*viewers discretion is advised*

I can not explain to you what I was feeling when I saw this story on Digg, "Police in Iran run over protester". Please be advised that these videos are graphic but they depict what people in Iran are going through everyday. This was another needless tragedy.




This is after:


(no word of the condition of the injured man)

Translation via youtube user rezabrando: "God! God!. He ran over him three times! Ran over him three times! The car belongs to police! God! he bumped him first, then reversed and ran over him again! They're killing people! My God, it was a police truck!

We see more than ever the sad tragedy of life for people in other countries. Iran is another example. Although they are in a different country and speak another language and some people may deem them as "enemies" they are a part of the same race. The human one. People just like us with families, hopes and dreams. They are oppressed in every sense of the word. Please pray that their peace comes soon.


Thanks for reading,

In writing there is always talk about how to market and brand yourself. How to imprint yourself and what you do into the minds and hearts of the masses. Many have done this successfully.

All the products that we use we can associate with a slogan or logo of some kind. One example is Secret deodorant. Just the name reminds me of their slogan:







Do you think some woman was putting it on one day and was moved to say, "Wow! This deodorant is strong enough for a man, but made for a woman!"? No. Most women don't aspire to having BO that can only reduced by industrial strength chemicals made for men. The makers of Secret told us this about their product. Of course we believed it.

So how do we brand ourselves? Are you one of those people who -when paid a complaint- try to talk the giver out of it?

Example:

Nice guy: You look so pretty today.

YOU: Thank you, but I'm not that pretty. I mean my hair wouldn't curl and I forgot to put on Secret this morning".

I am guilty of this. These are examples of the improper branding of YOU. We sell ourselves short. Some of us are afraid to say out loud what we know we are capable of. Instead we label or brand ourselves in a way that won't lead to us disappointing others. Making statements like, "You wouldn't say that if you really knew me." These words stick in peoples minds.

So from today on let's stop this. I'll take the first step:

Hello, my name is Toya
I'm a great mother
I'm a good writer
I care about people and animals

How would you brand yourself?


Thanks for reading,

2010. A new year. A new time. A new era. For this new phase in my life I am going to allow my hope to guide me towards my goals. See the big picture. Accept the past and embrace the future. Emily Dickinson said "'Hope' is the thing with feathers". That means it is not sedentary. It is mobile. It can fly. When we let it. Let's allow our hopes to lift us to the place that makes the impossible possible.

"Hope" is the thing with feathers

Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all,

And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.

I've heard it in the chilliest land
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb...of me.

-Emily Dickinson

Thanks for reading,

2009 seems to have been an epic year on many levels. Change seemed to be on everyone's lips. At the same time while the world seemed to celebrate advancement, 2009 was a year of unparalleled tragedy in the lives of many children.

Stories about children like Shaniya Davis,  Elizabeth Olten and Derrion Albert made the news on an almost daily basis. I reflected on the horrific deaths of children in a post that I wrote this year entitled, "A Poem for Shaniya...and victims like her."

Although, there was one spot of uplifting news: the return of Jaycee Duggar after 18 years of captivity at the hands of a preadtor. Even with that in mind though, our children...regardless of age, race and locality are losing their lives needlessly at the hands of friends, family, predators and peers.

1. Read the National Alert Registry's 10 Rules for Protecting Your Children from Registered Child Offenders for a list of safety measures that can be taken to help to ensure your child's safety.

2. Search the The US Department of Justice's The Dru Sjodin National Sex Offender Public Website which is a national database of registered sex offenders to be aware of potential predators in your area.

3.  Visit these great sites for more information on how you can protect your children as well as help find missing ones.

Amber Alert
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
American Humane

Thanks for reading,