Never Losing Faith, Hazel J Says, "Girl, Wear Your Big Hat"

Hazel J Author

"The way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon them." Ida B. Wells.

In December, I had a visit by a genuine and lovely lady, Hazel Jay also known as Lady J.   It has been almost seven years since I last saw Hazel who attended one of my entrepreneur training workshops over twelve weeks in 2012.   Hazel is a poet, educator and recent author of 'Girl, Wear Your Big Hat.'  I invited her to join  me on the Sister Love: Untethered and Under the Radar Podcast to talk about her social entrepreneur endeavors and promote her new book.   She has become a member of the SEX-C BABE - Sister Extraordinaire Circle of Black and Brown and Extraordinary women!  The episode is titled 'Faith in Steps: One Foot In Front Of The Other,' because Hazel gives her testimony about her faith walk and  how God's blessings continues to carry her. 

A single mother of four, Hazel struggled to complete graduate school at Mills College in Oakland, California.  She states that it was very challenging and with the challenge came the revelation that she had a learning disorder.  Initially discouraged,  Hazel did not give up.  She persevered with hard work and determination to work through her disability and obtained a Masters Degree in business. Following her triumph, came many lows and several bumps and bruises with new lessons.  Through the tough times came the vision for her venture IGLOW; which stands for "I am Golden, Legendary, Original and Wondrous."   The IGLOW project provides transformational development and coaching specific to single mothers and entire families.  

In the podcast segment The Woke Ancestor,  Hazel's motivational female is Ida B. Wells, American Journalist, Civil Rights Activists and one of the founders of National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAAC)).   Listen to this inspirational conversation and hear what was Hazel's recent activity in the Pursuit of Happiness.   She is completing a children's book titled 'A Through Z Inventors Who Look Like Me.'  Click on 'Girl, Wear Your Big Hat' to purchase the book and to read more about the author and her book.

Hazel is also one of twelve contributing authors in the book 'Real Talk: Intimate Discussions on Love, Life and Relationships and the author of her latest book leaned on the blessings coming her way. 

Listen to Podcast Hazel J. on Sister Love: Untethered and Under the Radar

Surviving Health Care is a Joke!

"Sorry, we can't find your records."

How are you surviving this week?  I truly hope your week is going wonderful, marvelous, and stupendous but then, life happens! The last few weeks in American has been possibly the most extremely violent in history outside of social riots and the Civil War. The number of guns in the hands of terrorist, mentally ill, hate-filled persons cannot be tracked. It's too late. In the last couple of weeks I became acutely 'woke' this week about the state of mental and overall health in America.
Warning: We are a society that is increasingly heading towards subliminal desensitization to human trauma. Compassion is diminishing in mind,-body health, spirit and in self-awareness; which, and therefore feeds into Peripheral Neuropathologies.

 
As a advanced society, we are advancing toward rapid decline of mental health and stability. The slow and systemic cloud aggressively promotes and enables our daily addictions. Masses of citizens use addiction to suppress feelings of dissatisfaction, anger, unhappiness, and traumatic pass experiences. What has happened to the quality of healthcare in America in the last twenty years?

In almost two years, since Trump became president he has made deliberate attempts to eliminate the Affordable Care Act also known as Obama Care, we have seen a care providers removed from the plan and a diminishing quality in the deliverance of health care. And are we doing about it?

My experience over the past year has been a nightmare with three different health providers, enough to make me loopy! In fact, it's got to be a joke. Here are a few punchlines.

• Why should Trump be worried about Democrats when in 2016, he's convinced most health providers drop Obama Care so that only Health Scare will kill off the remaining population.
• What do you call a medical facility that scoffs and broadly herds patients like a tobacco chewing cowboy at a round-up?     General Hock-spittle.
• What do you call a miserably inadequate physician who resents working in the hood and spitefully promotes death care instead of health care?   Dr. Kill Ova-Dere.
• What do you call it when an anglo doctor rudely does't not listen and treats all black patients with the same implicit bias?  -  Blindspotting.
• What do you call a doctor at a ghetto clinic?   A  Nurse Practitioner. 

Healthcare in America deserves criticism.  The quality and services is as poor as the communities served or if your in a higher income facility, the doctors have difficulty hearing you as a person of color. It's supposed to be healthcare but feels more like HEALTHSCARE, then it's HEALTH-KILL instead of promoting wellness you are receive Medical DIS-EASE.  

Why do people take positions, spend a life studying for a profession that they are 100% happy or fulfilled?  Why go into healthcare and not care? Why work in a community where you don’t respect, scoff or look down on the people.   People don’t want high and mighty self-proclaimed persons (liberal nor conservative) to come into a LMI community and glorify themselves because, look at Peggy or Courtney who is such a great humanitarian because they work in the hood.  ” You are not doing the community any favors with this attitude unless you see them as human equals.

