“Look, baby, I need some money. You need to figure out something,” was Tee-Tee’s heartless statement that lingered in my head. Later on that evening, I met up with my best friend, C, at a gas station that sat on the corner of 17th Street and East Broad Street. Like most nights down Richmond’s Shockoe […]
“I like you and you’re a good guy, Latif, but my daughter is no good. Leave her alone before you end up in some mess,” was the collaborate warning I got from my then-girlfriend’s mother and sister. I didn’t listen. Months after I had run away from home at 17. I met a beautiful 29 […]
In God I Trust For years on top of years, I have tried to venture my life’s journey without God’s total involvement. How foolish, right?! Better yet, how human of me to think I would fulfill my purpose without God leading the way?! How ignorant was I?! If I am a part of God’s plan, […]
Pray, pray, and pray! In my recent children’s book project, I am hinting to kids the importance of prayer and just how powerful prayer can be. “The Little Stories of DeeDee’s Life” is a series that I began writing in 2020. I’ve completed 10 manuscripts, and I’m currently working on the 11th, which is in […]
Sin is Certain Genesis 2:17 “In the day that you eat of [the tree of the knowledge of good and evil] you shall surely die.” My interpretation of this verse is obvious: sin is certain. He (God) didn’t say “if”, He said, “… the day that you eat …”, as in it’s destined that you’ll […]
Taming Lust The word ‘lust’ is often limited in its meaning. We should carefully consider this word and the broad spectrum of sin that it describes. It is likely that many of us are guilty of the sin of lust without ever realizing the bondage that it has placed on us. Lust is greed for […]
Talk It Into Existence In the beginning of my second year of high school, my then girlfriend and I established a bet that whoever earns the highest GPA (Grade Point Average) in the first semester gets bragging rights. Although my girlfriend wasn’t as serious about the bet, I didn’t take the it lightly. Everyday I […]
Cash App over JPay Have you ever wondered why your incarcerated loved one asks for Cash app? In the Virginia Department of Corrections, the appropriate way for an inmate to receive funds is through JPay.com; however, some inmates would have their loved ones send money to someone else, using apps other than JPay in order […]
Tired of Being Tired Do you know how the “bucket of crabs” saying goes? Imagine you’re a crab trapped in a bucket of full of crabs, and you’re the only crab trying to get out. That’s how my life feels in prison — I’m tired. Every morning when I wake up, I am disgusted with […]
For January 2024 it is Dr. Sharon Norris Elliott. After 35 years of educating students in several private schools in Southern California, Dr. Sharon N. Elliott put down her last dry erase marker and officially retired. The Compton native and BIOLA graduate, however, had no plans on settling down. Having started 4 companies which she […]