When I was on air on Friday, I sent out good wishes in hopes that Gary Coleman would pull through the coma that he was in. One hour after my shift was over, I heard the news. Here’s to one one the funniest, cutest kid stars I grew up watching. This is from an episode of “The Jeffersons”, where he played their nephew, Raymond….before “Diff’rent Strokes”. This was a funny one. R.I.P…..

I’m booking my flight for New Orleans NOW!!!

Many of us, whatever our traditions, typically celebrate Memorial Day with a nice piece of steak or chicken or vegetables on the grill, and enjoy the fellowship of friends and family while watching that big sporting match on television on a nice 3-day holiday weekend. But I in writing this blog also want to share a little history on what started as Decoration Day, that commemorates U.S. Men and Women who died while in military service. This next piece of history may also serve as a ‘little know black history fact’ that you hear about weekday mornings on the TJMS….according to a professor of the Yale University History Department, the first memorial day was observed by formely enslaved black people at the Washington Race Course(today known as Hampton Park) in Charleston, South Carolina.

The formely enslaved people exhumed the bodies from mass graves and reinterred the bodies of soldiers properly with individual graves, and on May 1, 1865, one Charleston newspaper reported that a crowd of up to ten thousand, mainly black residents, including some 2800 children, proceeded to the location for included sermons, singing and a picnic on the grounds, thereby creating the first Decoration Day.

Please take this and every Memorial Day weekend to THANK that soldier who has so diligently and unselfishly served our country and served it WELL…too many men and women have died for the freedom and liberties of these United States of America. Soliders I take this opportunity to say ‘thank you’ today and always!

A old college friend, John, and I were talking the other day.  He had recently run into one of our frat brothers who I hadn’t seen in 25 years and sent me his picture.  Incredibly, Jules hadn’t aged in all these years, and is now a family man and father.  It blessed me to know that he was doing fine.  I mean, we can’t take for granted that any of us have another 25 years left to live.  When I asked about whether Jules was on facebook, John said Jules was adamant about not being on facebook.  I wondered aloud, “Why not”?  I was told it had nothing to do with a fear of technology and privacy laws or leaks.  It simply had to with Jules not wanting to reach back into the past.  I understood.  I, too, felt like this at one time in my life.

I’m content with my life and devoid of needing anyone’s approval, affirmation, or validation.  Yet, I admit to desiring to see the people who were apart of my life during a special, exciting, if not precarious time. The past is just that…the past. However, I imagine that there will always be those among us who still live there (in the past). And unfortunately, there may be some who will let that time, whether good or bad, define who they are even today. I’m not suggesting this has anything to do with Jules and his choices. His reasons are his own and I’m very grateful to know he and his family are well. Seeing his picture made my day! But, aside from him, I do believe there are people who may have a difficult time reconciling their past with their present without some confusion, regret, guilt, or shame.  Although we claim to have been “washed in the Blood of the Lamb”, many of us find it difficult to accept His pardon because we are still dealing with the natural consequences of our past sinful behavior.

We’re all grown up, now, right?  I respect Jules’ decision regarding reconnecting with people, places or things from years gone by.  However, I can only hope we can all learn from the relationships of our past, while understanding that none of us weren’t as grown or smart as we thought we were in our teens and 20s.  To be sure, there are some things we need to leave in the past, never to reacquaint with again. I can only imagine the foolishness some people, and yes, some couples have had to endure because someone from their past has inconspicuously crept into their present…through facebook, or some other form of social networking. While I’m not particularly concerned about this, I completely understand the fear some of us must have of something or someone (from their past) (re)introducing themselves to you, your spouse, and family.  Sadly, some people from our past may not have any good intentions whatsoever and are only seeking to cause more hurt and harm.

Yet, people do change.  Some actually grow up and become the adults that we thought we were 25 years ago.  Some of us can actually become agents of grace, mercy, and change by humbling ourselves and sharing a few words of apology and encouragement, none more important than, “I’m sorry”, or “I forgive you”.

But, you’ll first have to forgive yourself.  I believe that “hurt people” turn around and hurt people…”changed people” change people…and “healed people” help to heal people.  And I believe we all would agree that this is easier said than done.

As the Tom Joyner Morning Show sails the high seas on the Fantastic Voyage, it’s an annual tradition for a ‘theme’ night during the 7-day party and one of the favorites is ‘Old School/70’s Night’…at that of course got me to thinkin’ about the dress and styles of old and to ask what particular ‘look’ would/wouldn’t you wear in 2010? Perhaps an outfit in a nice ‘plaid’, jeans or pants with a smooth and even ‘crease’ down the middle? And not just necessarily the clothes, because I recently came across an old picture of myself with a jheri curl AND braces…OMG! what was I thinkin’ especially when I smiled with my ‘brace face!’ Whatever decade had you stylin and profilin..it’s always good to reminiscence…and then again know of someone who STILL dresses like they stuck in the past!!!

