Crystal Clear Observations

Not even one month into the new year and a young woman I grew up with lost her battle to breast cancer. I remember the day that another classmate inboxed me to tell me about her diagnosis and asked me to reach out to her via facebook. Over the next few weeks, I would read about how hard the chemo was on her body and her subsequent trips to the ER and hospital. All the while, I am cheering her on to victory, encouraging her from my own treatment experiences and praying for her wellness. NOTHING HAS BEEN HARDER FOR ME THAN SEEING ANOTHER WOMAN DIE FROM THE SAME DISEASE THAT I MANAGED TO OVERCOME. It saddens me deeply because I realize that a) that could have been me b) I see the impact that her death has on her friends, family and loved ones and c) I wonder when the other shoe will fall for me. With each death, I very small part of me dies with her. A dismal part of my heart and faith are chipped away. She fought as hard as I did, she had reasons to live, she had people that loved ...

I don't blog daily because I strive to be relevant. In between social media posts, I do live a real life. This week, my facebook newsfeed has been inundated with bloggers and writers upset about current media portrayals of Black women on television; specifically the fictional characters of Olivia Pope on "Scandal" and "Being Mary Jane" on BET. First let me state the obvious: These are fictional characters . Dramatic television is simply that. In order to engage an audience, you must have conflict and character flaws. Few people would tune in to watch a show where perfect people go to their perfect jobs and return home to their perfect families in their perfect communities with absolutely no conflict, turmoil or drama. Television serves as an escape. We invest our time and emotions into characters which we can relate to at some level. My biggest concern with everyone upset with these portrayals is that they don't know what the resolution will be. These ch...