Hooray!!! Happy Birthday to Be Lifted.
Ever since I was young I loved to write. I remember the day that I decided to become a blogger. It seems almost like yesterday when I started my blog. It’s my blog that consists of my thoughts, poetry, diet lifestyles, and choices of music.
Three years later Be Lifted is still going strong. I look forward to many more years of blogging.
Growing up my walls were plastered with posters of Skid Row, Kiss, Cinderella etc. My mother bought me t-shirts with Guns N Roses and Pantera on them. I’ve never went a long with what was considered to be the collective of the black community. I listen to all music but metal/ rock music is my favorite besides the lyrics in the rap music of today are disrespectful. I’m not interested in music that constantly degrades women it just isn’t cool. There are some women who listens to this kind of music with the excuse of well they aren’t talking about me. Which is so completely lame. Some of these rappers only concern is to make money not even wanting a gold or platinum record like how it was years ago. Rappers years ago wanted to make positive changes in the community. Things are so different from years ago that it almost breaks my heart.
The thing about the internet and social media people are able to connect and tell their truths. I can totally relate about being told that I’m not black enough because of my choices in music, social views etc. What’s being black enough anyway? Isn’t my skin color enough? I never understood the phrases “acting white” or “not being black enough”. Still I’ve heard this most of my life. It only kept me isolated when I was young. I can definitely relate to this video it’s the story of my life.
First and foremost
Love has no color
In my eyes
If anything
We only deprive
Ourselves of
The endless possibilities
By limiting ourselves
Because we are afraid
To think outside
Of the box
Which has nothing
To do with preferences
Let’s be clear
It all boils
Down to fear
Why not step
Beyond our comfort zone
We become free to fly
High and broaden our horizons
We find out that
There is a whole
New world
To explore
That will embrace
Us and give
Us what we deserve
And a lot more
What a treasure
When we realize
That we can
Have better
We begin to change
We begin to grow
We become less hard
We feel more safe
In our womanhood
Understanding that we
Can be tough as nails
Or soft as Daffodils
There is something about
Being a confident lady
Where we feel safe
It changes things
We owe it to ourselves
To see what’s
Out in the world
To stop questioning
Our worth
Because our past relationship
Choices showed it
Our name is not
The United Way,
Salvation Army,
Or Goodwill
We are not
Charity cases
Therefore no one
Should expect to
Come into our worlds
All while displaying
Very little effort
We deserve more
Than lazy daters
We deserve more
Than deadbeat fathers
Who have multiple
Children mothers
All of which they
Have zero thoughts about
Life is so short
Each passing day that goes by
Should consist
Of choices
That reflects realistic
Plans that were thought out
We are better
Than spontaneous decisions
Unless we are traveling
Around the world
Having a priceless worth
If not it will
Be our future
That will be hurt
The right mentality
Will attract the right people
Who are destined to
Be in our lives
But it can’t happen
Without being open
To change
And valuing who we are
We are courageous
We are radiate
We are brilliant
We are a gift
Anyone who says or thinks different
Is out of place
It’s our life
People who wants to
Bring us down shouldn’t be in it
It’s our choice
People who express negative
Is the opposite of positive
They do not serve a purpose
So let them go their way
As we keep shining
Being a beacon light
For true love to find us
I will be sincere I have trust issues, and you can trust me on this. Depending on who we talk to trust isn’t thought of in the same capacity. Some people don’t trust certain people due to specific “experiences” while giving other people a blank check to do as they please. They will chalk up trusting a lover who’s a repeat cheating offender as “Everybody plays the fool sometimes.” In a nutshell, trust isn’t always what it seems to be.
Trust once it’s broken will never be the same again. Is this a statement that we can trust? Whether or not we choose to admit it at some point, we have to trust somebody such as the people who prepares our food at restaurants, grocery stores, trusting drivers to obey the rules of the road, authors of books that schools teach our children with, etc. We don’t necessarily trust politicians, but we still vote and put them into offices. The government cannot always be trusted with the shutdowns and layoffs. Thinking of who can we trust, and the possibility of being let down can bring on all types of anxiety.
How about our pastors? Sadly the church has lost a lot of our trust due to some people’s bad behavior and always asking for money. The situation with the church is deep, in my opinion; the wrong kinds of people lead the church. People should have their eyes on God, not on people. People will quit going to church, give up on God, and use their bad experiences with people to justify their actions. These same people will trust certain people over and over again. I will go deeper into this subject at a later time.
