In my young adult years, I had a hard time being seen for who I was.
I was always identified by where I grew up, whose sister I was or who I hung out with. Although I loved those aspects of myself, I was more.
As years went on, I had to make choices for my happiness. Choices often opposite of what I thought was expected of me. That meant becoming vulnerable to change and criticism.
That shift came with a yearning to experience more of what life had to offer. I began to look outside the walls put in place by others and myself to live a life God wanted me to live.
I began to capture these experiences in my writing. This became a way for me to purge, process and heal.
This blog is that journey and it continues. A journey full of love, tears, pride and lots of laughs.
Thanks for joining me.
I Ain’t a Poet
I admire writers who can weave words together to create verses that resonate with me or cause me to pause and reflect. Springtime did that to me. In poetry, verses rhyme and others don’t. Some have a rhythm and some don’t. It can be a simple or complex form of expression, engaging, relatable, or it can open your mind to a world distant from the one you live in.
A Social Media Fast During Lent
On Ash Wednesday, I resolved to remove the apps from my smartphone and immerse myself in the essence of the season. At the midpoint of Lent, I’ve made several observations. Here are my top three:
Independence
In my 20s and 30s, I tried to be self-reliant. I found jobs, sought higher education, saved for and purchased my first car, moved into my first apartment in my 20s, and advanced my hospitality career. If I needed help, I could count on one hand, the family, or friends I asked. I rarely asked my parents because I wanted them to see me as independent.
The Joy of The Culture
When the show ended, I had two words to describe it: Black Joy. Joy is an emotion that transcends any external circumstances and situation. Black Joy is connected to grit, strength, and perseverance left behind by our ancestors who survived the worst experiences - slavery, Jim Crow, lynching, redlining, etc. - and bravely rose above it all to shine brightly despite efforts to dim their light. While Black Joy is the beautiful fruit produced from horrific circumstances, it is also an act of resistance.
The Lost Literary Collection
Not finding those books, my emotions zeroed in on the mystery of the lost box of books.
I visualized the box I packed as they included my husband's Bibles and Howard Thurman's books; ensuring they would not get discarded or lost.
Discovering Denmark Vesey
Three people confirmed we were going in the right direction. Soon the bronze monument dedicated to the slave revolt leader was revealed.
Good Housekeeping Cookbook Brings Unexpected delight
This 1963 cookbook includes useful information like a glossary of cooking terms, meal planning for hosting a dinner party, and a guide for storing and cooking different cuts of meat. But it is a reminder of a certain type of woman heralded in the 1960’s. For example, in a section titled, “Family Weight Watching,” a suggestion to mothers with teenage daughters reads:
remind them they ‘re preparing for marriage and motherhood. A girl who enjoys being a girl, who looks like a girl…stands the best chance of having a whirl.”
The Soup
Okra is one of the main staples of the diet of South Carolinians. One of the many foods America inherited from the enslaved West Africans on the Middle Passage, okra is a thickener in many soups and stews, like gumbo. Okra is rich in vitamins C and K, fiber, protein, and antioxidants.
Okra can be prepared many ways including grilled, deep fried and pickled. I prefer to eat it sliced, tossed in olive oil with seasoning and cooked in my air fryer.
The Kings Behind an Early American Cocktail
As I researched to learn more about the Mint Julep, the internet took me far away from the Kentucky Derby and recipes. It took me to the bartenders behind the roots of this cocktail. The two names that kept surfacing were Cato Alexander and Tom Bullock. Both were well-known bartenders of their day with connections to the beginnings of the Mint Julep. The most intriguing fact for me was they were both black.
Exploring “the Fannie Farmer Cookbook”
In my last blog post, I wrote about my vintage cookbooks and my desire to explore recipes, prepare at least one from each book, and share my experience with you.
I started with The Fannie Farmer Cookbook. Why? Because of all the cookbooks, this is the most fragile so I thought I would use it and get it out of the way. LOL
Cookbooks Carry History Lessons
What I love about cookbooks is they tell a story. Reading the preface, the recipes and seeing pictures in these books, you are transported to the culture, setting and society of the times in which they were written.
Move That Body!
When I moved from Ohio, I interrupted my weekly exercise routine of three days of Zumba with one day of strength training. I stopped so that I could create a plan of action to not lose all I had gained over the years.