Before the Black community knew that trauma, Depression, or anxiety had a name, there was an answer to all our problems: the answer was Jesus. Public tears were often mistaken for weakness. Silence was golden and a sure sign of [mandatory] resilience. People have taken family secrets and trauma to the grave because that’s what they did. It’s what we do. Generations of substance abuse and unexplained anger can be linked to unaddressed emotion or experiences.
Read MoreI recently noticed [another] massive difference between God and I. It was alarming because I’ve found it to be one of the pillars in our relationship: He is black and white. I have gray areas. So words like “all” or “total” haven’t always meant “all” or “total” to me.
Memes about a hairstyle that a client asked for versus what the stylist did crack me up. I’m not sure if this is good or bad. Recently I was chuckling about a meme when I realized something: God can relate to the disappointment and frustration of the clients that post the epic fails. These clients were hoping to be satisfied with what they asked for. There was an image or design they had in mind that wasn’t delivered.
As I consider this concept closely I think of times that I’ve sat in a chair or two and was spun around less than satisfied with what the stylist did to my hair. I was frustrated because I showed a picture-more than one knowing me, and was guaranteed by the stylist that they could do it. Ultimately, I was frustrated because I felt like I was lied to, used-assured just so that I would give them my hard-earned money, and completely fooled. Interestingly enough, I can recall a couple of stylists who were proud of their work for whatever reason. Maybe they felt that they should have gotten an “A for effort.”
Read MoreI saw a facebook memory recently. It was a post announcing that I would be releasing my first book. My mind “timehopped” to how I felt when I posted the cover art for the project. I was literally nauseous. Not that I find one type of nausea more enjoyable than another but, this was a terrifying feeling. I posted the cover art as a form of accountability for myself to eliminate cold feet. From there I continued the final writing stages and I spoke to God rather frequently regarding preparing my heart and the hearts of the readers. I wouldn’t dare try to front like there wasn’t any excitement in the mix because there was some of that too.
Even as I write there are so many memories flashing that it’s hard to decide which I should describe next. I’ll begin with the process.
Depression is something else! It's something that many people have wrestled with at some point. Either past or present. There are some who are unaware that they are or have been depressed. There are others who are in denial. I’ve heard some argue that they don’t get Depressed. My interpretation of such is that they may not necessarily know what they've experienced; however, I believe everyone encounters Depression at some point in their life. Depression tends to have a negative connotation within some cultures. Thus, some people are reluctant to share their experiences.
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