Microphone Check

I stood up to you and you tried to destroy me. When I stand up for myself and for others afraid to speak, I’m viewed as a threat that must be silenced and destroyed, right? Wrong. I was scared, but I spoke up anyway. Taking the high road isn’t always easy when it comes to people like you. I know you tried to poison my name to others, and eventually those others learned the things you said about me weren’t true. Trying to destroy me was never going to make you more powerful. It only magnified that you were wrong about me all along. But I forgive you. When I tried to get help, I felt outnumbered. That was lonely, massively painful, and scary. Know what happens when people are scared of people like you? They stay silent. What's troubling is that often, when things like this happen, many people will watch you get attacked and say nothing. I forgive them, though. And I still forgive you. For awhile I thought something was wrong with me because you thought I didn’t belong when really you were the one with the problem. People like you… people like you… people like you are the reason why people stay away from churches and avoid the Christian community all together. I’ve seen people crying in secret and heard the stories people are afraid to bring forward. It’s incredible how horrible things can happen in beautiful places. I still forgive you, though.

But it wasn’t just you…

To the one who criticized my clothing

To the one who publically humiliated me

To the one who looked me in the face and pretended I wasn’t there

To the one who got jealous and stopped talking to me when the guy choose me, instead of her

To the one I was supposed to build with that never followed through

To the one who looked down on me

To the ones who were supposed to be my friends

To the ones I thought were my friends

To the people in places I went to for sanctuary that were scarring

And to all the ones who think and claim I embarrass the Kingdom… I forgive you all.

I don’t want an apology and I don’t need one. I’ve made my peace. I just don’t want what happened to me to happen to anyone else. I don’t have anything to prove to you or anyone else. I never did. I still have value. And most importantly, I know who I am. I won’t let people like you steal my joy, kill my spirit, or make me believe there still isn’t goodness in this fallen world. There’s enough room for all kinds of people to sit at the table, even when people like you don’t think so. I stayed quiet, held back, and was afraid to breathe a word about this. But I know my God and I don’t have to choose fear. I choose freedom.

-You didn’t ruin me.

The Day I Became A Kidney Donor

About a year ago, I had a dream my dad wanted to talk to our family about something serious. I wasn’t sure what he wanted to discuss, but I knew it was something I needed to prepare myself for. Around the time after I had this dream, I remember stopping by my parents place and sensing something was going on that they weren’t telling me. I tried to dismiss what I’d been feeling, but I couldn’t shake it. Something serious was happening. As I returned to my home after visiting them one day, I was in my kitchen washing dishes when a heaviness hit my heart like nothing I’d ever felt before. Something’s wrong with dad. That’s what that dream was about. God, what’s going on? As I continued washing dishes, I started crying and praying. Then in mid-spring, my dad held an unexpected family meeting that would change all our lives forever. He hesitated at first, and as his voice started cracking and he started crying, he said, “Well, I wanted to talk to ya’ll to tell you that I have kidney disea...

Dear Young Black Professionals

As you embark on your career, I want you to know some things and stay woke about what you’ll be up against. Please understand that no matter what, you have value, and you matter. Always remember that. As progressive as this world and different workplaces may seem, every workplace has a culture. You’ll be in different places where a lot of people who don’t look like you will be in the room. But know that you belong in those rooms too. Spend some time observing and studying those spaces and learn as much as you can. There will be people you work with who will make presumptions about your competence, education, and ability to fulfill your job duties. There will be more who will think less of you because of the color of your skin and try to disqualify you the moment you make an error, mistake, or ask questions about things you may not understand. This will all feel uncomfortable and you may get insecure, feel like you’re all by yourself, and think you don’t belong there, but ride it out...

Black Male Athletes And Their Dating Preferences

In the 2017 horror film Get Out , there’s an unforgettable scene when one of the film’s villainous characters, Rose, a young white woman, is seen eating Fruit Loops and drinking a bottle of milk through a straw as she searches the internet for “Top NCAA prospects.” This moment in the film is frightening because the purpose of Rose’s search is to ultimately lure young and unsuspecting Black men to a deadly fate after she begins dating them. If you’ve seen the film, you know how everything ultimately turns out, but if you haven’t, you’ll have a better understanding of the bigger picture. Recently, college football superstar and future NFL prospect, Travis Hunter, became a source of media scrutiny and controversy regarding his relationship with his fiancée, Leanna Lenee. Much of the criticism was around his fiancée and comments she shared about how she wasn’t initially interested in Travis before they started dating. Additionally, she received backlash regarding the couple’s interact...

Making Waves