"It Is Always Darkest Just Before Dawn.

One night while hanging out at home with some friends, one of them suggested that we go to the beach. Everyone thought it was a great idea, so eight happy-go-lucky people headed there in two cars. We all sat on the sand drinking beers, talking about life situations and giving jokes, and just enjoying each other’s company.
Sometime later we all became very quiet. The only sound that could be heard was the rolling tide. Then the area suddenly became very dark.
“Guys its pretty dark out here,” said one of my friends.
“It’s always darkest just before dawn,” I whispered.
”Okay, so you’re a philosopher now?” she said.
“Yeah, are you?” ask another one of my friends.
“No, I’m not trying to be, but my mom always says that to us and it’s a fact.”
“Don’t bring your mom into this,” she said and everyone started agreeing with her.
They were all questioning me, laughing and making fun when suddenly a star pitched and glided across the sky. It looked as though it touched the sea. Everyone was quiet. One by one we stood up slowly. My eyes were glued to the sky. The star might not have touched the sea but the reflection of it gliding across the sky made the seawater sparkle.
“Wasn’t that amazing?” I asked, breaking the silence.
“It was,” they all replied in unison.
About five minutes later the area was bright and seemed as if the sun was about to rise. One of my friends turned to me and she whispered, “It’s always darkest just before dawn.”
I smiled.

Taken from my website. http://www.avjnostalgia.com/

"Bias"

Belinda and Ken started dating when they were in high school. They met with their four friends twice per month for dinner. Ken was a habitual cheater, and she kept forgiving him until she eventually dumped him. All their female friends stopped speaking to him. After a while, they agreed to talk to him, but he wasn’t allowed to bring any of his women, to dinner. Belinda started dating and she was allowed to bring her date.

"My Mother"

It was raining heavily one morning and I sat looking through the window. The water cascaded down the leaves of the trees and the road looked as though it would turn into a small stream. A smile crossed my lips, because I remembered a morning just like this.
Thoughts of my mother flooded my mind. She was a hard worker. The only woman I knew at the time that was, a chef, doctor, accountant, defense attorney, a prosecutor, teacher, guidance councilor and a weather forecaster…
I was about nine, and my brother ten.
One morning he came into my bedroom and said to me… “Do you hear how heavy the rain is falling?”
“Yeah,” I said, all the more excited because I knew my mother would not send us to school in this type of weather.
“Keisha and Marc go and brush your teeth then come and eat your breakfast. Then you have to take your showers to get ready for school.”
“Mom it’s raining heavily so we can’t go to school in this weather,” said Keisha.
“That is just a passing cloud that’s pouring rain over the area.”
“But mom the sky is dark. To me it looks as though it’s not going to stop anytime soon,” said Marc.
“The sky is dark because the cloud is blocking the sun, but the wind will blow away the cloud.”
As soon as she said that the rain started to slow down, the area started to look brighter, and ten minutes later a burst of sunshine appeared.
My children awoke and they were smiling happily.
“Mom, it’s raining, so we cannot go to school,” said Riana.
“Yeah!” exclaimed Leticia.
And I said, “That is just a passing cloud that is pouring rain over the area and the sky is dark because the cloud is blocking the sun, but the wind will blow away the cloud. A few minutes later the sun appeared.

Taken from my website. www.avjnostalgia.com

“A Chat”

He held her hand to help her on the bus. The driver had lowered the step, but the man standing beside her had to hold her hand to help her on the bus. Her face showed that she has been on this earth for many years. When she got in the bus, she sat next to me, and she was breathing hard. She calmed down then smiled at me.
“Child, I never thought I would live to see the day that my son would have to help me up on the bus.”
He said, “Ma that’s not a problem.”
“I know it’s not. You have been a good son.”
He smiled then said, “Your 70 year old son.”
She said, “Wow, your 95 year old mother.”
Everyone on the bus smiled, and wished her the best. I leaned back, because I was going to have a chat about the past with this woman.

