Always Thinking And Learning BY: KB 5.2.16

Good Morning y’all….

I’ve been deep in thought for these past few days…nothing in particular or anything overtly serious but what I can tell you is that my mind has been on hyper-drive. This is particularly scary for me because I’m always two or three steps ahead of my thoughts with random thoughts so imagine the mental tornado that is me.

My saving grace is that I still my mind and slow my thoughts every morning when I read the Bible and my many devotionals. As I have shared before my thoughts about organized religion have drastically changed and I want no dealings with fundamentalists and blind followers. I want to be with the brothers and sisters who tend to “think” and question what they’re being told without negating the existence of a Supreme Being or divine power that guides. I choose to call the entity God.

Phew, with all that being said ….I don’t often share the fact that I studied in seminary and that at one point in time of my life I was a youth minister. The experience was humbling and it also taught me that I wasn’t called to lead in that capacity.

Saying all this to say that I was reading the word this morning when I came across a verse that was cause to pause….now it’s from an obscure book that most people don’t read but should because it’s rich with history. I read Joshua 3: 3-4

When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests, who are Levites, carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before. 

I was like all excited to read this because it was another example of protoevangelium  (simply defined -  is the term for the first declaration of the gospel)

The Ark of the covenant was said to contain the tables of the 10 commandments and the rod used by Aaron and a pot of manna. In essence the Ark carried the remembrance of promises of God. Does this sound like the person of Christ?

The verse tells us if we are filled with these promises we should have followers….as we follow the Ark of the promise…

All I can say is wow…this book is written in such a way that you cannot doubt the existence of a guiding hand. It’s all written at different times by different people who have never seen the original text but somehow seem to stay on course with the thought (followers)

2 Timothy 3:16   All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,…

Message For My Brothers BY: KB 4.29.16

My brothers, princes, kings and gods…..I’m going to address you how the world should…I say should because I, personally, feel that if you felt highly about yourselves you would act accordingly; holding yourselves and other brothers to a higher standard.

I’m telling you this based on my experiences as a gay woman….some of you may not agree with what I have to say so I’m going to tell you to do your own “research” (start asking questions and having difficult questions about yourselves and the messages of misogyny that you allow yourselves to absorb)

I’m one of those people who believes that there is scientific proof of homosexuality. I knew I was gay at the age of five but I didn’t have the vocabulary or the personal space to nurture my authentic self. I have since, after many years of struggle, come to a place of self-love and self-acceptance…..saying all this to say that there have been times in my life where I had to point out to other women that they were NOT gay and that it was not my place to capitalize on their confusion.

The women that I have encountered have been hurt by YOUR actions my brothers…you have watched and learned ways to force yourselves upon women. You have allowed yourselves to learn and practice speech that denigrates your blessing and balance. You’ve learned ways to physical crush the body and spirits of you gift from God….

Tupac left you with a profound message of encouragement when he wrote :

“And since we all came from a woman
Got our name from a woman and our game from a woman
I wonder why we take from our women
Why we rape our women, do we hate our women?
I think it's time to kill for our women
Time to heal our women, be real to our women”

My Brothers and yes, some of you lesbian sisters it’s time to generating healing. It’s time to embrace and restore the spiritual essence of what we call love (Philos, Eros and Agape) 

The Bible was right…snakes do walk and talk !!!! BY: KB 4.28.16

 

Yesterday I posted a line from the song “Back Stabbers”

The line goes “ a few of yo’ buddies sure look shady..” but I changed the lyric to sho’ nuff shady. I changed the lyrics because the situation I was witness to was somewhat similar to an experience I had and it pisses me off every time I see it played out. This incident was especially painful to watch play out because I know one of the people and they have a sweet spirit and I know that this only served to harden them just a tiny bit.

So periodically I delete a few facebook “friends” because I don’t know them and how they even became a part of my facebook in the first place. Whenever I do my “spring cleaning” I manage to inadvertently delete a few people I genuinely like. So long story short ( I know too late, right?!!!) I deleted some folks and by the time I realized that “Hey ol’ so and so hasn’t said anything in a while…” I look ‘em up and they’ve completely disappeared. I look up their girl and OH SNAP!!!! she’s hugged up with someone else in photos. Of course I say something to ol’ girl and I get this short and somewhat shitty response back. I tell her that whatever transpired was between her and my friend ….I ain’t got nothin’ (yup grammatically correct for this situation)  to do with what went down.  I’m still friends with both of you  ….I got dust in the way of a response and heard crickets… this was some months ago….

Yesterday after I was scrolling through IG I was able to piece together the back story. Ol’ girl had hooked up with someone that was allegedly in the “crew” and my young buddy was to green (ol’ girl was only her second serious LTR)  to see the signs.

You have to establish group/crew rules from the gate and let your peeps know that nothing strains a relationship harder than dating ex’s or family members and if it’s off limits tell the crew from the very beginning.

