The Storm

     

By D.I. Muhammad 

           

Unsplash Image by David Moun

It's Friday around 6:30pm, and I get ready to leave the house to go pick  up my daughter from her Summer job.   As I step out the house I notice dark clouds rolling in, but some of the sky is blue. I'm saying to myself, "A storm is coming."  Before I could get in my car, the wind picked up, and knocked over my garbage cans sitting in front of the house.  I'm just sitting in the car watching all this dirt kick up and blow across my windshield. 

I don't know where the blue recycled garbage  can blew from, but it stopped in my driveway, in front of my car.  I'm making sure I don't see a tornado forming before I jumped out the car to move the blue receptacle off to the side on the grass.   Wind still whipping furiously.  I get back in the car, my daughter is calling, and she tells me the lights went out were she's at.  I tell her I'm on my way. 

I've driven in heavy rain, don't like it, but nothing like this.  The wind, I'm talking to her to "pull up a little."  She did, and now it's raining. As I cautiously drive I'm noticing the tree branches that were ripped from the tree by the wind.  Stoplights were out in certain places.  I even came upon a garbage receptacle that the wind carried out into the middle of a busy street.

It's been hot all week with a real feel of 102 degrees. Temps read in the high 90's.

I get home with my daughter, and our lights went out.  I tell her, "Don't open the freezer. I just bought ice.", as I go to call in the outage.

My house has been hot all week. I use fans. My inherited home from my mom when she passed, has been giving me the blues, but it's mine.  The home is an older home, and my instincts don't trust running an air conditioner,  even though I would love one. The whole house needs some form of renovation.   

So, it's not about the house being hot. It's about not having the power, so the phone stays charged.  My daughter is working. If she wasn't it wouldn't matter.  I would wait it out, writing my thoughts back on paper.

So, the house feels hot. I've got hot fur babies that are finding the bare floor more cooling than laying on the carpet. 

Saturday I find a hotel. That part was stressful.  I'm safe. 

I take my daughter so we can go eat after we got settled in the room. When we left I saw those dark clouds again surrounded by a little bit of blue.  I say to my daughter, "It's about to rain."  We stopped at a gas station across from where we ate.  We get a snack, and go back to the hotel.  

When we get out I see those dark clouds. They felt like they were stationary waiting for us to get in before they did anything.  I'm looking at the sky quietly saying, "Be nice."

We're walking to the room and the lid on the garbage can hit real hard. The breeze didn't blow that hard. My daughter jumped. The dirt started kicking up again.  I say to my daughter, "This is how it started yesterday when you called from work."  She responded, "Oh, no."  Soon as we got in the room I heard the rain. I heard the wind and the thunder crack.  It moved through as quickly as it did yesterday. 

Most of the city won't get lights until late Sunday or Monday night.  Where ever you are, if your lights went out, stay safe.

To All That Served

 

                                  

The Mission Continues

       By D. I. Muhammad           

Chapter 29 had me devastated in my feelings, and I didn't do anything, but write the story.  Ch. 30 was the continuation of healing between the main character,  and her husband.  

After writing that Chapter,  I again had to sit with it all before continuing.   Chapter 31 explains her mission. What it entails, and what she may go through.

But seeing that I don't find out the plot until I write, the main characters mom, and husband want to secure her safety in this journey, but they are keeping secrets about what they have planned to do once she's in the pod. 

Can't wait for them to give me Chapter 32.  This is interesting.

Looking For Love

                             

Image by Tobe Mokolo

If one goes by what they see on the internet,  or by stories told to them about the dating scene, one would absolutely be horrified to even take a chance in that arena.  

I haven't dated since 2013, when I drew that line in the sand, and proclaimed to The Most High and my Ancestors that, "I'm done. Don't send nobody across this line that's not supposed to be here!"  I made that proclamation with my whole chest, and I meant it. 

I met a man that I liked. He had just gotten  a job working the afternoon shift until one am.   I took him to work, picked him up.  He ended up blatantly lying to me, and didn't keep his word, but the straw that broke the camels back, is when I needed him most, is when my Dad passed.  