We can trust our family, friends, and significant others, right? Hmmm. I suggest that you don’t look at the divorce rates or watch the Maury show.
In recent years I have seen a lot, and other people have as well. As times goes on, less and fewer people are inclined to trust anything or anyone. It seems that most people who are trying to gain our trust have hidden agendas. Some people try to get close to pump you for information that they will use against you down the line. We are human beings we all have made mistakes, and as long as we live, it will happen again. I can’t take people who pick and choose the people who they decide to give great trust to seriously. It just shows the lack of importance placed on trust, which is the reason why I have trust issues.
Trusting a person’s experience is also a gamble I have learned this from the interviewing of victims and witnesses class. To trust a person’s experience would mean trusting their memories, there are things which can taint the accuracy of their memories like their feelings towards certain people or subjects, which is the reason why detectives rely heavily on forensics because a person’s memory isn’t always accurate and false memories are still possible. Even relying on the memories right after an incident may not be authentic multiple people can witness it but have different recollections. Yep. Trust, at times, can be a tricky thing.
Three top mottos have helped me a little with my trust issues:
Be a person that can be trusted.
It’s possible that we could be wrong about a situation.
Expect the unexpected
I pray for discernment because the thought of opening myself up to trust people is just downright scary.
If you came up in the 90s, you might be familiar with the phrase thicker than a snicker. Someone may get mad with me, but the line between thick and obesity is wider than most choose to believe. Literally. It’s time to become more health conscious. I have been on both sides of the fence, which is why I know that it’s more to it for most people who struggle with weight. It’s more like what is it that is eating the person. I’m an emotional eater. Once I realized what was going on, I was able to work on the problem.
Some men tell women that they want them to be thicker than snickers but complain when they become big as a brick house. Look I want to be healthy, and that’s the way that I am staying. Most of my family have the battled of the bulge. I am not shallow; it’s about my health. Some black women do care about being fit because they want to be healthy. Thankful for the Keto diet, it has changed my life.
Daily, I see some men who claim that they are not concerned about a woman’s weight when they should be. Women should look at men who say that they don’t care about her size. I mean, what man wouldn’t want his lady to be healthy? Obesity is the leading cause of high blood pressure and diabetes. Less than truthful men disgust me because honesty is what’s best. Being fit helps with not just being content with life but living well and living it to the fullest. Plus size clothing isn’t the only complaint, but it’s one of them they don’t fit well and let’s not start on the different color patterns. Not downing anyone, it’s hard to lose weight and keep it off. Losing weight helps with not just our physical state but our mental state as well.
Society had become so sensitive from when I grew up that Christmas songs are no longer fun anymore. Social media has made it easier for people to beef about stupid things. The stupidity leak is real, and I can’t deal. If there is one thing that culture class has taught me is that we all can learn something from someone else. Some people think that they know everything and don’t need to learn anything else. In life, we must understand that people will not always agree with us or think like us. The only people who we can control are ourselves no one else. We have to learn how to agree to disagree. Heck. Our enemies can have things to offer at times because they may tell us something that a friend or family member may be too afraid to say.
I don’t want to align myself with a bunch of yes men/women. I want people who will tell me when I’m wrong. Shoot! Help me don’t hurt me by holding back information that I need to hear. I’m not a person that’s hard to communicate with. If I ask a person for their opinion, I’m open to the response. I don’t want to control a person’s opinion. I’ll only hurt myself in the long run.
I’m not an airhead. I’m not a bobblehead. I think the way that I choose. I use to feel not so brave about sharing the way that I thought, but now I embrace my thought process. I’m secure about who I am, which is why I don’t take it personally if a person doesn’t agree with me. There are Republicans and Democrats who see politics differently. There are the prosecution and the defense which look at the same case in different ways. Not being able to look at situations from a different perspective can make a person closed-minded.
Two of the keys to successful weight loss is exercising and great music! I enjoy walking. There is so much music that gets and keeps me pumped. Music from every genre is awesome however I be wanting to rock. Here are my top 10 songs on my morning walk :
10. Wild International- One Day As A Lion
9. Anthem for the year 2000- Sliverchair
8. Cinnamon Girl- Type O Negative
7. I Don’t Care Anymore- Hellyeah
6. Thunderstuck- AC/DC
5. Spoonman- Soundgarden
4. I Loud It Loud- Kiss
3. What You Do To Me- Straight Line Stitch
2. I’m Broken- Pantera
1. Over and Over and Over- Jack White
This black girl loves to rock. Oh Yeah!
