I walked into my local grocery store and was greeted by a display of beautiful flowers. “I don’t recall seeing those here before,” I thought as I shared my admiration of the bouquets with another shopper.

I continued to shop for the few items I needed and remembered one item not on my list. Making my way to get that item, I heard someone say, “There are a lot of Mother’s Day cards this year!” I stopped in my tracks; frozen. A well of emotions made its way from my heart and begged to be released in a surge of tears along with a loud scream. “You better not lose your shit now!!” said my reasonable self.

A few weekends ago, I returned to my home church to participate in a pop-up shop. The event was a vendor show celebrating Mother’s Day hosted by the church’s United Women in Faith unit. It has been a tradition for this event to happen once or twice a year.

I was invited to have a space to display and sell my aprons. I was happy to do so. For months I had been sewing many aprons with the fabric I had on hand. So, I didn’t have much to do to get ready, but to show up in Cincinnati.

I love the rain. I always have.

I love to listen as rain falls against the leaves on trees and trickles down its branches.

I love road trips! I enjoy traveling to a destination in a car or truck, especially with my husband.

On our first road trip together, I thought I had hit the jackpot. I had always wanted a partner to travel with but had never met that person until Curnell. He was chill. He read the road signs and mile markers, he knew how long it would take to get from place to place, he didn’t require a lot, and was happy to let me drive when I wanted to

WOW! A recent blog entry from Gwen Henderson’s Reboot, Rejuvenate, Resurrect titled Inconvenient hit my heart. It summed up exactly what I am feeling. One line in particular:

Deepak Chopra says, “All great changes are preceded by chaos.” I don’t know if this change will be great, but it is chaotic. My apple cart is upset. I feel a bit vulnerable and exposed.

Yes! I was feeling all of that. I read the line as I sat waiting for a flight returning home from South Carolina where my husband accepted a pastoral appointment to begin July 1; months away!

Recently, my husband shared an article from a friend who lived in Atlanta with the headline, “Within 12 hours, 14 young people were harmed by gun violence in Georgia.”

It’s hard to settle with the statistics related to the impact of gun violence in the United States. Each day, there is a report of the shooting in the local news. It saddens me that freedom looks like the right to carry an automatic weapon.

This article prompted a question: How can we cease to find a way to curb gun violence but continue to be riled up against a curriculum in schools that shares all American history?

Through life, our instinct is to keep our head down, stay focused on our goals and keep working to be the best we can be for ourselves and family. Yet, I bet while we are looking down, we are missing people standing in front of us seeking a kind word of encouragement in this harsh world that makes it hard for some to keep going. We all have an encouraging word to share.

I was bored while waiting for the cake to finish baking its last 15 minutes. As the vanilla scent engulfed my apartment, I remembered I had to wait for the cake to cool before slicing. I was proud to accomplish making a cake like my grandmother seemed to do every Sunday.

I am a second-generation Cincinnati Bengals fan. My father was a fan and indoctrinated his wife and children to the club.

Each Fall, we began to gear up and plan Sundays to gather at our parent’s house to watch the Bengals. Some Sundays, I may have cut out of church a bit early.

I was sure I was going to die and take out 10 people with me.

My heart was racing and felt like it was going to leap out of my chest. My palms were sweaty.

The hospitality industry gave me opportunities I may not have received anyplace else. My training, hands-on experience, and mentoring taught me what it means to be hospitable and helped me grow as a professional.

For example, in any position the goal is to ensure each guest has a positive experience and will return. I loved my career. hard to cope.

Marnita was a friend, but I never told her that. I cared for her and was frustrated by her. Although we disagreed on many things, we could agree on what was funny. We laughed together like nobody’s business.

2022 was too much!

The world experienced war, high prices for food and gas, sickness from COVID and flu variants and many of us found it hard to cope.

During Christmastime, I am into all things Christmas; decorations, music, Christmas movies – old and new, and all the rich delicious food and drink that come with it.

This year, memories of my mom invade my thoughts every day as many of my fondest memories of her surround Christmas and New Year’s Day. Lately, every smell, song, craft, or holiday special reminds me of my mom.

I love Thanksgiving weekend! It’s filled with family time, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, sister time and traditions. Each year, my husband and I purchase a live Christmas tree for our home and decorate it the Saturday after Thanksgiving.