Now, for me, this goes without saying because there is just some shit you don’t do if you view yourself as a decent human being but some folks have to be told this ….and that’s what pisses me off. Why don’t they see that they’re damaging relationship and connections on a very deep level…

To the player involved….just know the same way you swooped on ol’ girl is going to be the same way you lose her. How to you feel posin’ and snapping pics with this woman when a few short months ago you were in her “family” pics?  Don’t say you’re in love because up until you rode up she was in love with someone else….

Another message for you player….some women only serve to teach you some hard life lessons and you’re about to learn that you were something to do until the nest great love rolls up…so think about how you slithered in when the next snake shows up.

MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN….yeah right!!!!! BY KB 4.20.16

It’s been a minute since I’ve posted anything on my blog….life just caught up with me and I had to deal with a few things and hopefully I’ve dealt with a few things enough to focus.

I had a good night’s sleep so I’m full of “piss and vinegar” as my grandma would say. I went to bed listening to all the noise about the New York, my home state, primary vote.

I’m going to try to be respectful of the winners….please note that I said “try.”

TRUMP – Is running with the slogan “make America great again….” I’m curious to know what timeline he’s using? I suppose America is great when you have money. I suppose America is great when you never have to “juggle” bills or “put something on it.” I suppose America is great when you never had a massive student loan debt. I suppose America is great when you live in a penthouse and never have to worry about multiple rent increases or eviction. I suppose America is great when you never have to ask for a living wage.

Funny how this great country has to beg for a living wage but we’re the same people who will stand in line for  $200 tennis shoes…lining the pockets of the shoe company, a retired ball player who has done very little in the way of philanthropy, knowing full well that someone in some small country is getting about a nickel…..don’t they deserve a living wage? How freaking hypocritical! How can anyone follow Trump knowing he’s part of the 1% reason why people like me can’t retire….robber baron!  What in the hell does he know about diplomacy? You’ve heard what he’s said in speeches and debates?  We might as well just count the days until we really do have weapons of mass destruction pointed at us……but nobody’s thinking about that….they’re all on the Trump says what he’ thinks teat.

Hillary, OMG!!!! I have NO LOVE or sisterhood connection with this woman. I, personally, believe Trump should look at the size of her hands….meaning she’s the biggest penis in the room. Has anyone really questioned her on women’s rights?  The women’s rights are human rights speech is rhetoric….she’s running as Bill’s wife. What was her struggle? How did she overcome? What is it like working in a man’s world?

Now, my real bone of contention with Hillary is how she’s courting the Black vote. Her first faux pas with me was in 2006 when she stood in a Black church during an MLK celebration and made a statement saying that “they’re running the country like a plantation…”

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/01/17/clinton.plantation/

Just let that sink in; a Black church, during an MLK celebration and she’s campaigning with that level of comment.

Her second moment for me was the comment, supported by Bill Clinton, “ bring them to heel…” comment addressing what she believes to be a “super predator” 

http://www.salon.com/2016/03/01/we_have_to_bring_them_to_heel_watch_a_decade_of_hillary_clintons_shameful_hypocrisy_on_racism/

to me she may as well have said “we’re now working on ways to break a (insert whatever racial epithet applies) …” while smiling and kissing babies.

The final straw was the ultimate pimp move….she’s on an urban radio program and pulls hot sauce out of her purse (see Beyonce “formation”)….now I’m at the point of not even looking at politics and lobbying. I’m just saying BIH PLEASE!!!!!   Hillary can’t and most likely won’t do a damn thing for me or people who look like me…..I know I CAN count on her to do it to me (every pun intended)   I’d vote for Gumby for president before I would ever cast a vote for her….

DV BY: KB 4.4.16

Having grown up in chaos and madness…I am always emotionally triggered when I see cops responding to a domestic situation, which was the case in my morning commute.

I often find myself praying for the people involved and I pray even harder if there are children involved because I knew what conflicted and confused feelings I harbored as a kid. As an adult it saddens me to see how we’ve become so desensitized and how we’ve normalized the bullshit ( I use the word bullshit because that’s exactly what it is) The sick thing about it is that we're taught that it's our secret to keep. As a child you don't feel safe but you have to hold the secret for the adults. I know of at least two people that I speak to on a regular basis who have lost a parent to the insanity.

As a kid…I remember the feelings and the raw emotion of helplessness as I was sheltered in place in another room but hearing the craziness. I remember being pushed aside for my safety while a hulk of a man (my father) put hands on my mother for some of his concocted madness and insecurities.

As a teenager…I threw caution to the wind, no longer giving a damn about personal safety or who said or did what but I wasn’t going to allow the bastard to put hands on my mother; me standing tall with a healthy sense of fear reaching a point of standoff knowing that someone was about to see Jesus. I guess that’s how I obtain the reputation of the “ENFORCER” of the family because I developed a definitive sense of fair-play and right and wrong and I was willing to fight and die for the principle.

I was raised not to go looking for a fight but I damn sure am not going to run from one either especially when I know a person can’t or won’t defend themselves for whatever reason.