Year after year goes by
And people tell themselves
That things will be different
This time
They make a new year’s resolution
As if it’s a magic potion or
An automatic solution
For whatever the problem may be
Still everything in life
Isn’t that easy
Some things are just
Too painful
When a person tells
You to leave things
In the past
Depending on what it is
It’s a sign of them
Having a lack of compassion
Or attempting to not deal
With a situation
Some situations have to be
Dealt with
Because they aren’t avoidable
One shouldn’t consider
Themselves a Christian
Is they have no empathy
For others
No one sat in school
And told the social studies teacher
To leave history
In the past
Or they would have failed
History class
Have they not heard
Of the saying
Those who don’t learn
For the past are
Doomed to repeat it
If certain situations
Are dealt with
How could it be left
In the past
The healing process
Can never began
Without acknowledging mistakes
That have caused pain
Things can’t just be
Swept under a rug
Try having understand
Before speaking as if
You do
Or you will only
Become part of the monster
Of a person’s past
Simply because you are
Trying to get past
A situation that you don’t
Want to deal with
Or don’t care about
Maybe because
It’s not you
Trying saying those
Words to a domestic violence survivor
Or family member
Of a murder victim
Be part of the solution
Not the salt being applied
To an already severe wound
As most people know February is black history month. Every year I enjoy finding out things that I never knew which are enlightening. Who doesn’t know about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. or Rosa Parks? So I decided to look up black women of the heavy metal world, which isn’t a surprise. I love metal and rock and roll. Last year I wrote about the band Living Colour and Jimi Hendrix. Most people are familiar with the people that I just named and even the group King’s X. What do you know about Straight Line Stitch? They go so hard. Oh my gosh!!!
Alexis Brown has been the lead singer of Straight Line Stitch since 2003; she’s a black woman and very beautiful. When it comes to heavy metal, I feel that women in general, regardless of skin color, don’t get their dues. Women can go just as hard as men in metal.
A few cool things about Alexis are Goofy is her favorite Disney character, she named her cat Waffles because it’s Goofy’s cat’s name as well, she’s an old school horror fanatic, and she had a baby by the bassist Jason White.
Alexis was born and raised in Tennessee. Straight Line Stitch started in Knoxville, Tennessee. They have been on tour with Slayer which says a lot. My favorite songs by Straight Line Stitch are Black Veil, Taste of Ashes, and What You Do to Me. When you get a chance, please give this band a listen it’s so worth it.
Growing up my mind was consumed
Of dreams of having a house
With a white picket fence
Stories of
Cinderella and Snow White
That consisted of highlights of a kiss given
That broke a horrible spell
Or being set free
From the bondage
Of an ungrateful wicked family
Who happiness
Was a beauty’s misery
Still the endings
Were always ones of
Happily ever afters
Then I grew up
And realised
That real love isn’t
A fairy tale
That true love
Sometimes consists of
Having an understanding
That a special moment
Is sometimes all that we are
Blessed to have
It could be the right person
But the wrong time
It could be the right time
But the wrong person
They may not be in a position
To give what is required
Even holding on
For longer than
We should can have long lasting
Consequences
I am not saying that
Having love isn’t important
Because it is
Love alone isn’t always enough
Is all that I am saying
Love is beautiful
Being in love is amazing
Even more so
When it’s mutual
When the love is true
The love is without boundaries
It’s given completely
Unapologetically
Free of the fear
Of being vulnerable
Not concerned about
Who loves who the most
Because true love is
Immeasurable
It’s a true treasure
With the heavy appraisal tag worth
Of being accountable and responsible
In order for things to work
Being prepared
For the possible
Finality of a relationship
That’s the reality of life
It’s loving a person enough
To let them go
Even though it
Was something
That we never dreamt of doing
It’s always wishing
Them well no matter what
The outcome is
If the feeling is the opposite
Then perhaps it wasn’t
Real love to begin with
True love isn’t selfish
It’s being totally committed
It’s being selfless
Real love, true love
Isn’t a fairy tale
Just by our judgment and actions alone
When we are in love
Shows that it’s not easy to
Create or imagine
It’s raw and not simple
Love doesn’t guarantee
That people won’t get hurt
Still as the famous
Quote goes
It is better to have loved
And lost than never to
Have loved at all
Be Lifted 