Poetry Reading: When I Stopped Remembering Tomorrow
This is the title poem to the book of poetry and prose that I released in 2020. I am finally getting around to making some more audio recordings while I work on my next release, “Releasing Yesterday” (working title).
Do you have to let go of the script you’re writing for your life? Let’s walk it out together. It isn’t easy, but it is simple.
Happy weekend!
Dr. Tamika Hall – “God is Just That Into You” from The Purpose In My Pain Devotional Anthology
This month, I am sharing summaries of some of the chapters within The Purpose In My Pain: A 28 Day Devotional Written by Women of Purpose. Today’s highlight is the Introduction and opening chapter by Dr. Tamika Hall.
In the Introduction, Dr. Tamika Hall shares with us a glimpse of her history. As you read her words, she draws you into a state of empathy where you’re encouraged that someone who has endured so much is still standing and thriving.
The Purpose In My Pain: A 28-Day Devotional Written By Women of Purpose
Dr. Tamika Hall is a multifaceted author, speaker, actor, producer, and publisher, among other things. I came to know about her because of a supplement ad on Instagram about a year ago that caught my eye because it was sassy and fun and about a topic most women won’t discuss. And y’all KNOW I love to talk about things we don’t like to talk about. I started following her and later found out that another passion of hers was publishing anthologies. At that moment, I felt my heart leap because writing with others is something I enjoy because it means I will definitely FINISH the project instead of letting it sit half done on my computer for 22 years.
Read MoreJournal Prompts – Week Six
We are in the sixth week of the year and the first week of February. Amazing! I hope the year is going well for all of you and that you are blessed with friends, family, and loved ones around you so you can get through the trials and overcome the insanely crazy times that come our way and try to pull us under.
Let’s continue to do the things we love, and work on using our voices through our writing, speaking, art, and how we show up in this world.
As promised, here are your weekly journaling prompts. When I do the prompts myself before sharing them with you, I set a timer for 15 minutes and see what comes out in my journal. This week, I recorded myself sharing my responses aloud so I could work on my ability to share thoughts verbally without thinking them through first. There are no rules around how you use them, but this is a good way to begin if you are new to using prompts.
Let’s jump in!
Read More
Poetry: Waiting for You
Fun fact about me: One of my first career aspirations was to be the first female basketball player for the Atlanta Hawks. To play alongside Dominique, Mookie, Spud, and others. My fallback plan was to be an astronomer.
Last night after a dinner with a friend during which we talked about relationships, I shared some thoughts with another friend and then used the inspiration she gave me to write some poetry and get my thoughts out. The outcome? I wrote a little poem that brought together my first two career aspirations as I thought about someone I’ve pretty much given up on believing existed: my future husband.
I shared the draft on Instagram on December 6, 2021. Here is my current version.
Read MoreJournal Prompts – Week Five
We are already in the fifth week of the year! Let’s continue to do the things we love, and work on using our voices through our writing, speaking, art, and how we show up in this world.
As promised, here are your weekly journaling prompts. When I do the prompts myself before sharing them with you, I set a timer for 15 minutes and see what comes out in my journal. There are no rules around how you use them, but this is a good way to begin if you are new to using prompts.
I enjoy reading what comes up for you as you respond to them, so feel free to tag me on social or backlink here on the blog if you write or record a response. I’ve also enjoyed seeing the responses those of you who journal them in handwriting have sent to me via email. It’s exciting for me to see that these little ideas in my brain are fun and helpful for you as well. I may not always get to them in the same week I write them, as I have a few projects right now keeping me busy, BUT I will get to them and respond when I read them / watch them / see them.
Let’s jump in!
Read More
Journal Prompts – Week Four
We’ve made it to the fourth week of the year! Let’s continue to do the things we love, and work on using our voices through our writing, speaking, art, and how we show up in this world.
As promised, here are your weekly journaling prompts. When I do the prompts myself before sharing them with you, I set a timer for 15 minutes and see what comes out in my journal. There are no rules around how you use them, but this is a good way to begin if you are new to using prompts.
I enjoy reading what comes up for you as you respond to them, so feel free to tag me on social or backlink here on the blog if you write or record a response. I’ve also enjoyed seeing the responses those of you who journal them in handwriting have sent to me via email. It’s exciting for me to see that these little ideas in my brain are fun and helpful for you as well.
Read More
Pictures & Prose: The Release
Background for Pictures & Prose
Years ago, I had a started a series called “Pictures & Prose“. I never got it off the ground because I tend to start things and not finish. (Remember how we did the Procrastination to Progress Challenge in October to fix this bad habit?). Two posts and that was all you ever saw of the series.
To sharpen my writing skills, I began writing in my journal more last year and sharing creative writing entries with myself. I LOVE to sit with a pen and feel the story flow through me. This year, I am making myself type out some of the writing I usually do in notebooks. To start, I’d like to finally launch this series and do it monthly.
In this series, I stare at a picture for a few minutes – usually for five minutes before writing. I then set a timer and give myself 15 minutes to write whatever comes to mind, regardless of how choppy, riddled with typos, or terrible it may be. I don’t worry about how it sounds, how good it is, or if it even is something anyone else will like. I just write what comes to mind and flow with it. Sometimes they will be good and give way to future stories or poems. Other times, they will stay right here and never leave this series. The pictures come from friends, IG accounts I follow, or pictures I’ve taken throughout the years that I find while looking for other things.
Read MoreJournal Prompts – Week Three
Can you believe we are about to enter the 3rd week of January?! Let’s stay positive, continue to work on the things we love, and work on using our voice through our writing, speaking, art, and how we show up in this world.
As promised, here are your weekly journaling prompts. When I do the prompts myself before sharing them with you, I set a timer for 15 minutes and see what comes out in my journal. There are no rules around how you use them, but this is a good way to begin if you are new to using prompts.
I enjoy reading what comes up for you as you respond to them, so feel free to tag me on social or backlink here on the blog if you write or record a response. I’ve also enjoyed seeing the responses those of you who journal them in handwriting have sent to me via email. It’s exciting for me to see that these little ideas in my brain are fun and helpful for you as well.
Read More
Journal Prompts – Week Two
We made it to week two of 2022. How has it been for you? I have had a wonderful week with eye-opening conversations and events, joy-filled moments, and a ton of organization and preparation for this year! There have been moments of complete exhaustion because of all the things going on in my mind, but I’ve embraced that as part of my personality, so I am learning to make idea lists and move on until I am ready to explore new ideas and activities.
As promised, each Sunday I will post prompts for journaling. They will be a mix of creative, reflective, and other prompts based upon what’s going on in my head for the week. Some weeks, they will turn into posts in the future, other times they are just things that floated through my mind that I journaled about or thought would be fun to write about so I am sharing them.
Pick a prompt and write until you feel done, or set a timer for 15 minutes and see what comes out. Remember to tag me when you’re done or backlink to this blog so I can stop by and read what you posted!
For those who are visually impaired, scroll past the pictures for the section with the prompts written out. I hope this helps you participate as well!
Read More
Shell Vera 