Chill of Fear by Kay Hooper

I enjoyed this story.  Kay Hooper's ability to keep the story moving with suspense is phenomenal.  Psychic FBI agent Quentin Hayes returns each year to the Lodge to revisit a 25 year ago murder of Missy Turner; he combs through the files over and over looking for anything he may have missed before. The case is important to him because he was at the lodge 25 years ago as a 12 year old boy who befriended Missy.  Meanwhile, Diana Brisco has struggled to put her life together after being heavily sedated for the better part of her life because of terrible dreams, vision, voices, and blackouts; she finally breaks free of her father's influence, and the medication used to dull her senses.  With her head clear, she meets Quentin who helps her to accept she is not mentally ill but she is very special; he helps her come to terms with the fact that she is a medium and all this time, the dreams, visions, and the blackouts would lead her to the lodge where she finally uncovers the truth regarding her childhood; she discovers Missy was a her sister.  With the help of Missy and the restless souls living in hotel, she finally uncovers the truth about Missy murder and a very evil entity that has terrorized the lodge for many years.  The book is worth the time invested to enjoy a real good thriller.

The Broken Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin

     The second book in the Inheritance trilogy from N.K. Jemisin loss a bit of momentum from the first book. It's storyline seemed to be indirectly related to the first but still a new story altogether. This book introduces the reader to a new character Oree Shoth; she happens to be blind woman with magical gifts concealed in her painting and magical blood. Later in the story, it is revealed Oree is a demon. I didn't fully understand how and why she was made a demon; nevertheless, this was not much of a surprise since the story deals with Gods and Goddesses.
     In addition to the story about Oree, the fallen God Lord Itempas has been living his life as a human; this curse is a result of the punishment he received from Yeine, the Goddess of Life and Death at the end of the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms from the crimes he inflicted upon the Gods.
     Also, the Order of the New Lights is a rival cult to the Itempan order; each group is fighting for supremacy in the city of Shadow(formerly known as Sky). As backdrop to this, godling Role is murdered, and Itempan order seeks to blame Oree; meanwhile, Detah, one of the leaders of the New Lights, kidnaps Oree in hopes of using her magic blood as a weapon against the godlings.
Overall, it was a pretty good book. I just felt the story kind of lost its way in relationship to the first book.

The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin

     I just finished reading this book, and I enjoyed it immensely. N.K. Jemisin does a wonderful job of created a new world full of interesting characters.

     The story begins as Yeine is called to the city of Sky by her grandfather King Dekarta to be announced as one of three heirs to the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms.  The other two heirs to the kingdom are Yeine's twin cousins Scimina and Relad Arameri.  As Yeine soon finds out, both Scinima and Relad, are truly ambitious; they are ready to kill anyone for the kingdom.  Yeine does not care much for her family and the kingdom, but she is much more concerned with finding out the truth behind her mother's murder; her relentless search for the truth allows her to meet some very interesting characters....She becomes acquainted with Sieh the trickster, Nahadoth the Nightlord, Viraine and a host of other characters....Her journey is filled with lies and deceit; she doesn't know whom to trust.  In the process, she learns about her mother--the person she comes to know about is not consistent with the woman she knew as her mother--furthermore, she discovers her mother sold her to be a vessel for the Goddess Enefa. While she grapples with having another entity inside of her, she learns a very troubling secret which she is unable to avoid. Her destiny to be the sacrifice and emancipator of the godlings troubles her but yet she accepts her true destiny.  This story is worth the time invested to discover what ultimately happens to Yeine in her journey.

John 1:1-5

     Due to tradition, many believers accept the words of their respective churches and pastors concerning this Bible verse. There is the belief the Holy Bible is literal history, but I have written in a previous blog the Bible is not literal history but metaphysical.  In other words, nothing in the bible happened literally but does happen metaphysically.  Through my many hours of study, the metaphysical understanding of these Bible verses begin to make sense. Since the New Testament was written in Greek, the explanation of these verses will follow per it's translation of the language. With this in mind, follow me on this journey to see where it leads.

    1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. According to Strong's concordance the Greek word used for Word is Logos which means a word embodying an idea, thoughts and/or divine thought. The Greek word for God is Theos which means God, the creator and owner of all things.  Since the Word(idea, thoughts, and/or divine thought) was God as the verse states then the idea, thoughts, and/or vine thought is God.  In other words, the thoughts emanating from the mind is God the creator.
     
