WHEN A BIRD SINGS....

So, I just got out of Zumba class. I have missed the last couple of Sundays for whatever reason.  But, I could not help but want to come home and write about the pure joy that it brings me.  Where else can you get a good dance in, with a room full of people, and good music, and its totally okay to sweat! I absolutely love it! I am really big on blasting some good music and just dancing.  I do this a lot in my house, just by myself.  So, now I have a bunch of other ladies and gentlemen to share that joy with. In my Zumba class, there is just so many different type of people. Like, people I am sure do not party at the same kinds of places that I party.  So, I just love seeing all types of people moving and shaking their rumps! I see a twin pair, they come dressed very similar every time.  They have so much spunk and are some movers and shakers in Zumba.  Then there is the teacher protege.  Her smile is just contagious.  Then you have the Sa...

Someone I care about told me this...he said "Raven, just be!" I got frustrated at first and couldn't really receive the message. I'm just coming to embrace it. I have to live. I have to define my standard of living. I have to grow and shape myself into my truest form. I have to just BE! I share this photo as a friend caught me in action. Dancing in City Center, letting the beat of the drums move my body. Not caring about who is looking and not worried about my lunch in my hand...just feeling the music and the vibrations. Just BEING! What I've been working on is remaining positive. Focusing on the now. Paying attention to what's important in my life; for my personal growth and well being. Thank you to my loved one for always awakening some evolution in my being. I appreciate your presence. 

So the first book that I finished in 2015 is "sisters of the yam: black women and self recovery" by bell hooks.  I've been on a 6 month mission to regain control of my emotions.  My mom had been suggesting a self-help book for the longest.  I was anti-self help books and had been for a long time.  I'm like, no one can tell me how to live my life but myself.  BUT I took my mom's advice and stepped outside the box. I decided on a book by bell hooks, well because I am a trained academic.  I tend to give more respect to people who are also trained academically.  bell hooks is a well known Black feminist author.  I can say that I have read some of her work, but I haven't worship'd it.  I say that because people worship her and her thinking. lol. I guess I have never identified as a feminist.  Not that I don't believe in women rights or women equality, I just never identified myself as a feminist.  I've had some issues with owning my wo...

I have a friend Marisha Dixon.  This girl is a grinder.  Every time I turn around, she is creating something.  I love her drive, her motivation, her strength, her perseverance.  She has been inspiring me over the years to just go for what I want. The Authentic Me Campaign is to encourage young girls and women to purge their old beliefs, insecurities, self doubt, fears etc.  Find out more information here:   http://www.theauthenticmecampaign.com/the-authentic-me-campaign-epk/

People always have something negative to say about Oakland and especially Oakland public schools.  Although they are right in some ways, but they are also very wrong in other ways.  When I hear, "Oakland don't do nothing for their students"....its hella irritating.  Well first because I work for Oakland Unified, and I know that I am working really hard for my teachers.  So its just disrespectful to all of the hard working people that are working at the schools to transform student lives. And one way that is happening, that's been happening, has been through our career themed academies.  We call it Linked Learning.  Career themed academies provides a holistic approach to learning. Where teachers are working in teams, all subject areas are focused on a particular career industry, students are apart of a small learning community, students get extra support, students participate in career related experiences.   So me and 3 other women, Courtne...

Broken..the feeling of being shattered The heart…once solid…now in pieces Confused…not sure how this happened to me, to us The union….so strong, believed to be unbreakable The seed…replenishes the earth, brings joy and life, carries on your legacy Devotion…can it still stand? What room is there left for me? ______________________________________________________ Who knew a hurt like this before? My perfect vision being jolted by reality Could it have ever been perfect? I idealized us, what we were and what I wanted us to be Now faced with truth and the limitations of my imagination How to move forward? Where’s the tools? Life has cheated me; provided me with no armor to face this So I sit, think, contemplate…and pray to the universe for a vision of realism

I had been doing some thinking about how to make difficult decisions in life?  I actually decided to Google it...lol, because of course Google knows everything.  One of the first things that came up was a T.E.D talk by Ruth Chang.  I am not that into the T.E.D talk movement, but I decided to give it a shot.  I am not going to go into great detail about what the video was about (will provide the link at the end of this blog), but one thing that stood out that she discussed was how decision-making relates to our values. I took a moment to think about, okay, what are my values? Honestly, I could not come up with anything.  So this evening, I took sometime to do some research.  Leave it to an academic to always want to research some sh*t. LOL In doing some reading about values, the first question that comes up is: What is important to me?  Values are important because they help to guide our actions.  They reflect, or at least should reflect how we...