When you think about the oil spill in the Gulf Coast, do you think “man, I’m glad I don’t live in that area?” Sorry folks, but this one affects us all, from the gas pump to the seafood we love. It may soon even affect the water we drink. There’s tons of oil about to be swept into the eastern seaboard (uh, that includes the Carolina coastline). And the question remains, what’s the best way to clean up this mess? Sure, BP will toss millions at the clean up effort, but how long will it take? And how will we be affected by this disaster. The bigger question is how do we clean up our unquenchable thirst and dependency on oil, both foreign and domestic? Maybe it’s time to start drilling the great minds in this country to find new alternative energy sources that won’t continue to destroy mother earth. Afterall, it’s the only one we got, and it’s pretty dirty right now.

I know it’s been awhile since I’ve posted, but, I saw something a couple of weeks ago that was totally uncalled for, so I had to take to the blog pages and EXPRESS myself. It was a clip from one of those daytime talk shows, where the young lady had the audacity to blame Erin Andrews for the horror that she went through when she was stalked, harrassed and horrified by a peeping Tom. She even went so far as to blame Erin for the hell and horror that she went through by saying it was her fault because Erin was dressing provocatively on the show “Dancing With The Stars”. How Dare She?!! Coming from a person who has been stalked and horrified more than once in my life, a person has absolutely NO control over what some PSYCHO will do, especially when he or she starts to disrupt their life and turn it inside out. IT IS NEVER THE VICTIM’S FAULT!!! When she offered an apology the next day, it was obvious that it was because of the HUGE backlash she suffered from the public. I am here to commend Erin Andrews. At least SHE was able to put her stalker behind bars. Counting the days……

There seems to be a new thing going around. Maybe you’ve heard this question or maybe you’ve asked this question yourself……Are you dating me or your friends? If you or your mate asks this question just don’t discount it and move on to the next topic. With that question coming up someone has issues in your relationship. Maybe they’re insecure or you’re making them insecure. There’s nothing wrong with having good close friends but friends are just that……they’ll be there. If you’re looking to start something or share your life with someone your friends should respect that and try to do the same. Justifing hanging with the girls or guys just further lets your mate know that’s where your priorities are. Maybe you just don’t need to be in a committed relationship if your friends mean that much to you. If you have to check with the fellas or girls before you make plans with your mate you are wrong on so many levels. People complain about not finding someone to committ to and when they do they want to hang with there friends over there mate. This just doesn’t happen to young couples it happens to mature ones too! If you have to beg your mate to spend time with you it’s already over and your just going thru the motions. NEVER BEG someone to share your world or to do things with you. Find someone else………PERIOD! And you know I’m right.lol What do you think? Have you done this before?

Growing older doesn’t always have to equate to Alzheimer’s or Dementia, or thinking you can’t be just as active in your senior years as you were at a much younger age. Case in point, look at the kudos comedianne/actress Betty White is STILL receiving after her hosting gig on Saturday Night Live! Who knew she still had those comedic chops in full gear since her role as Rose Nyland on one of my favorite shows…The Golden Girls…the senior years truly have been golden for Ms. White…who stepped up to the plate to host SNL after a widespread FaceBook campaign was initiated….and now our hearts are also filled with sadness of the recent passing of the lengendary singer/actress/activist Lena Horne, who was so much more that just a beautiful face! Her talent and her determination to represent her race when a country saw it as the ‘norm’ to hate because of a different race. Her later years also welcomed a new generation of fans where both grandparent and grandchild could watch Lena on such t.v. shows as Sesame Street and The Cosby Show! An entertainment pioneer in his own right, Quincy Jones, who was a dear friend of Lena’s for more than 50 years, said it best, “There will NEVER be another like Lena Horne and I will miss her deeply.” We all will miss you classy Lena…and Betty, you continue to bring out the beauty of your comedic timing…indeed showing much love to our senior adults- you’re as active in mind, body, and spirit as you can allow yourself to be….

Did you enjoy the church service Sunday?  Did the preacher “tear the house up?” Yea? Ok, what did he preach about? Or did you just join the others who got caught up in the “emotion” of the sermon at the hoop. God speaks through His man servant, but how often do we really hear what God is saying? It’s so easy to get caught up in the “feeling” of church and come away with nothing but a temporary emotional high. Blessings to all pastors who focus their ministry on preaching and teaching the Word. We hear ya speaking Lord!