Be faithful to that which exists within yourself. - Andre Gide Faithfulness to You Listen phenomenal  living soul that you are all that is miraculous lies  within -Wanda M. Toby Too often we are told, not overtly but through images and media messages, that we are not good enough and we are subhumans, thugs, hood rats, trash, ghetto, and criminals. If by some happenstance our success is noticed then we are an anomaly and not the norm which is insane to me. We are survivors. We thrive. We rise. We conquer or hardships. If our existence annoys anyone, then fine, we live to annoy but we live. We push through. However, I want us to do more than that. I want us to achieve and grow and become our own marvelous dynasties.  In order to prosper for not only ourselves but each other as a community, we have to know that we are beyond beautiful. We have to know that we are beyond creative and strong and innovative. We have to know that we were made with al...

Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship. - Buddha Health is the greatest gift. It is free to maintain if we work at it. Our health and well being is so vital to our happiness that we have to take special care of ourselves. Maintaining a healthier life style can help with chronic illness as well as keep us out of the vicious stress cycle. Contentment the greatest wealth. It is hard for an ambitious person to be content. I believe that we can be happy with the course of our lives while striving for more. This is when we enjoy the journey as much as the destination. Faithfulness the best relationship. It is no coincidence that faithfulness is linked with strong relationship. What else do we expect from those around us whether it be family, friends, or lovers. Faithfulness is a show of support which we can never have enough of or provide to ourselves and those we care about. Be kind to yourself. Be mindful of your health. Co...

Happiness is the default state of mind. Happiness is not something you pursue; it is something you allow. Happiness is just being. -Chade-Meng Tan We want to be happy. Our bodies want to be in that good place where everything is right and we are content and at peace and happy. However, things get in the way of that state. Half the time, we are fighting against our own happiness. We are not allowing that happiness to come into our lives and grow. We let life circumstances steal our joy by worrying too much about the outcome. It is something that we cannot help. How can we preserve and protect our feelings if we do not anticipate the negative things that can happen? How can we protect ourselves if we do not mount a defense against the unknown? We are supposed to live in the present. We are supposed to remind ourselves that although we plan for the future our happiness and our state of being is now. Worry is the bedrock of stress. Making possible scenarios up and then worrying abou...

Do not be afraid to be original. Do not be afraid to be yourself. Do not be afraid to be unique. Know that you are magical, beautiful, mysterious, powerful and awe inspiring.

Success definitely comes from within. Success does not  happen over night. It requires hard work and motivation and the will to keep going regardless of the set backs that happen. What other people see has a long history of putting in long hours of effort and hard work. Do not give up. Keep pushing. Do not stop even when things look bleak. You deserve it. You are worthy of the self effort.

Doctor Strange: How far will you go to get your life back? Dr. Stephen Strange's, an arrogant world renowned neurosurgeon played by Benedict Cumberbatch, life get tossed upside down after a car crash robs him of the use of his hands. After months and depleted funds with no promising improvement of his hands, he is desperate and seeks help from someone who was miraculously healed from an irreversible spinal injury. Strange's journey finds him in an Asian  land, learning about astral projection, spirituality, energy and dark forces. Doctor Strange, staring Tilda Swinton, Benedict Cumberbatch (Doctor Strange), Chiwetel Ejiofor, Rachel McAdams and Mads Mikkelsen, is reminiscent of Inception were some of the special effects are concerned. It is also more entertaining than I expected. I only remember Benedict Cumberbatch from Star Trek: Into Darkness when he played Khan. That role was done so well that I actually disliked him; therefore, I did not go into this film with much of ...

Mankind is made great or little by its own will. -Friedrich Schiller We are made great or little by our own will. How bad do you want it? How hard do you want to work for it? Most importantly, how will we give back to the world in order to contribute to its greatness? Life, existence is all about balance. From balancing a chemical equation to keeping the body at equilibrium in order to maintain health, we rely on balance at every possible turn. Our will to do good has to drive us to take action. It is so much easier to settle and fall into the negative side of things. We feed ourselves on lazy moments and wire our minds to think that it is okay. Meanwhile,  we short change ourselves and the world by not fully engaging in our gifts or passion. We have been given all the tools we need to make an impact. Let us take the time to invest in ourselves and figure out how to use those tools to ignite our passion so that we may be great and make the world better. In this action we ...

