by Mensimah Shabazz | Mar 31, 2019
Every time I look into the mirror, I have different reactions to what I see. I have often seen the color of my eyes change and I have questioned whether it was real or my imagination. I have noted different degrees of puffiness around my eyes and questioned whether it...
by Mensimah | Feb 10, 2019
A Greater Vision of Who You Are Some years ago, I worked as a Domestic Violence Counselor at a Women’s Shelter where I conducted both group and individual sessions. I met several wonderful women and on one of my weekly visits, I worked with a young lady who made an...
by Mensimah | Dec 12, 2018
My elders from the Akan tribe of Ghana teach that: “Ka na ka bio yenkyi,” which means that repetition is not taboo! I have chosen to share last year’s message about joyful living again because a lot of us have been through insurmountable challenges this...
by Mensimah | Nov 12, 2018
Some years ago, I wrote the poem below titled “Tompala,” and it pains me to think that, a decade plus later, women are still experiencing different levels of trauma through wars, sexual violence, domestic violence, and children’s hunger in this world. It...
by Mensimah | Nov 8, 2018
Giving it Your All I cannot start this conversation without mentioning Ms. Aretha Franklin. I was extremely lucky to be invited to President Clinton’s Second Inaugural Ball on January 20, 1997, at the Kennedy Center. If you have attended one of these events, you would...
by Mensimah | Oct 23, 2018
Celebrating Old and New Friends I have put aside other topics I had wanted to write about and chose this one because last Monday I lost a dear friend in London. While my heart hurts deeply, I am celebrating the fact that I had a friend who brought love. This type of...
by Mensimah | Aug 12, 2018
The Fruit From My Tree The beginning of summer is just around the corner and I am ready for it! Are you? This season brings warmth, flowers, butterflies, colors, rainbows, sorbets, vegetables, and frolicking at the beach, just to name a few things. It is a harvest of...
by Mensimah | Jun 23, 2018
Living with Love I start this month’s blog on love again and every time someone asks, “What has love got to do with anything?” I am often reminded of Tina Turner’s classic, in which she sings with such passion: “What’s love got to do, got to do with it...
by Mensimah | May 5, 2018
I love poetry! So I chose love and poetry for the theme as I reflected on the past year’s events and my writings. It has been a great year in many respects, pursuing a new career at this age—but this change has aligned more with Pablo Neruda’s poem La Poesia (1975),...
by Mensimah | Apr 20, 2018
Choosing the Right Course that Enlivens You and Allows You to Live Vivaciously! When I was in high school, an all girls’ boarding school, I played Mr. Collins in Pride and Prejudice, and I remember quite well that I had so much fun, and I was very good at playing my...
