I had the pleasure of being a guest on the “My Sister’s Keeper” segement of the Coach Karren Todd show on 88.5fm alongside Rev. Autura Eason-Williams.
We had a great discussion and Q&A with listeners. Watch the video broadcast here.
In 2008, I made a life changing decision. I left an abusive marriage. I was extremely uncertain about where my journey would take me. I only knew that I could not continue down the path I was on, especially with my children. I was a very sad, broken individual. I was embarrassed and ashamed. I was financially challenged. It would prove to be one of the best decisions. I could have ever made.
The photo doesn’t begin to scratch the surface of my holistic success. But, it’s a great collage of one photo for every year since I rediscovered myself. Over the past ten years, I’ve started a business, a non-profit, gotten remarried, raised my children, became a proud MiMi, reconnected on my spiritual journey, became a 2x Amazon best selling author, have spoken and presented on some amazing stages, met some of the most interesting people in the fields I love, and most of all, learned how to love myself. One of the most amazing things I came to terms with while putting together these series of photos was recognizing that I am holistically beautiful. You cannot look at the photos and instantly tell which one is from the beginning of my journey and which one is the most current. I didn’t see myself and aesthetically or emotionally attractive.
As we enter into 2019, I am extremely excited about the direction of my life. I have s.m.a.r.t. goals. I have a great support system. I believe in myself. I have definitely experienced some major setbacks. I have disappointed others. I’ve been disappointed. The valley moments have given me the tools and courage I needed to accomplish the peaks and fully appreciate the process it took to get to them. I thank you for reading, and for being part of my journey. Sign up for my newsletter if you haven’t already. I’ll be sharing more news, events, prizes, and surprizes.
Greater Faith Tabernacle has been hosting the Daddy’s Girls Conference for the past 14 years. It has been an honor to work with and support the GFT family over the years for such an important event, as the event and the members of the congregation are dear to me. It was especially gratifying to be asked to serve as the Keynote speaker for their annual Kick Off Brunch.
I spoke about the importance of walking in faith, working through fear and trusting yourself and others. I shared my own experiences of abuse and what it means to be an overcomer. I shared about my earthly father and the relationship we had. We talked a lot about walking which was a big part of their theme for this year. Ironically, my organization is called Walking Into A New Life, Inc. And, as I always say, I do not believe in coincidences, so everything said and done that day was as it was intended to be.
The following is quoted directly from Greater Faith’s website to better provide the history of Daddy’s Girls and why it’s so important. I do encourage you to visit GFT if you’re living in Memphis or there visiting. Pastor and 1st Lady Johnson are beautiful souls and so is their entire congregation.
“Getting Families Together (GFT) is the nonprofit arm of Greater Faith Tabernacle Ministries, an edifice established for the community by the community. GFT is housed in the Institute for Success Center, a 15,000 square foot multipurpose community family life center, that opened its doors in 2004.
During the construction of the IS Center and approximately one year prior to its completion GFT’s founder, Pastor Orlester Johnson, received numerous women bearing similar experiences during altar call. Although their ages and nationalities varied, each woman spoke of the need to break free of the secret bondage holding them. These women shared similar stories of enduring sexual molestation as children, intimate partner violence (IPV), various other forms of domestic violence (DV), and other abusive situations. They spoke freely about the abuse they had suffered as a child and some confessed that they continued to suffer from violent situations in adulthood. Each of these individuals had grown up in households that did not include their biological father. Several spoke of being subjected to abusive stituations with men who were a relative, teacher, coach, pastor, or other person holding a supposedly “respectful” leadership role in their lives and that of their family.
As a direct result of receiving numerous disturbing accounts of this nature, the first annual Daddy’s Girls Conference convened in 2005. “
My 10 Year Milestone: On this day, ten years ago, I took my life back and became a DV survivor. To some, this may not mean a lot. There will be some who I KNOW will question why I’m sharing this at all. But, if you had known me the way that my children knew me 10 years ago, you’d know I was holistically broken with no real plan of how to care or love me or them the way we all deserved. Today, I can honestly say I love myself & do my best to make sure my children know they have my love & support. I am a happy, healthy wife, mom, MiMi, entrepreneur, executive director, national speaker, 2x Best selling author and committed to helping the community in the way it has been given to me to do. I’ve met the most beautiful people who’ve helped/supported me along the way (celebrities, and more importantly, ordinary people like me). I have never desired to be popular. I do, however, desire to be impactful. I want to have to heart of service like Edna with the smile & realness of John (my grandma & daddy).
If you’ve done anything (marriage, a job, a business, etc.) consistently for 10 years, you know it takes dedication, discipline, consistency, strong belief and your why (personal/professional) has to be stronger than any opposition you face (family, friends, colleagues, your own self doubt). It’s encouraging for others to see, hear and know.
To know me well is to know my love for movies. In fact, my husband tells me ALL the time that I need to find out how I can get PAID to become a film critic, discover a way to share my writing and love of little known facts, etc…lol I’m not sure where I’d need to start, but I do think I’d enjoy doing it. I’m a huge fan of James Bond, Mission Impossible and Bourne Identity Franchises. If it’s detective based, drama or action, I want to see it. But, there are a few people and movies that are extremely close to my heart for personal reasons. One person-Robert Townsend. One movie-The Five Heartbeats. To meet Mr. Townsend in person, have the opportunity to interview him AND for HIM to sign MY book, was one of the biggest highlights of 2018 but also of my life.
I don’t mean to sound over the top or overly dramatic. But, he’s one of the best storytellers of our time. He’s also one of the most hardworking and talented individuals in the film industry. Black Panther (which I absolutely love and have watched three times) was NOT the first Black Superhero to be featured on the big screen. It was actually Meteor Man, created by none other than Robert Townsend. He’s also known for believing in his own project so much that he went into his own pocket and funded what would later be recognized as the cult classic, Hollywood Shuffle.
When Heal the Hood Foundation brought him to Memphis to lead a panel discussion about film, I was just excited to have the opportunity to hear him share his words of wisdom and MAYBE take a picture with him. I took notes and recorded a couple of points with the intention of going back to see what I could pull from for my own journey. But, after the event, I was hanging around the interview area with my notebook and phone in hand listening to others interview him. All of a sudden, one of the attendants told me I could go ahead and ask my questions, just be quick. Seriously!?! I get to INTERVIEW him? So, of course, I took advantage of it. I’d just applied to be a freelance writer for the TriState Defender a couple of weeks earlier. I submitted it and it got published along with another article. I’d never been a PAID freelance writer before then.
Now, to the picture and him signing my book. He was allowing photos, so I stood in line with the intention of taking a photo with him and giving him my book. But, after listening to him share his insights, I decided to ask him to sign it so I could keep it as a keepsake. He did and gave me some great advice on staying in pursuit of my passions.
All of this is personal because in addition to it being a great movie filled with lessons, it gave me and my children (specifically my oldest) an escape during some dark times in our lives. There was a period where we had no cable and watched a lot of movies. We’d reenact them as well.lol The 5 Heartbeats was definitely one of the favorites. And, because I have been following Mr. Townsend for years, I felt a different kind of connection to the storyline and his vision for the movie. And, in all of this, I think the BIGGEST thrill was that my oldest daughter was able to attend and meet him as well. It was an amazing afternoon of bonding and learning from one of our favorite people.