Finding Something Forgotten

Oh how this pandemic has re-introduced me to things I’d forgotten I love so much! Something I used to enjoy during my free time was reading and I’d make time for myself almost every day to complete a chapter or two, at the least. However, over time life became so hectic the only thing I wanted to do during my down time was…well….nothing! But given how the pandemic put me in a state of flux for the past year—feeling like I was slowly losing all senses—it was important to find something entertaining to both occupy my time and strengthen my mind. Of course I turned to my Bible first to ease out of those gloomy days and remain hopeful. Perhaps I’m not alone in that pursuit, as it seems many have found their spiritual relationship strengthened since COVID.

Since I find self-help books quite valuable, I finally cracked the pages of T.D. Jakes’ Crushing: God Turns Pressure into Power and honestly felt like so many chapters were written for me. Knowing how much of a fan I am of TDJakes, a friend was thoughtful enough to get us tickets to hear him speak at a local University in 2019. We both walked out feeling the impact of the message and bought the book.

Next I picked up The Orphaned Adult: Understanding and Coping with Grief and Change After the Death of Our Parents by Alexander Levy. For anyone struggling to cope with grief, I strongly recommend you get a copy. It was vital in helping to identify my feelings and taught me how unhealthy it was to tiptoe around the roller coaster of emotions that became part of my normal life; I no longer felt alone in what I was experiencing and became more comfortable talking about things.

Then, during one of our family Zoom calls, my cousin and I decided to select a book to read together and we settled on The Beautiful Struggle by Ta-Nehisi Coates. It was about his growing up in Baltimore, Maryland, and the struggles he and his family endured and how they affected his youth. His writing style in this particular book took a little to get used to but I quickly got hooked and wanted to experience more of his work, so my next selections were The Water Dancer, set in the Southern United States during pre-Civil War, and We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy, which told of former President Barack Obama’s time in the White House. Now on deck is Barack Obama’s The Promised Land, Michelle Obama’s Becoming and Cicely Tyson’s memoirs Just as I Am.

In addition to reading on the regular, I also reunited with my crochet needle and picked up a few cross-stitch projects but not as much time has gone to either. I’ll keep you posted!

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©2021 CSNelson, Don’t Forget the Half