Nike Campbell-Fatoki's Blog, page 5

Radio Interview with G.D

Listen to my radio interview with GD of a Touch of Grace via this link.   Had a great time. http://www.blogtalkradio.com/author2beepa/2013/10/26/gd-interviews-authorpoet-nike-campbell-fatoki

Listen to my radio interview with GD of a Touch of Grace ...

Listen to my radio interview with GD of a Touch of Grace via this link.   Had a great time. http://www.blogtalkradio.com/author2beepa/2013/10/26/gd-interviews-authorpoet-nike-campbell-fatoki

NOT BROKEN

We've all been affected by domestic violence one way or another.  Either you know someone who has survived it, died trying to get through it, or someone you know is silent and suffering through it right now.  It may even be you. 

According to national statistics:

One in 4 women will experience domestic violence during her lifetime. Women experience more than 4 million physical assaults and rapes at the hands of their partnersMen are victims of nearly 3 million physical assaults.Women are more likely to be killed by an intimate partner than menWomen ages 20 to 24 are at greatest risk of becoming victims of domestic violence.Every year, 1 in 3 women who is a victim of homicide is murdered by her current or former partner.Every year, more than 3 million children witness domestic violence in their homes.Children who live in homes where there is domestic violence also suffer abuse or neglect at high rates (30% to 60%).
Enough of the silence. It is time to speak up.  October is Domestic Violence Awareness month in the United States. What are you going to do about it? 

I wrote this poem to remember those who have passed away, encourage those who need to get out of volatile relationships, and remind us that we can no longer be silent.


  Not Broken
 Words kick holes in my heart Blows dent my bones,
Memories run amuck
Thoughts float unhindered
But I am Not Broken
 Promises, hopes and dreams
Dashed to pieces
By the words, by the fists
By the threats, by the shoves
But I am Not Broken
  To forget is bliss, to forget is my end
The covered bruises, the broken jaw
The forced hugs, the forced kisses
Futility in healing my hidden open wounds
But I am Not Broken
 
Today I must, for me, for mine
I shut out the dark, I look to the dawn
I brace myself, I embrace the future
For me, for mine
For I am yet Unbroken
 
Nike Campbell-Fatoki © 2013

On a Lighter Note

“You look silly mama!” 
My son told me that a few days ago while we were just shooting the breeze and I was acting a fool.  I was really acting a fool. I was trying to dance the gangnam style but it really wasn’t working out.  I had fun doing it anyway.  I got the kids laughing at me and it made the mood lighter.  They could see it was mama trying to be cool and trying to act like a teenager.  More importantly, they could see I could let down my hair once in a while and just be mama.  (Yes, my kids call me mama and I just adore the way it rolls off their tongues).
I digress.  We (adults) are so into chasing after the next deal, next contract, next higher paying job, we forget to actually let ourselves enjoy the present.  We work so hard, trying to maintain that calm or hard exterior to the world while we may be crying on the inside.  In some instances, I have read that some people actually have two types of personalities - one for work and the other for their personal lives.  An introvert being an extrovert at work, just to meet up with some expectation.  When the introvert- turned-extrovert gets home, he/she is so worn out because so much energy has been exerted being who they are not.  Lighten up.
My friend summed me up in a nutshell when introducing me to her boyfriend a few years ago when we were in college.  The boyfriend knew me just as a close buddy of his girl. We always exchanged the usual hi’s and how’re you doing but nothing deeper.  Then they came over to my place for my birthday and I started shooting the breeze.  He was taken aback, couldn’t figure out who was standing talking non-stop before him. I had transformed.  My friend told him, “oh, so you didn’t know Nike talks a lot?”  I wasn’t focused on getting to the next class or getting out of class, I was focused on having fun.  I realized the times that have been the most memorable fun times for me were when I actually went into a situation with almost a childlike expectation and no airs.  Take for instance my experience at the roller skating ring. It had been years since I skated, but when I got on with the bunch of 10 year-olds and under, you couldn’t really tell it had been that long.  I was again ‘silly mom acting like a teenager.’  The good thing about letting my hair down every so often is that it makes me so much more approachable to my kids and to anyone in general.  I feel my kids can talk to me about anything at that point in time.  I hope they always will be.
Now, lay off the laptop, phone, iPad or whatever new gadget or toy you have for a while and go reintroduce yourself to your family and friends. 
 Lighten up....later.