   2 He was with God in the beginning.  He is referencing back to the word Word which in Greek Logos is used in the masculine term; therefore, this is why the word He is used to denote the masculine form of the word. In essence, the express idea, thought, and/or divine thought  was with God(idea, thoughts, and/or divine thought) in the beginning.

  3 Through Him(idea, thoughts, and/or divine thought) all things were made; without Him(idea, thoughts, and/or divine thought) nothing was made that has been made.  

 4  In Him(idea, thoughts, and/or divine thought) was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The Greek word for life is Zoe which is physical(present) and of spiritual(particularly future) existence. The idea, thoughts, and/or divine thought can exist in the here and now, and the power of the idea, thoughts, and/or divine thought can empower the spiritual being(subconscious mind).  The light in Greek is Phos which means illumination, and the word used for mankind is Anthropos which includes male and female; in this case mankind(male/female) is synonymous with conscious mind(male) and subconscious mind(female)

5  The light(illumination) shines in the darkness(ignorance), and the darkness(ignorance) has not overcome it.  It refers to light(illumination). The Greek word for darkness is Skotos which means obscurity i.e. ignorance.

     I hope the explanation of these verses clears up any misunderstanding; after studying these things, it has made a difference for me in understanding the spiritual journey the soul must take to enlightenment. There is so much more to discuss, but I hope to delve into other Bible verses at a later time.

Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor

     I just finish reading this book yesterday, and I enjoyed this read a great deal. This story is about the main character Onyesonwu who is the product of a brutal rape. Ms. Okorafor gives voice to the issues women face surrounding being violated. Onyesonwu was born in the desert, but her mother moved the two of them to Jwahir.  In this town, both mother and daughter, are a shame since a child was born through a violent act.  Onyesonwu is ewu because she is daughter of a brutal Nuru general, and her mother is from the Okeke people.  In addition, ewu are children of rape who will live a life of violence due to the nature of their birth.  There is a long standing strife between Nuru and Okeke people. Nuru consider Okeke to be slaves and worthy of the abuse they suffer.
  As a result of her lineage, Onyesonwu is a sorcerer by birth since her abilities were handed down to her by her father Daib.  Her abilities begin to show themselves by certain events that happen to her without her knowledge until she relentlessly convinces Aro to teach her how to control her abilities and teach her the Mystic Points.  Aro, at first refuses, he refuses because she is a girl; this is another issue Ms. Okorafor reveals how girls and women are viewed as non-important and treated as slaves. One of Onyesonwu abilities she taps into a great deal is shape shifting into a vulture; the symbolism in the vulture dealing with the element of air; in addition, it is the symbolism of the mind, thoughts, and intelligence.
    Another important issue Ms. Okorafor deals with the concerning young girls is circumcision.  In the town of Jwahir, Onyesonwu befriends Binti, Diti, & Luyu....Even though she does not have to, she decides to take part in the Eleventh Rite along with Binti, Diti, & Luyu....She takes part of the Eleven Rite primarily to remove the shame from her and her mother Najeeba because she was a product of rape. The Eleventh Rite is a process were young girls have a part of their clitoris removed to prevent them from deriving pleasure from sexual intercourse--as a result, this causes extreme pain during sexual intercourse--it is truly a barbaric act inflicted upon young girls.
     In order to exact revenge on her father for his terrible deeds, Onyesonwu envision she must face death to right the wrongs inaugurated by Daib.

What Are The Meaning Of Words?

     Throughout our lifetime, we use many words; we use them to express ourselves....We use them to convey a message....Words are used to construct this blog.  I have always being interested in the meaning of words.  As a practical guide, I always look up the etymology of a word; etymology means the study of the origin of words and the way in which their meanings have changed throughout history.