“Your Plate Is Full”

I wanted to tell her that she is ‘ungrateful’, but all I said was, “girl, do what ever makes you happy.”
When I walked away from her, I called her every disgusting name I thought of. This woman had a beautiful home, with all the necessities; a good husband, who loved her, unconditionally. All she had to do was ask him for what ever she wanted, and he gets it for her. She would criticize him, and she allowed their two daughters to speak to him in a discourteous way. If he reprimanded them, she would jump down his throat. The further I walked away from her, the angrier I became and I felt that I needed to say something to her. I phoned her, and before I said anything, she started talking. “Girl I just had to put that man in his place for shouting at the kids.”
I started talking before she got into an explanation of the events. “Your plate is full, but the other person's plate is empty; be careful how you eat, because the tables are turning around slowly.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” She asked.

“Hooray”

Just before I entered the bank I saw a man parking his car. There wasn’t anything significant about him, but I did notice him. I stood on line feeling hot and I was sweating. It was cool in the bank, but after being out in the sweltering heat, I was feeling the after effects of it. I didn’t mind that I was the eight, person on line, because I was enjoying the cool air. The man who was parking his car came and stood in front of me, then he said, “I was standing here before.”
I said, “okay.”
He turned around to face me, “I am speaking the truth. I was standing here.”
I looked at him seriously and said, “and I said, okay.”
“You don’t sound too pleased.”
“What do you want me to do? Jump up and say hooray?”

"The Second Sleep"

I got up at 4:30AM. It was top early to get dressed for work, so I decided to go back to bed for an hour. The moment I got under the covers I fell into a deep sleep. I don't know what woke me up, but my eyes suddenly opened. My second sleep lasted for an hour and twenty minutes. I got off the bed quickly, ran into the bathroom, showered then dressed. I left home just in time to catch the 7:00AM bus that I normally took. A second sleep is the best sleep, but it can make you late.

“A Listening Ear”

In everything there is a lesson…
This takes me to a still tongue and a listening ear…
Hence the reason for two ears and one mouth…
Be quiet and listen…
There is knowledge there.



Taken from my website... www.avjnostalgia.com

“Complain and Confusion”

I stepped out to do my usual morning walk. The atmosphere was just right, and the area looked beautiful. I was having an honest to goodness feeling about the morning. A few people walked by, and we greeted each other. I stood for a few moments talking to Miss Mitchell. She was one of the matriarchs of our village. I continued walking then I saw Jennifer coming towards me in the distance. She loves to complain about her personal situations. It didn’t matter to her, if you told her, you didn’t want to hear, she would continue talking. I wasn’t in the mood to hear her complaints, so I crossed the street quickly. When I got to the other side, I realized that I should have stayed where I was, and deal with Jennifer.
“Hi Martha,” I said, but I was thinking I should have said “Hey Confusion, what’s going on…”

The Escapade With Candy

She was not a beautiful woman, but she had a nice body. Every time he saw her, his heart always goes to over drive. This was the second time Jason had planned a rendezvous with her. The first meeting did not happen because he was called out to work. This time he hoped that nothing was going to stop them. She sat in his car looking and smelling good. His thoughts on this escapade, was explosive then his phone rang. It was his wife.
“I have to take this call.” He put up his hand to stop Candy from talking. His wife called to remind him to pick up the kids. He explained to Candy that he had to cut their meeting short. “I’m sorry.”
“That’s okay. Drop me off at my home.”
His daughter – Amanda was 2, and his son – Jason Jr. was 3, so he felt it would not be a problem to have them in the car with her.
“I’m near to my kids day care so I’ll drop you off after I get them.”
The moment he secured them in their car seats, Jason Jr. had a serious look on his face, but Amanda started to ask questions.
“Who are you?”
“My name is Candy?”
“You going to my house?”
“No.”
“Where you going?”
“You’re to nosy.”
“I’m not nosy. My teacher said I am smart and gifted.”
“You’re a little chatterbox.”
“What?”
Jason wanted to laugh because he now realized that he had made an error in allowing Candy to be in close proximity with his kids. They were very smart.
“You know my mommy?” Amanda asked.
“Yes,” said Candy.
“Where’s my mommy?”
“Amanda, play with your toy. Your mommy is at work,” said Jason.
“No. I want mommy.”
“Mommy would be home from work soon.”
“I want my mommy now.” She started to cry.
“Don’t cry honey. We will be home soon.” He stopped in front of Candy’s home. “Are you coming over later?” she asked.
He knew he had to end this. “I have to take care of my kids.”
“Don’t call me again.” She slammed the car door and walked away.
“Dad, you made your girlfriend mad,” said Jason Jr.
“She is not my girlfriend. I was just giving her a ride.’
“Okay.”
When they arrived home, he started to talk to them about their day and they got into a great rapport. They were all laughing and having fun. He felt relieved that no discussion had taken place about the little escapade with Candy. His moment of relief didn’t last long. JJ and Amanda decided to share the story of Candy with their mother, at the dinner table.

