Take A Different Road

Lately I've been doing a lot of thinking about the patterns I see in my life.  Often I find myself making the same mistakes and feeling out of sorts for the parallel results of these choices.  While I was doing my spring cleaning, I found a poem that a client/domestic violence survivor of mine gave me years ago.  As I unravelled this crumpled piece of paper, I realized it was exactly what I needed at the exact time in which I needed it.  It helped me remember that I am strong enough and wise enough to break any adverse pattern.  I am the only one who can take a different path.  Wanna know something else?  So are you!  Hope you enjoy...

Once upon a time, on a Monday, a man was walking down a road.  All of a sudden, out of nowhere, he found himself at the bottom of a big, dark place.  It was scary!  After several hours, he figured out that he had fallen into a very large pothole.  He wasn’t able to get out on his own–actually it required a lot of help to get out, but eventually he did get out.  It was awful.

The very next day–Tuesday, the man was walking down the road and fell into the pothole again.  This time he immediately recognized where he was, but he still couldn’t get out.  He needed help again.

Wednesday, when the man fell in the pothole for the 3rd time, he remembered how to get out, and–with much hard work–was able to get out on his own.  Whew!

On Thursday, the man was walking down the street again.  As he approached the pothole, he remembered his previous falls.  He even saw the pothole when he got close… but unfortunately he fell in anyway.  But he knew the way out pretty well this time, and got out quickly.

On Friday, the man saw the pothole from a good distance away.  He felt so proud of himself for spotting it, and while it took a lot of effort, he did manage to walk around it safely, and didn’t fall in for the first time in a long time!  Hurrah!

On Saturday, the man took a different road.

~Author Unknown

Spring Cleaning: Saying Good Riddance to Bad Rubbish!

Good Afternoon All!  Despite the fact that I revamped the site (hope you like the springy themeJ), I am shaking my head at how long it has been since I graced your presence with a post!  For good reason though because life is truly taking off!  I started my new blog. I MOTIVATES (check it outJ), I’m taking some classes, tackling my business and a slew of other positive and productive endeavors.  God is so good!  However, there is another side to my absence that is not so positiveL, but oh so necessary!  I’m typically a very understanding and forgiving woman, but lately I have chosen to take my mothers’ timely advice.  With spring finally here, it is time to do some inventory and cleaning of our relationships!  My version of this activity involves assessing the value of the people in my life, strengthening those partnerships that deserve to stay and you guessed it…saying good riddance to bad rubbish!

S(Mothered): Single Mothers Raising Boys

Disclosure Statement: This is not a post to blame or critique mothers.  With any rule, there is an exception.  Even within a two-parent home, there are no guarantees for effective parenting.  There are many examples of exceptionally strong and well-rounded men who were raised without their fathers.  As a young woman with a keen eye and discerning spirit, I am speaking of those who were adversely affected by never having a strong, positive male role model.

The old cliché “Like father, like son” has undergone an overhaul in recent generations!  Subtract father; add mother and we have a problem that just doesn’t equal up.  In almost every aspect of life, women have become the modern day super-hero.  Although able to tackle numerous things without breaking a sweat, there is one thing that the wonder women of our time cannot do alone…raise a man.  Approximately 84% of custodial parents are women according to the US Census Bureau*.  Many of these mothers are enduring the daunting task of raising their sons without the father/father figure to assist in the parenting process.  It is not only unfair to the mothers; it is unfair to society as a whole.