New Beginnings

The other day, I discovered some exciting news. My first reaction was surprise. But then it set it. The thought of everything unraveling. Again.

...Then I remembered that everyone who trusts in Christ is guaranteed a future better than the past.

My family is so blessed.

I look forward to a new day. And a new life.

Internal Conflicts

I recently confided in my best friend about conflicting desires in my life. She reminded me to trust in God with all my heart, and not rely on my own understanding. We get so caught up in what we think is the best thing to do, but the goal is to honor Him first.

I am so grateful for her friendship!

The Devil is hard at work. Thankfully God is still on His throne.

Putting It In God's Hands

The best thing about the internet is that just about anything you want to find is right at your fingertips. I often explore Google for answers, from the mundane to the particularly complex. Tonight, I searched the web for advice but wasn't able to find what I was looking for. The answers that I seek could not be explained on any blog or expert forum. I decided to open the Bible.

My faith has challenged me in ways I could have never imagined. I've come to realize that as I grow and change, my relationship with God will grow and change. I'm learning to lean on His strength and put my worries in His hands. For it's better to take refuge in the Lord than to put confidence in man (Psalm 118:8).

I may not find the answers that I'm looking for right now, but my worries are at ease. I just need to be patient with myself, patient those around me, and with God and His timing (patience -- another way God is challenging me!).

I'm putting it in God's hands.

What, to Black Americans, is the 4th of July?

I read an insightful article in the Washington Post that raises the question of whether or not black Americans should celebrate the 4th of July due to the fact that our ancestors were still slaves when the Declaration of Independence was drafted. The author shares my exact sentiments as to why we should all celebrate the 4th of July with pride and dignity.

(Source: Washington Times)

On July 5, 1852, Frederick Douglass gave a speech at an event commemorating the signing of the Declaration of Independence, held at Rochester's Corinthian Hall. It was an indictment of the fact Independence was not yet a reality for most Black Americans. Douglass boldly declared: "This Fourth of July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn." And he asked them, "Do you mean, citizens, to mock me, by asking me to speak to-day?" 

 Frederick Douglass would, undoubtedly, deliver a different speech today. I believe he would be proud of how far America has come in ensuring all of its citizens are equally protected under the law. Moreover, he would certainly find more than a few reasons to celebrate the Fourth of July. 

No longer is the celebration of Independence a fraud in America, for every American now, under the U.S Constitution, equally enjoys the possibilities of individual freedom that the constitution guarantees. 

That said, I also believe that Frederick Douglass would charge Blacks in America with remembering the Blacks who contributed to the Independence of America, even as they often did not live to see the reality of Freedom. They did it because they envisioned the America we now live in. It is these Freedom Fighters I hope we all pay tribute today and, in this, find reason to celebrate the 4th of July with pride and dignity.

What, to Black Americans, is the 4th of July?

Everything.

The Warmth of Other Suns & the 48th Anniversary of the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

Today is the 48th Anniversary of the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This landmark piece of legislation changed the accessibility of education, jobs and services for African Americans and women. I am very thankful for our forefathers for all that they did to enact this bill!

Last year I joined a book club, which was a great decision because I’ve been exposed to a collection of rich literature that I otherwise would not have come across. Each month I will update you on the different books that we are reading.

What I'm Reading: The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration
Author: Isabel Wilkerson

In this nonfiction New York Times bestseller, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Isabel Wilkerson examines the three geographic routes that were commonly used by African Americans leaving the southern states between 1915 and the 1970s.

Outside of what I was taught in school about slavery and Jim Crow laws, I know little about the history of blacks in America prior to the Civil Rights Act of 1964. As I'm reading through The Warmth of Other Suns, I am intrigued by the stories of emigrants who left the south in search of a better life. Here are some highlights:
•    For over six decades, six million black southerners left the land of the forefathers and fanned out across the country.
•    Many traveled to large cities such as NYC, Detroit, Chicago, Philadelphia, LA, and also smaller towns like Oakland, Milwaukee and Gary.
•    Poet Carl Sandburg, who was a well known reporter for a Chicago newspaper during the Great Migration wrote about how these towns acted as a "receiving station and port of refuge".
•    Black migrants were more likely to be married, raising children in two parent households & less likely to bear children out of wedlock.
•    Compared to northern born blacks, southern migrants had lower levels of unemployment, higher incomes & lower levels of poverty/welfare.
 