“Felt Like An Idiot”

You asked me about it. I told you everything I knew, and I gave you all the information I had on it. You told me you understood, and you know exactly what you needed to do. I felt confident that you knew what you were doing, so I left you. Now I stand here feeling like an idiot!

"Little Miss Vain"

She never spoke to me because I was of a lower stature than her. My friends spoke to her, but I ignored her. Marisa, one of our friends, was getting married, and she asked me to be her maid of honor. Little Miss Vain, and the rest of our friends were bridesmaids.
We were all expected at the dressmaker’s shop to get fitted for our dresses. I asked for my appointment to be on a different day to hers. As my luck would have it, she missed her appointment, and arrived on the same day I did. I decided to leave, the moment I was finished. Two women assisted us as we tried on our dresses. We were both standing in front of mirrors, and I was focused on how my dressed looked on me. She twists and turns as she looked at herself, then she started talking.
“Don’t you all think I am beautiful? There are no marks on my face, or any where on my body. I never had a pimple. I am flawless.” Again my luck was at it’s best. I had three pimples on my face, a scar on my arm from an accident, and a small red birthmark on my left cheek. I looked at the woman attending to me and we both smiled. Little Miss Vain went on and on about her self. She was saying that she should be the maid of honor, but she understood why Marisa didn’t choose her.
“So why didn’t she choose you?” I asked.
“She knows that I would look better than her, and she didn’t want me to out do her. After all, it’s her wedding day.”
I started to giggle, and it turned into loud laughter. The two women stood looking at us with beet red faces and smiles on their lips, but Little Miss Vain, looked dumbfounded.

“The Happy Daddy”

My sister was dating a guy that she was head over heels in love with. This guy was both pleasant and respectable to my family, but I just did not like him. One day, while I was headed to my friend’s home, I saw him talking to a woman and holding a baby in his arms. He was looking down lovingly at the baby. I called out to him to let him know that I was nearby. The first look on his face was shock then he smiled and said hello to me. I kept looking at him as he nervously handed the baby over to the mother. Now my little inquisitive button started to twitch; I got closer to where he was standing, and I asked, “Is that your baby?” He looked at me and was fumbling for the answer, but the woman said, “Oh yes, he is the happy daddy.” He looked cornered, so I decided to play it nice. I said to the woman. “Cute baby, you both did great and I know he will be an outstanding father. She went on to say that he was at the hospital when she had the baby, and he never left her side. I told them I wished them the best then I made a detour and headed home. The meeting with my friend had to wait. My sister needed to here about this man. The moment I walked into the house I was in shock. He beat me to it. The happy daddy was in our home, sitting and chatting happily with my sister.

“Give Them Rope”

How could you talk to him and keep a straight face, knowing what you know about his wife? You are two deceitful women, yet I wonder if you don’t feel a bit hurt and guilty. You know, that she is sleeping with Tom, Dick, Harry; even Joe, your brother, is also nesting there. I looked at this distasteful situation, and wondered what is going through your minds. She says he is a good father and husband, he works for long hours, and when he gets paid, he gives her all the money. You know that she spends it freely. 'NO’ is a word she said that he never says to her. Any time she tells him she is going out partying or hanging out with her friends, he always says, ‘go and have fun’. It makes my stomach turn when I see the both of you talking and smiling happily with him. I used to call him a pussy, then he left and I said to my self, “YEAH!” I now understand what he was doing. He was giving her the rope to hang herself.