My car decided to go down, and my dad's wife told me, "if you can get to my house, you can ride with me to the funeral."  I got a cab. My money was low. I just paid off my bills.  After the funeral, I'm sitting in the empty limousine,  and I called him that morning.  I asked, if he could come pick me up at the church, and take me home. He lived ten minutes away.  From the church I was five to eight minutes away.   

He told me, "I got to go to work."  I sadly, but calmly said, "I pick you up and drop you off at work everyday. I'm asking to get home from my dad's funeral, and you don't have to be at work yet."  He still said no.  It broke my heart.  

He met a woman at work he told me about.  His face beamed when he spoke about her. I wasn't supposed to be concerned because she was Lesbian. He admitted to spending the night at her house, four days before this incident.  

I appreciated his honesty, but we weren't supposed to be together. Especially when he's acting like he doesn't want me. Like I'm supposed to stick around.

I threw myself into work, raising my daughter who was 12 at the time, and working on me. I dealt with my shadow self. I was aligning myself spiritually.  I was rediscovering me. 

I got a reading from a Voudun priest.  Found out, as they say, who was on my head.  Dancing was my release.  I danced until I couldn't dance anymore.  I honored an Orisha. I set up an altar in honor of my ancestors. When I honored them, I honored myself. They honored me.  Then in November of 2015, I lost my brother, and six months later my grandmother.   When I love, I love hard, so it took me some years to get through the grief of both of them. 

I never left a relationship,  and just jumped into the next thing coming.  For me, moving out of relationships required working through not only what they did, but looking at yourself and figuring out your part in this. It required healing, even though a few past relationships felt I was moving into a brand new one after them. This has been the longest time since I've been out of one. 

In the dating scene I've noticed more people have become toxic towards one another. I've always been genuine, and never been with the mind fuck games.   You either want to genuinely get to know me or you're for the streets.   I've always been a show me who you are so I can move accordingly woman.

I don't chase. If you want me, come get me.  I'll flirt, and that's about it. If I'm interested I've slipped my number to a man, and the rest was up to him. I don't do that often. Being bold and forward. 

Again, I don't chase, but I want it to be known that I am interested in getting to know who he is. Not what he has, but what is his character, his morals, his integrity,  how does he think, how does he process emotions. In other words,  I want to get to know him.  Honestly,  genuinely,  in a transparent way.  You know a man has to be comfortable with self to do that.  He also has to be comfortable to do it with a woman he's trying to know. 

I gave up on online dating. I don't drink,  so why would I go to a bar. In my natural day to day I should be able to bump into someone of interest. At least that's my thought.  

My instinct keeps saying to get out of the house.  But for a person who regulated themselves to heal, working,  writing books, and raising a child. It's a circle that's hard to break. 

Everyday I make my presence to the world,  is a day when I'm saying, "I'm open to new interactions, platonic or not."

Here's the part that unnerved single women and men genuinely wanting a relationship...we don't want our peace disrupted.    We have a system of, our space is peaceful, we feel whole, and we just want someone that can just naturally walk in that alignment,  and meet what we are searching for in a partner.  Anything other is a no. 

We may meet and it still doesn't work out, but here's the thing. You had good conversation,  you met someone new.  The thing now is to vet people out, and it should be done in the beginning. Feelings are not involved.  What are your questions before moving farther. Not a perception of the person. 

Mine are:

How do you handle things when you're in a bad mood?  Or things that didn't turn out for you the way you thought they should?

What type of relationship are you looking for? 

Do you consider yourself spiritual or religious?

Are you in any type of relationship? (Married, divorced, separated, situationship)

Did you get the Covid shot?

I feel there is someone for everybody, and that the good ones are watching the toxic ones being toxic with each other, so much that they're getting tired of one another too. 

Everybody wants to give out dating advice, and most that do aren't even in a relationship,  let alone have ever been married.  

Dating is a personal experience, and when you find that person, that's an even more personal experience.  That couple makes up what their relationship looks like. It may not look like what's normal in the status quo,  but if they agree to it and it works for them emotionally, mentally that is what matters.  

I've noticed most don't have boundaries,  and just want to say they are in a relationship, that they let the person they are dating do things they won't let anyone else do.  Boundaries are a good thing. 

Relationships take common sense too. Looks are frosting on the cake, sex is the cherry on top, but the cake itself is everything that carries substance, the weight. The heart of it all. 

