Irreconcilable

29 Monday Jan 2018

Posted by Rev. Nadine Drayton-Keen in Poetry

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breaking up, broken relationships, condemned, divorce, drifting, floating, irreconcilable differences, irretrievable breakdowns, marriage, out of body, reconcile, suspended, tidal waves, unmoored

I’m forever lost—

Drifting unconsciously—

My shipwrecked life perpetually

Stranded by spousal loss, child loss,

Swirling undercurrents that

Pull apart unions, creating

Irretrievable breakdowns.

My out of body living

Kept me rowing aimlessly,

Left me bumping against

Peer pressure, popularity,

Worldliness, academia,

Skepticism, humanism—

Swelling tidal waves that

Unmoored me emotionally,

Floating me permanently,

Suspending me horizontally.

I’m condemned to be

Outside looking in, too

Powerless to reconcile.

– composed January 29, 2018

If your fellow believer sins against you, you must go to that one privately and attempt to resolve the matter. If he responds, your relationship is restored. ~ Matthew 18:15, TPT

I Am She!

27 Saturday Jan 2018

Posted by Rev. Nadine Drayton-Keen in Poetry

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bad habits, band of gold, betray in mind, cheating, civil, disrespectful, drinking, girl watcher, humble, lustful, marriage, married, never-said-words, ogling women, quiet, regrets, relationship, selfish, silent, smoking, sneak-peeks, too late, unfaithful, unhealthy

Disrespectfully you ask:
Who are you to invade my space
With your disapproving face
Disconcerted because I smoke and
Drink or think there’s
No shame in ogling women—
Just a game I play
Once I’ve devoured what’s
On my plate yet hunger
For dessert—eye candy
For Yankee Doodle Dandy
With witty speech
Always handy with the girls.

Your nagging curbed
Smoking and drinking.
Your vow reminders restrained
Keenness for girl watching.
Band of gold imprisoned
The me I used to be
So chill your indignation.

Civilly I re-ask:
Who am I?

Since you’re clueless,
My et tu, Brutus,
Betraying me with your
Lustful sneak-peeks, like
You’re sitting next to empty seat;
My killing yourself slowly honey
With your bad habits,
Those charismatic bandits,
Widow and widower makers—
Let me school you.

I am she who
Camouflages her sadness
Suppresses her womanness
Fades into blackness
Functions heartbrokenly
Shoves words she should say
To the back of closets,
Bites her tongue
Swallows her pride
Lets you decide
Her worth hidden within
Like a rare priceless pearl
Waiting for you to discover,
Uncover for it to take
Your breath away.

I am she who
Flavors your madness
With my clear-headedness,
Transforms your backwoods
Bumpkinness into refined goods;
Cares you’re healthy
Expects your fidelity.

I am she who
Opens her heart, soul, mind, love
To you not so you can
Trample them—smashing to smithereens
Via your far from subtly
Dropped anvil after anvil.

Who am I?
I am she who is too precious
For you to hurt me that much.

– composed January 27, 2018

Husbands, go all out in your love for your wives, exactly as Christ did for the church—a love marked by giving, not getting. ~ Ephesians 6:25, MSG

110th Anniversary of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

11 Thursday Jan 2018

Posted by Rev. Nadine Drayton-Keen in Tribute

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1-15-1908, 1-15-2018, 110 years, AKA, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., bonds of Sisterhood, colors, dignified, elegant, Founders' Day, green, haiku poem, honor, illustrated haiku, pink, Sorors, strong, threefold cord, unbreakable strand

Happy 110^th Founders’ Day (on January 15, 2018) to all my Sorors. I have been a Soror for 33 of these 110 years. My 34^th anniversary is on February 25^th.

In honor of my Sorority’s 110^thanniversary, I wrote the following haiku poem on January 9, 2018:

AKA Colors

The Pink and The Green

join agreeably –

dignity and strength.

My “AKA Colors” haiku poem also is in the above Founders’ Day image.

One of my first Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated haiku poems that I illustrated is in the below graphic. I call the haiku poem in the following image simply, “Sisterhood”:

A wise man describes the utmost unbreakable strand. Solomon’s symbol for durability is a cord consisting of three strands. His threefold cord represents an indestructible union—one that could be created between three or more friends (who can be any combination, including merely three Sorors). Solomon writes:

By yourself you’re unprotected.
With a friend you can face the worst.
Can you round up a third?
A three-stranded rope isn’t easily snapped. ~ Ecclesiastes 4:12, MSG

May each of my Sorors honor every Soror on Founders’ Day. May our bonds of Sisterhood always be strong, dignified, and elegant.

HAPPY FOUNDERS’ DAY SORORS . . . . .

9 Simple Prayers for 2018

04 Thursday Jan 2018

Posted by Rev. Nadine Drayton-Keen in Spiritual

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church methods, church models, difficult, eloquent, formulas, grammatically correct, humble, lengthy, man-made methods, man-made models, memorized, peddled techniques, prayers, praying, programs, repeated, simple, sincere

The world is full of so-called prayer warriors who are prayer-ignorant. They’re full of formulas and programs and advice, peddling techniques for getting what you want from God. Don’t fall for that nonsense. This is your Father you are dealing with, and he knows better than you what you need. With a God like this loving you, you can pray very simply. Like this:

Our Father in heaven,
Reveal who you are.
Set the world right;
Do what’s best—
as above, so below.
Keep us alive with three square meals.
Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.
You’re in charge!
You can do anything you want!
You’re ablaze in beauty!
Yes. Yes. Yes. ~ Matthew 6:7-13, MSG

In 2018, for my family and friends, I pray the following nine simple prayers:

1. May your family and friends be blessed.
2. May your family and friends be loved.
3. May your health be robust.
4. May your heavenly treasures be abundant.
5. May your worries be erased from your mind.
6. May your pains and sorrows be less.
7. May you be loving to everyone.
8. May you be kind to everyone.
9. May you be blessed because you blessed others.