“A Windbag”

My friend stood in front of me, angrily accusing me of telling others about a private conversation she and I had. When we spoke, she told me that I was the only person she was telling about it, and do not tell anyone. I promised her that I wouldn’t. Although what she told me was explosive, and would create a stir, I didn’t even tell my best friend.
I told her that I didn’t tell anyone, and she must have told it to someone else. She said that she didn’t. I became angry and said, “Do me a favor. When you see me just say hello and goodbye, so that we wouldn’t share any private and confidential matters.”
“So what are you saying, you want to end our friendship? If that’s how you feel, then that’s fine with me,”
“Okay, goodbye.”
We both walked away, in opposite directions. I was angry, and decided if she was going to blame me for spilling her business, then I was going to tell my best friend every thing. I phoned my best friend and started telling her what transpired then she said, “Hold your last word. She told me the story, and asked me not to tell anyone, so I didn’t even tell you.”
“What! So she must have told it to others?”
“I am sure she did.”

“He Hung Up”

I met him on a number of occasions at random places as we walked by. We didn’t say anything to each other, but always gave a friendly smile. I thought that he was a very distinguished gentleman. There were times when I wished he would speak to me. Our meeting finally came at a cocktail party. We were introduced, and he acted as though he never saw me before. I felt a bit insulted, but he spoke to me most of the night and I did enjoy talking to him. The night ended with us exchanging phone numbers and promising to stay in touch. I was anxious to hear from him, but I waited patiently for his phone call. After three weeks went by, and not seeing or hearing from him, I decided to phone him. When he answered the phone I spent more than 10 minutes trying to refresh his memory of where we met. When he remembered he didn’t seem pleased that I called. I told him I just wanted to say hello. He said that he was busy, but would call me then he hung up…

“Blinded by Jealousy”

He stood next to his brother, and listened to him, as he said his vows to the woman he thought that he loved. His calm pleasant demeanor didn’t indicate that he was upset. Blinded by his hurt, he didn’t see his best friend sitting in the congregation. She was in love with him, and she wanted him to see that she was experiencing her own hurt. The happy couple left for their honeymoon, and the guests left. He sat, slumped down in a chair. His best friend walked through the door. She was an attractive woman with great poise. For the first time he really saw her and his heart suddenly was joyous. It was beating so wildly that he looked down to see if it was showing through his shirt. This had never happened to him before, and he was shocked.
She smiled as though she was happy to see him and he smiled because he was overjoyed to see her. He suddenly wanted her to be more than his best friend. How could he tell her that he loved her and he wants to marry her?
“Damn! How blind I was by jealousy? How can I clean up the mess I made? For months I was telling her about my brother and how I hated him for stealing my girl. I told her this morning before the wedding that I felt the same way about him and I am still in love with my sister-in-law. How am I going to fix this?”

A Lucky Woman”

She was sitting on the step thinking about her life. For the past eight years, her husband has been abusive. She didn’t tell anyone, because she felt ashamed. The last time he beat her, she couldn’t go to work for 3 days. His beatings got more brutal, and she felt he was going to eventually kill her. She felt sad that she did not have children. He did not want any, and he made sure she used some form of contraceptive. Her life was centered on the things he liked and disliked. She tried her best to please him, but it was never enough. The only time she felt happy was the time she spent with her dog, she named Happy. Her husband told her to get rid of Happy, and how he hated the name, but she told him no. He did not say anything else about it. Happy came running up to her, barking and excited for her to follow him. She did not want to move, but after he was making such a raucous, she got up and started to walk away. A loud crash, then a splatter, made her jump and she turned around. The concrete plant pot that was on the upstairs balcony fell on the spot she was sitting. She looked up, and there was her husband smiling.
“You are a lucky woman,” he said.

His X

He did not say anything about his X. I wondered why they broke up, but I didn’t ask. Eventually, his mother and sisters with their chatty selves told me a few things about her. I listened, but had no comments, because, I was thinking that it is typical of a mother, and sister to trash their son/brother’s woman. It didn’t take long for me to find out that they were all right about this woman. One night, we were at a party and were just standing talking to each other. A guy he knew came up to him and they started to talk. In the most tactless way this guy said, “Did you divorce that woman yet?”
“He said, “ Yeah man.”
“It’s about time. Everyone in the neighborhood used to talk about you. They used to say how stupid you were, because this woman was playing herself out there. She was even with her best friend’s brother. They used to talk about how they used to get it on in your home.”
“He said. “Man I knew, but I stayed because of the children. I left after I knew they would be okay. I know she is trashing me down there, but I do my part. I still take care of the children, although she tells them that I don’t.”
“I stood there flabbergasted and embarrassed for my man. He in turned put his hand around my waist and pulled me closer.