     For example, the word contract in the early 14th century meant to make an agreement; when you separate the word and find out the true meaning of word, it may surprise some people--the first part of the word is con means to swindle or defraud, and the second part of the word tract means little book or treatise.  When you put these words together, it forms the meaning fraudulent treatise. There are other words which I find very interesting; these are husband and family. The etymology of the word husband is male head of household or master of the house then you take the word family, the etymology of this word is servants of the household or slaves if will.  Since the spouse and the children make up the family, this would mean then the family are servants or slaves to the master of the house which would be the husband.  When I found this out, I can say I was really shocked by it's original meaning. Let's take a look at another word which is Church; the word church means a place of worship today, but the word comes from circe which upon further examination relates to the Greek Goddess of sorcery, magic, transmutation, and necromancy.  In essence, the word church means, when put together, is place of worship to the Goddess Circe. The sorcery relates to witchcraft, magic, and enchantment, but the word sorcery comes from the Greek word pharmakeia means the use of medicine, drugs, or spells which is where we get the word pharmacy we use today.  This are just some words that have interesting meanings and connections to one another.

All Lives Matter

     If there was not a more nauseating term than "All Lives Matter," I would say this is an understatement.  People of color have been subjected to the most humiliating circumstances here in America; yet, the disrespect continues without thought. Black Lives Matter is indicative of the harassment people of color have felt since being bought to this country against their will; people of color know instinctively that all lives matter, so it isn't something that needs to be voiced; however, the same cannot be true of the dominant culture here in America.  All Lives Matter seek to denigrate and minimize the injustice dispense towards people of color from the hands of the dominant culture; this dominant culture is the system of white supremacy.  For all of those screaming All Lives Matter, where were you when Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, Trayvon Martin, Freddie Gray, Eric Garner, etc. where killed in cold blood. If indeed All Lives Matter, these young men would be alive today; these young men are dead because of the color of their skin...Irrespective of what their flaws may have been, there is no justification to act with such deadly force upon these young men....If All Lives Matter, there would be no need for Black Lives Matter, but the truth is for more a reality to all people of color.  Those who scream and chant All Lives Matter have the privilege to mock and dehumanize people of color; it is a special right called white privilege. In order for someone to say "All Lives Matter," you have to be purposely living in a vacuum not to notice other human beings of different skin tone having the right to exist without the worry of being gunned down in the streets by those who protect and serve which are the employees of the tax payor.  The phrase is certainly racist at it's core since it seeks to define what lives(white) are more important.  Truth is self evident for those who can acknowledge it "Black Lives Matter Too."

The Five HeartBeats

     Ever wonder what happen to Eddie King Jr?  Five years after reunited with the original members of the Five Heartbeats; he resurrects his singer career as a gospel singer.  With the help of Duck Matthews, they wrote and produced two successful Gospel Albums entitled "For the Love of Jesus & Here I Come Lord."  Both albums went double platinum and earned both Matthews and King Jr Grammy's.  After touring for five years, he decided to retire for good....He finally received the fame and fortune he sought after with the Five Heartbeats but was denied due to personal reasons....He now runs Paid In Full records along with his wife Baby Doll.  He gives advice to his son Eddie King III, who is aspiring to be a HIP HOP artist and goes by the name EKIII and currently managed by Donald “Duck” Matthews.

     I think you all remember Anthony Stone AKA “Choir Boy”. In 1996, Choir Boy becomes the pastor of his father's church after his father passes away. In 2006, he releases his first and only book “Seize The Time with Jesus.” The book becomes a best seller and stays number one for 18 weeks. As a result, he is a very popular lecturer and preacher visiting churches in the United States and other countries.

     

     After being convicted of the murder of Jimmy Potter in 1966, Big Red Davis sells the Five Heartbeats and many other artist catalogue on his lable to Epic Records which netted him a cool $15 million.  After serving 20 years in prison for murder, he is released and now comes out to a bank account of $75 million due to smart investments while inside the joint.  Meanwhile, Duck Matthews learns of the money Big Red has accumulated over the years and convinces the other members to file a class action law suit again Big Red and Epic records to collect the royalties they were never paid.  Duck Matthews lived off the royalties he received from writing all the Heartbeats songs; he copyrighted all of his songs he wrote even though the masters were own by Big Red and then sold to Epic Records.  Initially, Choir Boy did not want to be part of the lawsuit because he had already established himself as very popular preacher.  But with much prodding from Matthews, Choir Boy enters the lawsuit realizing he should be paid as a founding member of the Heartbeats.  Since Epic Records had used the Five Heartbeats songs in movie soundtracks, commercials, and R&B and hip hop artist sampled their songs, Epic records made $200 million.  The Five HeartBeats sued Epic Records for $200 million and won.  After legal fees and court cost, each of the five members walk away $20 million each.