 Yes, that's me keeping it real :-)

Thread of Gold Beads Book Trailer

The Presence

I watched the movie, The Presence, the other day.  I had always caught the movie in the middle, but luckily this time, I started at the beginning.  It brought to light how humans have our work cut out for us.  The minute we come into the world, we are faced with the constant struggle to choose between right and wrong.  Spoiler alert - if you haven’t watched The Presence and plan to, you may want to stop reading now, but you will miss my two scents on what I believe in. Mira Sorvino plays a young lady who goes away to her family cabin on an island to get some work done.  It soon becomes apparent that she’s not alone in the cabin. A ghost spends all of his time following her around.  Then the whispers and eerie mishaps in the cabin and on the property, and the appearance of another being soon confirm that there is more to the cabin and to Mira than meets the eye.  The sudden arrival of her boyfriend sets in motion the struggle between good and evil for Mira’s soul.  A dark ghost (clad in all black)- a symbol of evil, is soon revealed to be the constant whisperer who whispers in her ears to do away with her boyfriend.  The dark ghost repeatedly tells her that her boyfriend is just like her father who molested her when she was young.  When the dark thoughts take over, Mira becomes another person – distant, snappy with sudden outbursts directed at the one person she loves. Looking from the outside in, one might believe she's schizophrenic.   The other ghost, who watches all this, soon becomes her savior, overcoming the evil.  That is when the real Mira returns. With the help of the other ghost and what appears to be a heavenly giant being, good wins over evil.    Do you believe that the “other world” exists?  The unseen world which we must contend with  every waking moment? The picture used for centuries has been a black or red (take your pick) two-horned creature sitting on one shoulder of a human whispering in the ear with a fork in his hand, and on the other, an angel with a halo over its head, looking calm.   I feel our minds are a battle grounds. Every day, we are faced with the dilemma of making the right or wrong choice.  Now, whether there are other beings who whisper into our ears is another story all together.  We just need to make the moral choice to do the right things at all times. What do you believe?

What Moves Me

A smile from a child who knows I'm a stranger. The smell of coming rain.  The laughter of my children.  A fight against injustice.  Soothing jazz music.  Paintings.  Unique fashion.  Unique interior design pieces. 

What moves me changes as I evolve.  A few years ago, it was getting the higher paying job, getting married, buying a house. I can bet you in a few years I may have dropped a few things from my list or better yet, added more.  That's really what life's about - evolving, readjusting, but still retaining the essence of who you are.

A friend and sister whom I've really grown close to challenged me to take the next step yesterday.  Funny enough, I had been musing over when to take that step.  Actually afraid to take the step.  Not anymore.  I'm not just going to take that step, I'm going to skip as I take the step. 

How about you?  You ready to step out, skip  or fly?  Remember to pray about it and then be about it.

Much love
xxxx

Doing what I love

They say a picture is worth a thousand words.  Here's the past few months in pictures, starting off with my presentation of Thread of Gold Beads at the Black History Program hosted by Prince George's County Council in February. 




With the Council Vice Chair, Prince George's County Council, Obie Patterson accepting my certificate of participation Interview by CCTV    




  In March, I had the privilege of being the keynote speaker at the Women's History Month at the Bethlehem Baptist Church in Washington. DC.  The Theme was Women Inspiring Innovation through Imagination.  I loved the pictures with the lady impersonating the inventor of the charcoal iron  


 With the Coordinator of the event, Ms. Terra Bynum   Keynote speaker  A cross section of the lovely ladies in attendance    The Moms' Book club hosted me in early March.  It was eye-opening, exhilarating to hear them speak about the characters in Thread of Gold Beads.  Of course everyone had their favorite character and the one they detested most.  Book clubs rock!   I was again privileged to speak as a mentor at the kick off of the Sweet Talk Girl's Talk Mentorship Program of Black Girls Ignite Africa (BGIA) in March.  Here's a write-up of my experiencehttps://www.facebook.com/acampbellfatoki/posts/427747400653449?comment_id=68490138&ref=notif&notif_t=feed_comment   In April , I was greatly inspired, and pumped up after attending the MomWise of Jesus House, DC's Mother's Day event - Turning your Passion into Purpose.  I was asked to speak about my personal experience. I was in good company with two awesome ladies - Adeola Enikanoselu, founder of The Gemz, a girls' mentorship program and Kemi Macaulay-Newman, founder of 9jaMom.com,  and House of Botori. 
   Well, that's it for the few months in pictures!  Hope you enjoyed viewing.  I'm looking forward to reading from TOGB at the Queen's College Old Girl's USA chapter reunion in Atlanta Memorial Day weekend. I have an old QC picture, but I choose not to put it up :-)   

Unhinged and Ready

The past few months have opened me up to the possibilities that can be if we push ourselves. I’ve had the pleasure of speaking publicly at several events, and mingling with members of an awesome book club and joining a zumba class.  In the midst of all this busyness, I realized that,  wait a minute, I was branching out.  I wasn’t batting an eye or quivering with nervous energy.  I was, and am, actually looking forward to new experiences. 
God has much more in store.  He wants to use what He gave to me to affect lives positively. I am so open to the possibilities.  So forgive me if I have been silent for some months now. In the next couple of weeks, I will share with you in pictures, my experiences so far.  In the meantime, you can also visit my face book page.  www.facebook.com/nikecfatoki
 Have a great weekend!!

An article on me and Thread of Gold Beads, the novel.

http://www.gazette.net/article/20121128/NEWS/711289448/1032/burtonsville-author-s-first-novel-inspired-by-multi-generational-tale&template=gazette