A Perfectly Matched Couple

I stood sipping a glass of white wine, while my friends were all dancing. I saw a handsome man talking to his friends. They were all laughing at something he said. He looked at me, nodded his head, and smiled. I smiled, thinking how nice it would be to speak to him, but I didn’t keep his gaze, turned my head and scanned the room . He came up to me and asked me to dance. We danced 3 sets, and then he offered to get me another glass of wine, which I accepted, and he got a beer for himself. We stood talking, and he had me laughing. He was such a gentleman that when he told me his wife would be here soon, I didn’t feel upset. One of my friends walked up to us. She knew him, so she started talking to him, telling him my name, and who my relatives were. He turned to me and said, “We’ve been dancing and chatting, and weren’t officially introduced; now that we have been, let’s dance again. When we started dancing he said, “I don’t like chatty women.” I started to laugh because I found her to be too presumptuous. We eventually found another spot, and started talking again. An unattractive woman walked in and his face lit up.
“Here comes my wife.”
The woman smiled, and her face changed from unattractive to just beautiful.
“Hi sweetheart,” he said and kissed her lips, hugged her, tightly then introduced her to me.
She smiled very warmly, and shook my hand.
I smiled at her and was thinking, what a perfectly matched couple they are.

Enchantress/Deceiver/Seductress

Teresa always flirts with Jeff then one day she invited him out.
“Aren’t you Larry’s girlfriend?” he asked.
“Yes, but I won’t tell him if you don’t.”
“I can’t go out with you.”
“Your loss. You don’t know what you’re going to be missing out on.”
“And I don’t care.”
After that conversation, Jeff thought it was over, until Larry confronted him, accusing him of going after Teresa. He told Larry that he did not, and they started to argue. Larry was now accusing him of calling his girl a liar. Teresa had a happy smirk on her face as she looked at them arguing. The argument was going on and on. Some students gathered around egging it on. There was no end in sight, so Jeff realized that he had to end it. “Larry I am sorry, and I apologize.”
“Don’t apologize to me man. Apologize to my girl.”
Jeff turned to Teresa and the first thing he wanted to do is, slap the smirk off of her face. This would cause a physical altercation between him and Larry so he apologized to her. She looked as though she just hit gold.
When Jeff arrived home, he told his parents what happened.
His father asked, “Is her name Jezebel?”
“No,” he said, and he smiled.
“I wonder what her future would be like,” said his mother.
“What I don’t like is that in most cases, the male always gets chastised. The female is left as though she is innocent, and she plays the part well. From time immemorial she is, has been and will always be an enchantress, a deceiver, a seductress… I could go on and on with this. Just be on your guard,” said his father.

"Like/Dislike"

I don’t like you!” she said.
“Okay, but thanks for sharing,” I said.
“What?” she asked.
“If you could ask me what, you heard me.”
My friends all started laughing then one of them said, “You are not upset by what she said?”
“No. That is her opinion.”
“Yeah, but why did she have to say it to you?”
“I am happy that she did because now I know that I have to stay out of her way.”
“So this is the grain of salt thing with you again?”
“Yeah I took it with a grain of salt, because in life you wouldn’t like everyone you meet, and everyone you meet wouldn’t like you.”

Sleep Is For The Night.

I woke up feeling stupid that I went to sleep on that day, and woke-up on the same day. I fell asleep around 3:30p.m, woke up at 7:30p.m. I had to prepare a synopsis that had to be delivered the next day. I sat in front of the computer, and was having a moment of, ‘writers block’. Finally had it done, got to bed about 4:00a.m, and slept for two hours. When I go to work, everyone said I looked like I had a good night’s rest. If they only knew how tired I was feeling, they would send me home and straight to bed. My opinion, sleep is for the Night.