There was a time when a healthcare practitioner gave 110% care to clients and people in the community.   You rarely see that high level of practice today. Doctors are not healers; we’ve practically lost healers.  Healers traditionally were persons of high regard. Healers like former Dr. Sebi, of Honduras (herbalist and healer) who practiced healing through cell foods; and fighting cancer, diabetes, lymphatic conditions and  weight loss, primarily through vegan and alkaline diet.

At times we may feel hopeless, but we don't have to be victims of Health Kill facilities, programs or providers. We must start with ourselves.

1. We must take measures to be good; better to ourselves.  
2. Don’t be discouraged and don't let those in the medical profession discourage you. 
3. Stay away from people attempt to discourage you with their negative energy.  
4. Take time to eat healthy, massage your mind with good books, music, and meditations.
5. Change physicians until you feel safe and confident. 

Good news is there is a rise of conscious health awareness and new community healers as the ways of our ancestors who are reviving and improving old with modern practices and teachings of today.  

If you feel your privacy has been violated or compromised, file a complaint with the Office for Civil Rights (OCR). Remember, failure to comply with HIPAA or breach regulations can result in substantial fines being issued to the violator and criminal charges and civil action may ensue such as lawsuits.   Be good to yourself.

Listen to Sister Love: Untethered and Under the Radar Podcast 

What's It All About, Alfie?

I've been stressing myself out with bad habits of doing too much of everything. Pressured by my upbringing that I cannot fail at being self-dependent. Self-dependency is something you learn early in life. Fortunate are those bastards who are born with the gift of a legacy tool-box; which includes cars, real estate and perhaps cash that can all be traded in for the latest iPhone, MacBook,  Yacht dinner cruises and parties with friends in penthouses an Chateaus. Well, that ain't me. At times, I envy the highly favored trustees who can (and when they choose) flaunt their entitlements before the rest of us proletariats.

A Latch-key-kid, is a more befitting term that describes my adolescence years and life with my brother six-years older. While our single mom worked two jobs, I was busy being bullied and tormented by my older brother until I reached junior high, and he was finally gone out of the house. I had to learn self-dependency. Home-made burgers and tacos during the week and rewarded with the occasional steak. I learned to be mom, protector; care giver and how to lock away emotions; not always a good thing.

However, I am finding as an adult that self-dependency is like an old habit that is difficult to shake loose. Too much of a good thing is ultimately bad for you. At some point, you need to retire, relax, lay low, release. Thinking this out has even made me tired. I've always ended up in jobs just to make money, to pay rent, pay off college debt and to pay a mortgage. These are all anchor weights in life. At some point, you realize that they only provide a tentative sense of safety, comfort and stability, but not real security.

Instead of being a jack of many trades or a miserable labor of one; why not decide to hell with everything else for the money and do the one gratifying thing that brings happiness. It may not make money, but perhaps its worth sticking it out for the heart of it. After all, what's it all about -Alfie?

The Best Beginnings Are with Good Intentions

I routinely begin the new year writing a list of personal resolutions and intentions for the year. Based on past and numerous disappointments in others who can and will often let you down, I learned to encourage myself and thus became my motivation for writing. With self-reliance and high motivation, I began 2017 with my philosophy of the 9 Ds: dream, design, decide to dedicate; be determined; have discipline, diligence and eliminate all distractions (specifically electronic) to reach your destiny. Failing to abide by this rule, I knew very well that by the year end, you will likely fall into the 92% category who overreached; perhaps delusional or simply repeat offenders who fail to stick to a new year's resolutions. I failed at committing to write about something humorous, on healthiness or on happiness for an entire year. So, what happened?

~EXCUSES~

Life is filled with them: I have a million of excuses. I began a job. I was consumed with a job, and I lost a job and the opposition party's choice for president took office (it's their fault too). I worked my bee hive off to maintain a roof over me; to cover health care, for basic maintenance or repairs with time to engage in the luxury of socializing on rare occasions.   With little appreciation and at the end of the day, I had no energy for myself no time it seemed to write even my name. It's the fault of life in America. The bad news (real and not fake) that it is not going to get any better by design for the average person. Guess what? Don't be average. Be extraordinary!

~RE - SOLUTIONS~

Try again. As times get tough, you must figure out how to survive in America without giving up who you are. For me, it means first getting out of my own way. Yes, I am tired of playing the same looping tape of routinely paying bills etc, but I have to remind myself that it is not an accomplishment of goals rather routines that have less to do with goal forging.

Set obtainable mini goals daily and build up to a routine that does not feel forced but a set of natural tasks required to reach your goals. My solution is to get out of my own way and make time to do what matters and what is important to me; and always find time to have HUMOR, HEALTH and HAPPINESS.