Don't Ever Forget Where You Came From!

Tonight I'm going to keep it short & simple... mostly because my head is about to explode and I'm in bed with the flu or some kind of bug.-- Like I said before, I'm blogging on Mondays, no matter what.

As I lay here, I can't help but be grateful for the fact that I have a bed to lay in, and I can't help but reflect back on the times when I did not.  Even then, somehow I found a way to be grateful for everything I did have.

Have you ever done that?

When times are hard and so much seems to be going wrong, have you ever looked around and stopped to think about how much worse someone else has it, then it makes you grateful for every little thing--maybe even a little ashamed for being ungrateful in the first place?

If you haven't, you probably should try it.  It's a good skill to have and it helped me not only get through being homeless with my family, living in our car, but it helped me see my struggle as one of the greatest and happiest times in my life.

I know what you're thinking... when we were homeless, it was one of the happiest times of my life??

Are you kidding me?

No, I'm quite serious.  In the beginning I was very bitter.  I felt like I worked too hard to be struggling this way and I didn't deserve it.  I looked at the situation as a punishment or curse instead of a blessing in disguise.

 

Over time, and with the help of all the other homeless people I helped through my organization, I realized that sleeping in a car at night wasn't so bad when there were so many people sleeping up under a bridge or on the front steps of a church with nothing to protect them from the elements.

I had it made with a bunch of soft, warm blankets and pillows, and of course my children to snuggle up next to at night, wrapped inside the safety and comfort of our vehicle.  I realized there are people who live in mansions with security alarms who aren't even as grateful as I was.

I'll never forget staring up at the moon every night trying to envision and manifest a greater future for us but still counting the many blessings I already had and reminding myself never to forget this moment.

Instead of wishing I'd never gone through the struggle, or asking God "WHY?', like we so often do, I look back on that time in my life and I say "Thank You".  Not only did my family and I learn life lessons that molded us for the better, we gained a story that we plan to use to make the world a better place.

In my stage play, "The Face of Homeless", I share some of that story, along with parts of other stories from people who may have been even worse off then we were.

In my book, that you'll be able to purchase real soon, I share every detail of the life changing experience.

Although I'm not where I'm going just yet, I'm certainly not where I used to be, and every day I'm grateful for where I've come from.

So I urge you today, as you travel on your journey of life, to see every moment as a blessing whether you are currently in it, or it's a testimony from the past.  Take time to realize how truly blessed you are even during those times when it doesn't feel much like a blessing.

Until next Monday...

...And in the meantime be sure to check out our stage production, "The Face of Homeless".  Here are a few screen shots from the making of the show for you to enjoy.  Make sure you FOLLOW US on Facebook & on Instagram!

Behind the scenes in the making of "The Face of Homeless" with actress/writer 
Vitelle Webb playing "Violet".  

Actor Wardell Richardson plays "Nicholas" (the dad), 
alongside Rayshaud & Norman Webb who play themselves.