I watched how growing up under “war torn” conditions has impacted me and my siblings…as long as I’m drawing breath my sister will ALWAYS have my protection….she’s not a pushover in any way but she’s also not a fighter. My brother has inherited every shady characteristic of my father…bullying and beating every woman that he has ever been with….he talked about how he disliked the actions of my father (when he was younger) only to become a carbon copy.

I’m not one to take hot tempers or insanity….you put your hands on me be prepared to get it back. I’m not one to look the other way or not report it…..that’s some cowardly bullshit….someone’s life may hang in the balance. I don’t get the news reports after where people say they knew something wasn’t quite right or they’ve heard things…….

Be a human being and save a life…get past the point where you care whether a person likes you or not……it costs nothing to be a decent human being.

3 Words BY: KB 3.25.16

I have been busy, in fact too busy with the hustle and bustle of adult life, although I do try to avoid adulthood as much as possible..it's just too much sometimes. All kidding aside...I have been so busy that I almost forgot the significance of three little words that mean so much.

Today is good Friday and the day has the three word utterance "It is finished..." "He is dead..." but SUNDAY!!!! Ah!!! SUNDAY "He is risen..." Don't miss the significance of the grammar  “HE IS” meaning He (Jesus) is in a constant state of exaltation. He is Lord

Oh, I may question a lot of thing that I was taught about the person and the character of God because I know that there have been many, misinterpretations shared and upheld over the years but I will never, ever question who God is in my life because I KNOW what He has wrought. I know the cost of my purchase and if you know me you know that I don’t use the word purchase lightly because it has so many connotations, implications and ramifications.

Just take a few minutes out of your busy today and just think about your cost and what God has done on your behalf……

Might Does Not Make Right BY: KB 3.14.16

Since Trump has become a frontrunner in the Republican party, America has once again turned up the heat on the Big Black Boogey fear factor. Far too many people are using their bias, fear and out and out racism to justify their position for garnering arms and ammunition. Because of the fear that’s being sold and manufactured this particular picture is being circulated around the internet. I’ve seen it in various machinations on various sites.

Let’s scrutinize the quote in its fullness and then and then juxtapose it with the subtleties of racism in America….

So please bear with me as I examine the quote in the historical context. Militia in this context does not mean a randy band of brothers fighting against them, that, those or perceived threats. Militia in this context means military. Please take into consideration the timeline for the events.

The question is, why would the Founders feel a need to codify (i.e., formally regulate) the militias?

Part of the answer might lie in the fact that even though the colonial militia had played an important role in the early fighting of the Revolutionary War, many of those leading the war effort, including George Washington, didn’t really think too highly of the colonial militia and/or its members, including the way they handled themselves in battle.

George Washington himself, upon assuming command of the Continental Army (which in 1775 was comprised entirely of militia), said, “All the General Officers agree that no Dependence can be put on the Militia for a Continuance in Camp, or Regularity and Discipline during the short time they may stay.” He would later say, “To place any dependence upon militia is assuredly resting upon a broken staff.”

- See more at: http://www.thomhartmann.com/forum/2013/04/regarding-pesky-%E2%80%9Cwell-regulated-militia%E2%80%9D-2nd-amendment-what-exactly-did-it-mean#sthash.qrYgrIzp.dpuf

The quote on the picture is also a misrepresentation of what was actually spoken; the actual quote is : "A free people ought not only to be armed, but disciplined; to which end a uniform and well-digested plan is requisite; and their safety and interest require that they should promote such manufactories as tend to render them independent of others for essential, particularly military, supplies."

The quote in the picture leaves things open for interpretation…who gets to decide what’s a viable threat. The George Washington quote has some rules for governance attached to is – follow the link.

Now just suppose for one second that Blacks followed the quote are initially posted. Do you think for one second that the “powers that be” would allow such actions? I can tell emphatically HELL NO!!!!! Marcus Garvey tried and he was held up as a subject for scorn and ridicule; systematically dismantled by the government and press. The Panthers tried and they were systematically destroyed by government infiltration and smear tactics to taint public opinion. Thirty years ago the police and government officials burned down an entire block in Philadelphia fire bombing, men, women and children in order to destroy an anti-government movement (MOVE). Seriously look at your history through A CLEAR LENS and tell me one time that any people of color who began to make noise about becoming self-contained or self-sufficient has not been over scrutinized by a biased media system? The press and the government had files on Dr. King, Malcolm X, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Caesar Chavez, Delores Huerta, Dennis Banks, Leonard Peltier…the list goes on….

We cannot irresponsibly call for militia or pander to fear!!! Shame on ALL the flag waving CHRISTIANS who seem to think that their racism and bigotry can be called nationalism and patriotism!!!!! I’m growing tired of the issues that people drape in the name of Christ and call it sanctioned and sanctified. God gave you a brain too………if you don’t stand for something you’ll fall for anything

How Ya Livin’?!