In honor of Cancer Awareness Month… The year is 1998. The doors of the church are open. The regular Sunday morning worship service goes forth. Members enter the church greeting one another with smiles and praises to God for the opportunity to assemble together once more. At Greater Emmanuel Temple Holiness Church all are welcome. Visitors are greeted with warm hugs from Mable E. Perry II, the pastor’s 13-year old middle daughter who sings in the Children’s Choir with the voice of an angel. Everyone who meets her immediately falls in love with her charm and wit. From the moment I sa ..read more

 A lifetime passed before my voice was found... This blog features excerpts of my writing -- some are just snippets that may grow into short stories or novels. Others are thoughts about The Journey posted in the hope that others may find some connection. I was born in rural Birmingham, Alabama to a steelworker father and educator mother. The only African American in my class, I graduated USC with a BFA in Film Writing Cinema/TV. I am a member of the Gifts of a Wordsmith group and perform at the Carver Theater’s “On Stage” showcase. I have one published book of prose and poetry, Inspirat ..read more

When you feel like you're out there all alone. What is Depression? One Definition of depression is a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. 5 Signs of Depression that feed off one another that I am personally acquainted with are the following: No Desire To Wash: Overwhelming sadness can make you forget the last time you bathed or changed your clothing. Overweight: Weight gain is a by product of depression because you tend to find comfort in food with no exercise regimen to offset over eating. Sloppy Clothing: After gaining the weight you take comfort in wearing tops that slouc ..read more

Definition of A Dream The sleeping figure of a teenage girl sprawled across the bed with a pillow covering her head.  Her legs were tangled in a crotchet throw cover which she crocheted with her very own hands.  Her body lies still for she is at absolute peace until a booming voice disturbed that peace.   “Wake Up! Wake Up!  You’ve been in bed long enough.” The voice is that of her mom’s brother who she resides with in Pacoima, California as his house guest. That teenager was me and I’d just slept for an unbelievable 17 hours straight.   My uncle, Tandy, had ..read more

On Being Quiet Before she knew it, Mariah had consumed a half gallon tub of Blue Bell rocky road ice cream.  Her emotions were so raw she’d lost track of time again. Her body that was no longer a svelte size seven, lumbered across the four feet into the kitchen and rinsed the empty tub in the sink before tossing it into the garbage can. She couldn’t afford to have ants in the kitchen again.  Malcolm was sure to lecture and non-too nicely. Mariah placed the spoon into the half empty dish washer which she refused to cut on until she had a full load. She didn’t want to get into it wit ..read more