Tag: Memories

  • Peggie Russell, I Salute You

    Hello Honeybees,

    International Women’s Month is almost over and I would be remiss if I didn’t pay tribute to a woman that truly impacted my life. 

    Of course my mother is and always will be the most important woman ever to me.  She is the reason that I am even in this world.  I would not be the woman that I am without her influence, guidance and most of all love. 

    There are friends & family members that are still to this day helping & supporting me but for this post I want to share with you how Peggie Russell came into my life and changed it forever.

    Peggie

    I can’t tell you how Peggie & I became friends. We tried for many years to figure it out but we never could put our finger on THAT moment.  What we did know and understand was that our friendship was destined.  We didn’t know how short it would be but we knew that our friendship was a gift.  Peggie was so good at listening to you but she never gave you answers.  She had a way of making you make your own decisions.  Although there was that one time that she flat out disagreed with me and told me so in no uncertain terms.  That should have been my light bulb moment but it wasn’t.  I didn’t listen and to this day I regret it.  Not once did she ever say “I told you so”, she just held my hand and helped me pick up the pieces.  That was just her way.

    She encouraged me as a friend, a woman, a mother, and a Christian.  She never knew it but she also helped to shape my future career.  She led me to programs and connected me to people that would usher me into the nonprofit world, for that I am grateful.  She saw things in me that I didn’t see.  It still amazes me when some of those things manifest.

    B&P

    According to man Peggie left this world too soon.  According to God the timing was right. There are so many friends and family that miss her daily. She left behind a husband, four children, a granddaughter and a host of others though not related by blood, they still called her mom.  She gave not only to her family but to her community. She was a motivational speaker, author, attorney, preacher, teacher and community activist. To me was FRIEND.

    So on this last day of International Women’s Month I salute you Peggie Russell.  May you rest in heaven with your angel wings. 

    Peggie Hat

    Belinda Bee pic

    Beewisdom- There will always be a reason why you meet people, either, you need them to change your life, or, you are the one that will change theirs

  • Love Is A House

    Hello Honeybees,

    My aunt came to Memphis for a visit.  I usually get to see her about once or twice a year.  She and her family are my only relatives still living in the Windy City.  My mom and I moved to Memphis from Chicago when I was 10 years old.  My dad passed at the early age of 32 and my mom thought moving to Memphis would give us a fresh start. 

    Now for the record I never wanted to move to Memphis.  I had a life in Chicago (all 10 years of it)

    This is the house on the South Side of Chicago where my foundation began

    Normal House

    In this house I learned the meaning of love and family.  I watched my parents as they showed me what a good marriage looks like… how a man treats a wife and how a wife respects her husband.

    In this house I developed my love for sports, especially Steeler football…thanks dad!

    In this house I learned to ride a bike and jump double-dutch

    Home Saying

    In this house I had awesome birthday parties.

    In this house I had the best Christmas’ ever.

    To me this house represents some of the BEST memories of my life.

    To me this house represents LOVE

    I have been back to Chicago once since moving to Memphis.  That’s something that has to change and soon.

    But I don’t want to go in the winter…yeah I still remember that hawk. Brrrr!!!!

    I want to go back now as an adult to shop and definitely eat.  I didn’t know it then but I was cultivating my love for food.

    ChicagoSkyline1

    Growing up my cousins and I would spend some part of every summer in Memphis with our grandmother.  I liked Memphis. It was a great place to visit but to move…..Nope, Nada, No way!  But what choice did I have? Unlike today’s children, I didn’t have a vote. 

    As a mother I am glad that we made the move to Memphis. Honestly I would rather raise my boys in Memphis than in Chicago.

    I hope to one day take my boys to Chicago so that they can see where it all began.  They never got the chance to meet my parents but I share with them the good times that I had in this house. This is where love started for me.

    I pray that I am creating those same kind of memories for them in our HOME.

    Belinda Bee pic

    What was your favorite place to live growing up?

    Beewisdom- It takes hands to build a house, but only hearts can build a home – Unknown