. This occurrence alone makes 2008 one of the best years in our lifetime! Sure there were hard times, the economy sucks and people are losing their jobs. The good news...those things are cyclical and temporary and I have no doubt the market will bounce back. However, a Black man becoming president is something we will all cherish for a lifetime!

Many of us have also experienced personal tragedies, losses and upsets and many of us have seen a year filled with hope, promise and prosperity, this is the natural rotation of life and we ALL have a balance of good and bad moments. Every year isn't going to be a great year for everyone, but I will say this, your outlook on life determines what kind of year you will have. I like to learn from my experiences and I'm always working on getting better. Every year of my life is cherished because the good and bad make me who i am and I wouldn't want to change that for anything. Every year I try to extend my reach a bit further and challenge myself a bit more. If at any point i failed to accomplish something, I continue to re-evaluate my goals and dreams and carry them over until they are accomplished. Some goals you have to let go and add new ones and some goals will take longer than a year, so be patient with yourself.

Going forward into 2009, it can be a year of prosperity for all if we are willing to stay positive and put in the work it takes to become successful! However, as I've said before, success isn't just material, financial or having what some will consider a "good job." Success has to do more with the energy that you give people, the friends lives that you light up, your willingness to give and help others and the respect and admiration you get from others b/c of the good person that you are.

If you walk around being negative, unpleasant and cutting, it's going to be very hard for people to gravitate toward you. If that is an area you are lacking in, maybe it's something you can work on in the coming year! Success means absolutely nothing if you don't have friends and family that wants to share in your joy. Sometimes it helps to take the focus off of self and put your focus into something of a worthy cause. Recently when I went to New Orleans to volunteer my time, it was one of the most invigorating things I've done in a long time and something i plan to continue to do!

Decide to make 2009 your year. Plan accordingly. Work out a budget and try to stick to it, write out your goals and plans, you will see that writing them and looking at them often will help keep you on track. Wish others well, it only benefits you and remember whatever you put out to others is what you get back. Try not to be too quick to judge because you never know what is behind a person's actions and you never know when you will be in a similar situation. Life has a way of throwing curve balls, so stay humble if you are enjoying a time of good fortune...NOTHING is guaranteed!

With that, I want to wish you and your family a very prosperous, healthy and productive 2009! Celebrate with your loved ones, pray often and have gratitude for all your blessings.

Peace, Love and Blessings!

Welcome Mr. President...

Today i'm filled with an indescribable amount of joy. At the moment that Barak Obama was elected President of the united states of America, I felt almost the same joy as when the pastor proclaimed that Lucien and I are "husband and wife." The unity of this election is reverberating around the country and throughout the world. Last night when Barak, Michelle, Malia and Sasha walked out on the stage I was so proud and goose bumps ran through my body. Barak's speech was humble, profound and touched my spirit. I believe that the success of his campaign is an insight to how our country is going to be ran...strategic, effective, honest and uniting.

Last night I reflected on the fact that Barak is standing on the shoulders of Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, the countless amounts of people who died for us to get the right to vote, the people who were lynched, humiliated, beaten and everyone who has endured the hundreds of years of blatant racism. I want to thank those people from the bottom of my heart because without them laying the foundation, today would not have been possible. The unity of blacks, whites, Asians, Latinos, Indians....everyone of every color came together to make this moment happen. Today gives me hope for the future and it confirms that no matter what our differences are, as people we can come together and make amazing things happen. I was awe struck by the diversity of the audience in Grant Park last night and Martin Luther King's speech came into my head...his dream is here and we are so lucky and fortunate to be experiencing it.

Savor this day and get your children to understand its power because this is their future. I think Barak's grandmother passed away the day before yesterday because she had the foresight to see that he was going to win...his mother, father and grandparents are smiling down on him. I give credit to Barak and Michelle's parents and I thank them from the bottom of my heart for producing such phenomenal people to run our country. As a black woman, I will now have the distinct pleasure of seeing a mirror image of myself in the white house, running things and helping to make decisions that will continue to shape this country...I cry as I type this because from the moment I saw Barak I held on to the dream that this day would be possible. Black women....my God, what strength we have, hold our head high because this is better days to come. This moment in time has strengthened me in a way that I just cannot find the words to describe. I can now tell my future son or daughter, niece, nephew and any child that "yes...you too can be president of the united states of America" and mean it!

Yes, my soul is filled today because everything seems so much brighter, my hope for this country has been restored and I look forward to doing my part no matter how big or small. Today is a culmination of small things that accumulated into something tremendous, a priceless piece of art that we can all admire and love for centuries to come.