Energy Today the universe spoke and so I listened directed to where I was meant to be A few weeks back, I went to my first Reiki circle and it was enlightening, inspiring, moving and energizing but most importantly relaxing. My mind was refocused and I felt a renewed spirit of appreciation. I knew I was meant to be there at that particular time. I then looked at my life and the people that were in my life and the people that have come into my life; I looked at where I was at presently and the transitions I have made to get here. I looked at all of that and realized regardless of my misgivings and doubts, I was not only where I was meant to be but also that I'm going in the right direction, and that is truly a beautiful thing. We are not ignored. We are not left to our own devices. We are guided and subtly directed. We can choose to follow this path. We can choose to engage with these flashes of intuition. Or we can choose to ignore them to our own detriment. God does not...

I had a meltdown tonight. Ultimately,  I feel terrible after one of my frustration attacks. Parenting is hard and sometimes it's harder than hard. When the house is a mess, homework needs to be done, there's no dinner, tweens are fighting and not listening and there's just a lot of noise, I feel like crying or yelling. Tonight, I yelled. Now I feel guilty and defeated. It happens. So, yes. I am holding on because my kids are awesome and forgiving and able to get on with life. They will continue to need my guidance whether I am tired and frustrated or not. My love for them makes me crazy. So, I'm writing to maintain my lite living. Live lite, live on.

If you do nothing in a difficult time, your strength is limited. -Proverbs 24:10 HCSB Have you ever thought about giving up? Things seem to get so hard that it makes you want to throw your hands up in the air and just say forget it? Sometimes, I wonder why am I going back to school or why do I keep writing or why do I strive to even be a better Christian. It would be so much easier to just be lazy and give into my worldly whims and desires. It would be easier to do nothing at all ... or so it seems. When I get in these little phases, I force myself to think of the alternatives. What would happen if I actually did nothing? How would my life look? The same? Worse? What would have happened if Jesus did nothing when God sent him to save us? What about if Jesus never picked up the cross for our sakes, but instead, remained on the ground until they beat him to death. What about Joseph? What if he did nothing when his brothers, literally, dumped him for dead? It seems to me that no matter how...

Now Abimelech had not gone near her, so he said, "Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? 5Did he not say to me, 'She is my sister,' and didn't she also say, 'He is my bother'? I have done this with a clear conscience and clean hands." 6Then God said to him in the dream, "Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me. That is why I did not let you touch her. 7No return the man's wife, for he is a prophet, and he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not return her, you may be sure that you and all yours will die." -Genesis 20:4-7 There are somethings that I read in the Bible that make me scratch my head or cringe. Sometimes, I ask God how could he have allowed such things to happen, and other times, I have to chuck it up to our human inequities. That is exactly how I feel about Genesis 20. There are so many things wrong with this whole situation that I can go off; however, I h...

Blessed is the man who preservers under trial, because when he had stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love Him. -James 1:12 When life is good, it is good isn't it? I mean, sometimes it's hard to even remember that God had a hand in the good life. However, when things turn bad we start wondering why and asking questions of the Lord. When it gets really bad we might even start praying for deliverance, making promise to be better people if God helps us out this one time. It is never the one time thought, is it? Actually, I don't believe that there is anything wrong with calling on God when we are down, especially when we own up to our word and commit to changing our lives. No matter where we are, no matter what we do, or how low we get, God will always be there, waiting for us. We just have to seek Him out. So we should never be ashamed or afraid to go to Him even if we have spent 25 years ignoring Him because He will be there....

I am ashamed to say that I do not put God first. I know there are moments in my life when I have (maybe weeks at a time, if that), but those moments are fleeting. Right now, I am genuinely saddened and disappointed with myself. The bible says 31Therefore do not worry and be anxious, saying, What are we going to have to eat? or, What are we going to have to drink? or, What are we going to have to wear? 32For the Gentiles (heathen) wish for and crave and diligently seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows well that you need them all. 33But seek ([a]aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness ([b]His way of doing and being right), and then all these things [c]taken together will be given you besides. 34So do not worry or be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will have worries and anxieties of its own. Sufficient for each day is its own trouble. -Matthew 6:31-34 (Amplified Bible) Is that not clear enough? So, what do I do (and most of you out ther...