Wilkerson conducted over 1,200 interviews in order to write The Warmth of Other Suns, narrowing in on the story of three southern people who were a part of the Great Migration. I’m only 30 pages in, but I can’t wait to keep reading.
 
This is one of my favorite excerpts from the book so far:

The actions of the people in this book were both universal and distinctly American. Their migration was a response to an economic and social structure not of their making. They did what humans have done for centuries when life became untenable- what the pilgrims did under the tyranny of British rule, what the Scots-Irish did in Oklahoma when the land turned to dust, what the Irish did when there was nothing to eat, what the European Jews did during the spread of Nazism, what the landless in Russia, Italy, China, and elsewhere did when something better across the ocean called to them. What binds these stories together was the back-against-the-wall, reluctant yet hopeful search for something better, any place but where they were. They did what human beings looking for freedom, throughout history, have often done.
         They left.

As I read this book, I think about my grandmother, whose family traveled from Louisiana to Oklahoma, and my grandmother from Oklahoma to New York, New Jersey and California during the Great Migration. I wonder if her story mirrors the stories of the people Wilkerson wrote about.

Check back for updates or follow along as I read The Warmth of Other Suns.

Super Moms & Supportive Dads

I'm a Super Mom. Driven by success. Motivated. Ambitious. All of the qualities I saw in my mother growing up as a child. I believe the women in my family have always prided themselves on being able to "do it all". Now that I am a mother and a wife, I too have quite naturally managed to balance a full-time career and raise a family while also finding the time to get my degree, start my own freelancing business, volunteer, join a book club and a moms group all at the same time (whew).

Despite my overactive need to always be accomplishing something, I also understand the importance of depending on a supportive spouse to help pick up the pieces when feeling overwhelmed. I don't give in to the cliche that "men are intimidated by successful women". However, I do believe that men are motivated and empowered when they feel needed, whereas women are motivated when they feel cherished.

My husband is supportive of me in both my personal and professional endeavors. He never doubts me and is always encouraging me to reach my goals. Through his actions, my husband has challenged me to be more understanding and supportive of him. I know that he is a man of God because he lives His word (Ephesians 5:25 "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her").

When I recently made the decision to cut back on my hours and work part-time so that I am able to graduate, my husband was positive and encouraging. I knew that I did not want to stay at home full-time, but if I wanted to finish school, I would need to make some sacrifices (*note to critics of working moms: it goes without saying that my daughter is my world -- however, for ME, finding meaning outside of my child makes my role as a parent more satisfying).

I have accepted that I can't do it all, and I am embracing the fact that we'll have to make some compromises. However, I have the support of my loving husband, the motivation of my beautiful baby girl and the grace of God to finish school and be a first generation college graduate.

Now that's what I call a Super Mom!

Start Today

Hi, my name is Krysten and I'm a writer.

I was inspired to create a blog that chronicles my journey as a young Christian wife and mother. This is by no means my first weblog. I started writing professionally as a freelance journalist when I was 18 years old and blogged (before the term was coined) many years prior to that. I probably learned to write before I learned to read!

After getting married and having my daughter, I took a long hiatus. Becoming a wife and mother within a matter of one year was definitely a transformative period! The priorities I placed on my values and morals changed, I matured, and I had a lot less time on my hands -- new moms will co-sign.

Since evolving, I've been itching to start writing again. Months went by and I couldn't seem to get started. Influences all around me have helped me to get past this and I believe I have found my purpose again. I've decided to Start Today.

Today's inspiration came from a women's devotional I read that discusses having the confidence to go forward. How appropriate for my very first post?

There are times when I have allowed myself to get caught up in the "I'm too old" mindset. I know some of you are reading this and thinking to yourself that I'm crazy because I'm only in my mid-twenties. However, when I reflect on the past I feel as though I have wasted some of the "best" years of my life doing nothing (these "wasted" years come in the form of toxic relationships and procrastination to finish college).

As I continue to build my relationship with God, I am reminded that confident, God-fearing Christians look at what they have, not what they have lost. Instead of feeling bad for what opportunities I missed out on, I think about what I can accomplish with the time I have left (*cues commencement ceremony music*). 

My daughter is a beautiful blessing and a living reminder that God has called me to do something amazing with my life and that nothing can stop me. As her mother, I have developed both personally and spiritually, allowing the grace of God to function in me as a parent. Every day is a new day, and because of that, I am excited about what He has in store for me to accomplish.

I'm going to start today.