Pray much for the Obama family because this victory is not without hard work, trials and tribulations, but i'm confident that this family will handle it with strength and grace like they do everything.

I can now truly say that I love my country and I will proudly hang a flag that I feel truly embraces and represents myself and every person in this country....a flag of the united states of America.

God bless you all....

Peace, love and Happiness!

The best revenge is success...

There's a saying that I've heard many times "the good guy always finish last". Over the years when we give of ourselves and people treat us badly, our natural inclination is to believe after a while that it's not worth it to take the higher road...instead we want to see our offender hurt. We tend to get cynical about family, friendships, co-workers and potential suitors because of our past experiences. After you've been disrespected, lied to, stabbed in the back and denounced by people that are oftentimes close to you, it's natural to lose hope. There was a time when I believed that, but as I watch this presidential election play out, my whole perception has changed.

In watching this campaign, I'm impressed by the way Obama handles the lies, slights, blatant disrespect and indifference being levied against him. Imagine being accused by a large number of people of being a terrorist or "palling around with terrorists," having your character questioned and constantly being told you are not qualified to run this country because of the color of your skin! Oftentimes in the past he's been accused of not being aggressive enough and not fighting back. When you really think about it, Barak's calmness makes sense. Every time I see him he's always composed and sticks to the issues at hand. During the debates, Obama is always respectful of his opponent...often agreeing with him on issues. Even though McCain and his people have made the worst insinuations about Senator Obama, he still keeps his composure and is genuine in his greeting and departure...he refuses to allow another person to pull him out of character.

The Higher Road will sometimes entail enduring some difficult times. However, if you act with decency, respect and remain calm, you would be amazed at the outcome. Take this campaign for instance, the polls are showing that keeping your fight above the waist is a better strategy. Republicans are stunned and cannot understand how Obama is steadily gaining momentum. People in general are tired of fighting, they want to see a new face, hear a new voice and have someone running this country that they can respect...someone who CARES about helping the general public. We live in a very COMPETITIVE and SELFISH world which is largely contributing to the demise of this country and many others around the globe!

I've learned that revenge is a waste of time and energy. If someone has an issue with me or treats me with impunity, I pray for them because the problem is not mine, it's theirs. So the next time someone hurts you, go ahead and take the "higher road" because like Senator (Soon-to-be president) Barak Obama, that road may lead you to a much higher purpose.

The best revenge is success!

Have a blessed week.

YES WE CAN...

Today I woke up with an unusual pep in my step, a harder swing in my hips and my head held high. I'm proud on so many levels. Besides my own journey in life, I'm so grateful to God to witness history in the making. Earlier this year, I encountered so many people who felt at the beginning of this 2008 election journey that Obama would not make it this far. I've heard over and over that "this country is not ready for a black president; he'll never win; the job is going to be too hard" etc, but I never for a moment absorbed any of those thoughts....I never faltered on my faith. I knew from the beginning that this day would come because like many people in this country I'm hungry for change. He has not won YET, but eveyrthing within me is saying it's going to happen! Will change come easy? No. It's never easy going from status quo to uncertainty, but one things for sure...at the end of the journey, we will all learn something new and be better people for it!

Challenges will come but as Joe Biden's mother said "Failure is inevitable, but giving up is unforgivable!" Barak and Michelle's determination, faith and hard work despite all the challenges they faced has set a new bar for me. I look at them and I'm awe struck by what they have been able to achieve in just this past year alone. One of the most valuable lessons I learned about that couple is "if you have the right people on your side, there is nothing you can't conquer!"

Too often we get stuck in life on things and people that bring us down rather and lift us up. We focus too long on the speck on the floor rather than the bigger picture. Whatever you are doing right now in your life can be changed. If you are unhappy with yourself, job, want to go back to school, want to start a business, want to get married, want to learn a language; it's all possible as long as you believe it and you surround yourself with people that love and support you. If you don't have supportive people around you, then guess what? It's time to get out there and meet new people. Whatever it is that is a burning desire, don't ignore it...if there's a will there's a way. If you don't know what your passion/purpose is in life...keep trying, it'll eventually present itself.

New times are dawning, opportunities are spinning (yes, even in this bad economy) and no matter what is going on in life, it's never too late to make positive changes....you are never too young, old, fat or skinny. My new Mantra is "YES I CAN". I've always believed that there is a special place carved in this universe for us all...if only we can extend our reach and truly believe "YES I / WE CAN".

Peace, love and blessings to you all!