Will I date again? I'm looking forward to it. Waiting not only for my partner, but my friend. Until then I'll take some good bomb ass, down for you friendships. 

Thank You For Discovering My Page

                          

Image by Justin Morgan

I just wanted to take the time, and say hi to the new readers who have discovered my page.

I go by D. Imani Muhammad when I write my blogs, and my pen handle for when I write books is D. I. Muhammad.

I write topics that I feel drawn to, and that I am passionate about.  They are topics that at times bring awareness, present new ways to look at topics, the promotion of my latest book titles, spirituality and my opinion on certain topics. 

My work may present itself at times as honest and vulnerable because I know no other way to be than to give myself  in an authentic,  genuine way. 

I have articles that span back since 2009, when I created this page from a Computer Science class I took in College. After the class ended instead of letting it go, I held onto it, and slowly began to build a space where I can present my voice and my thoughts.  You may or may not resonate with everything I present, and that is okay. 

I'm in the space now where I'm searching for my tribe. People I resonate with and vice versa. If you are here, and you keep returning I thank you for your readership, and you are my tribe. 

Black Animation That Tells A Story

 

A few days ago as I was scrolling through YouTube I came across a video built around storytelling.  It was so beautifully done even though the creator used AI.  It's not about the use of AI, its about the story. 

Episode 1 kept my interest and had me so invested in the story that I went and sought out his page where I found Episode 2. 

Episode 1 is a story of the gods in Ancient Kemet, ie Akebulan (Egypt), and the betrayal of one amongst them.

The author is, "not a scholar or a writer."  The creator just wanted to create something "beautiful for the people."  The creator did just that. I'm waiting on Episode 3.  The YouTube channel is Junior Movies Entertainment. 

Episode 2 Forbidden Origins

Another movie that I discovered in 2008 was Kirikou and the Sorceress.   Based on a West African fable, this animated  movie is beautifully done.  It moves a little slow, but stay with it. It's a movie with a message.  It takes place in an African village. Kirikou is born walking and talking. His character is tenacious. 

He sets off to face the Sorceress who has kidnapped the men, terrorized the people, and dried up the spring. 

 The message in the movie is there if you pay attention.    This is one of my favorites. 

Kirikou and the Sorceress (Click for English version) 

Black Sands Entertainment 

Episode 1 is an animated series introducing Ausar.    Black Sands Entertainment was founded by husband and wife Manuel Godoy and Geiszel Godoy. The Co-founder is Teunis De Raat.  They were featured on Shark Tank where their company was invested into by Mark Cuban and  Kevin Hart. They then took their company to Instagram where they offered the community a stake as investors into the company.  They have around 6, 000 community investors.  

Which shows, when you bring intelligent art to the people with story lines that speak to our story and us as a people, we will support it. But it has to be done right or not at all. 

Episode 1

There are others out here. These were just the ones I found and were interested in.  We are starting to create and support one another's art.  I hope you enjoyed my picks,  and find others you are drawn too. 

The Hangover of Chapter 29

By D.I. Muhammad 

I am two days out from finishing Chapter 29, and the air in my writing room still feels heavy.

I don't outline my stories. I sit in the quiet, and I wait for my characters to show me what they are doing and let me hear what they are saying. Usually, it is a beautiful mystery to unravel. But two days ago, it was devastating. I've had a couple of devastating moments writing that I had to just sit with it before continuing. 

My main character did something that completely broke her husband and her child, the two people she loves more than anything in the world.  I didn't plan it. After I wrote Chapter 28, they gave me a glance into the next Chapter. My heart broke. The tears came, and I had to prepare myself again to write a Chapter that pulled on me emotionally.  

I sat at my keyboard, watching it happen through tears, typing as fast as I could to capture their heartbreak.  After capturing what they felt, I too was emotionally distraught.

Now, even though two days have passed, I am still hurting for them.

Right now, the characters are already showing me flashes and images of the next chapter. They are ready to keep moving, but I am not. I am still processing the debris of what just happened. I am anchoring myself in the quiet of my room, practicing patience, and waiting until I am strong enough to step back into their world and tell the rest of their truth.

If you've ever wondered what my writing process looks like, this is it. It isn't charts or index cards. It is just me, sitting in a quiet room, feeling everything.

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The Mission

Coming Soon