“A Grain of Salt”

If anyone makes a comment to me that I feel was insulting or degrading, I would speech them off, using words from the dictionary, and others that were not in the dictionary. After the argument, I would go into my private place and cry, then I would tell my mother. She would say, “That’s not the way to handle it. You feel more hurt after you behave in that way, and it also puts you in a depressed mood. What you need to do is to, ‘take it all with a grain of salt’. It will bring flavor to the situation even to you.” I didn’t understand what she meant until I started ignoring and being less vocal. So I am taking all negatives with a grain of salt, and all negativity is adding flavor to me.

Positive and Negative

I started my first novel and was afraid to tell anyone that I was writing. After I had finished my manuscript, I told my immediate family. Years later I finally got the nerve to tell my circle of friends, and other family members. They all told me that it was a great idea, and they can’t wait to read it. I sent it out to publishing houses, but was rejected over and over. I felt a bit discouraged for a while, but then I self-published. I sold copies to my family, friends, and to strangers. The phone calls started coming in with great positive comments about the book. Even those strangers who purchased books were complimenting me. I was excited, so I decided to make phone calls to the relatives and friends I didn’t hear from. They all made a 360-degree turn around. Some of their comments were, “I don’t like it, Who told you that you could write?, You should find another profession, Writing is not for you.” This one was a classic, “I didn’t read it. I put it up on a shelf.” I felt crushed and trampled on, forgetting I had gotten great compliments. I turned off my computer, and decided to stop writing, allowing the negatives to weigh heavy on my mind. It took me a while to realize that these people were being mean, and I should hold on to the moment of assurance. So here I am with 3 books on the market, Jan’s Mysterious Adventure, Sandy, Leigh’s Story, and I am working on others…

Writing

There is always something to write about… the scenery, the atmosphere, and that person who walked by. You heard something, or just your imagination working on a character, an event, or scenery. All these things make an impact on your thoughts. Get on your computer, or get a notebook, and start writing… You have a voice; use it!
Don’t worry about arranging your paragraphs, and your chapters. When you are finished writing, start editing. You would know how to format your paragraphs, and then your chapters.

Excerpt from Interview – 4

You have found success with self-publishing. Would you recommend self-publishing for authors who are first starting out?

I have found a lot of success with self-publishing and I would recommend it for authors who are first starting out. In most cases, many big publishing houses might not want to take a chance on you. If that’s the case, do not let that deter you, take the next step. Get in touch with a reputable self-publishing house.

Excerpt from Interview -- 3

Your books take place in Trinidad, Alaska and Florida, among other locations. How do you decide where to set your novels?

Leigh Story started a very long time in Trinidad. I was on holiday in the Bahamas, and had the most exciting time ever. The only thing that was missing was the romance, and my vivid imagination kicked in. I wondered how great it would be to have had some romance there. Most of the places mentioned in my books I visited, so I always visualize how romance would fit into a holiday.

Excerpt from Interview -- 2

You have written three novels: Jan’s Mysterious Adventure; Leigh’s Story and Sandy. When did you first know that you wanted to be a writer?

My writing started at a very young age due to my elementary school teachers, but my mother was the main driving force. I remember coming home from school when I was very young, having to write an essay for homework. I did not want to do it, because I could not think of what to say. My mother sat with me at the dining table, and as one of my sisters would say, ‘many stories were told at that table’. I sat there for a while with my mom, and she kept insisting that I must have been thinking about something. Right at this very moment there must be something going on in your head. Write what you are thinking on the paper. I wrote, “I don’t want to write this essay.” She then prompted me to write down my reasons, and I wrote every excuse I could find at the time. When I was finished, she helped me to see how easy it was to write about that. Now what you have to do is think about the topic and the ideas will flow… I still think about the topics, and the ideas keep flowing.

http://www.commitmentnow.com/

Happiness/Melancholy

Happiness! That deep sweet feeling that touches you, and your heart says ‘yes’. You bask in it, and just glow with joy… then comes melancholy this feeling you want to stay far away from, when it touches you, your heart says ‘NO!’ but it lingers on. You want to shake it off, but it’s the hardest thing to do… Are you happy or Melancholy…. Let’s talk about it…