FOR MY BIRTHDAY I WANT...

 September is my birth month.  September now represents the ninth month.  Nine symbolizes divine completeness, wisdom, selflessness, and service to humanity.  Yes, September is a great month!

Here's what I want for my birthday -

or My Birthday I want...

Each year, for my birthday, I ask from family, friends, associates to celebrate my birthday with me in the month of September by sharing with me...

 Sept. 1–  September is the birthing month. Stop and release birth to all of you creative ideas (i.e. that new book, starting school, finishing school…birth it right now) 

 

 Sept. 2 - Start your day by drinking a healthy smoothie, it will go a long way today because you will need to exercise your mind, your heart and your body by giving a helping hand, extending a smile, lifting up someone that is down and out, and holding positive thoughts today 

 

 Sept. 3 – Send a big hello to someone, do not just smile at them, SAY HELLO! 

 

 Sept. 4- If at first you don’t succeed…it probably was too easy! Try something harder—use your EAGLE spirit and soar! Don’t get to buzzard level—never! 

 

 Sept. 5- Lose some weight! Slim down! Here’s the first step…lose the stress! Don’t major in the minor stuff! Getting rid of stress can immediately drop you down to Size 0.

 

 Sept. 6 –  Remember everything begins with a thought—today, think big and wonderful thoughts.

 

 Sept. 7- Fight like a girl today….and give to the Susan G. Komen Foundation. 

 

 Sept.8 – 

 A day of counting all of your blessing!--count them one by one!

 

 Sept. 9 – Donate a small book scholarship to a deserving high school senior at your local community high school. Scholarships can be $25.00, or pool your resources with a group of your favorite pals and make it $100.00. 

 

 Sept 10 – 

Go by your local elementary school and give some books away –send them to a particular classroom. If your money is low, go by GOODWILL they have 5-10 books in packages (that are in great condition) for as low as $1.00 for the entire packet of books. 

 

 Sept. 11 –  Nourish yourself with love today as the universe nourishes you! 

 

 Sept. 12 –  Live today with intention and purpose! Grow your soul through the lessons that you have learned.

 Sept. 13 –  Judge not…not today! Everyone has something going on in their life…it just may not be what you are going through….but don’t judge! 

 

 Sept. 14 – 

 Stop searching for answers that are unanswerable…and just live! 

 

 Sept. 15 –  Look for a meaningful glimpse of the spiritual good side of someone today! 

 

 Sept. 16 – Peace be still…mediate on things that are lovely, truthful and of good report, so that you can get ready for tomorrow! 

 

 Sept 17 – (It’s My Birthday) (It’s my Birthday) Mecum Carpe Diem!! Compliment someone day! --Give up your normal lunch, movie or outing today and GIVE! Pay it forward today! (donate a computer to an underprivileged school—new or slightly used is okay, I can give you the address to a few of them that need your help) AND DON’T FORGET TO PARTY WITH ME! Let’s get this Party started! Dance as if nobody watching! Use your air guitar “Jimi Hendrix style (you mean you don’t know who he is??) Play your “pretend Sax” like Kenny G then! Sing as if no one is listening…make a joyful noise if that’s all you can do! JUST PARTY! Have a Fabulous and fun-filled Friday! NAMASTE!

 CRT, The Pandemic, and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Why in the world would I want to include the Pandemic with CRT and DEI?  Seemingly, since the pandemic, DE&I as well as CRT has been on the rise.  People want to find out about CRT. To an extent, the term “critical race theory” is now cited as the basis of all diversity and inclusion efforts regardless of how much it’s actually informed those programs.   

Organizations want to make sure their teams are well trained in the area of DE&I. But, what about CRT?

Moving right along, did the pandemic scare organizations and people in general that they need to wake up, make up and get this world straight?  I'm not so sure.  

Here again, I am discussing a topic such as CRT that I am not well versed in at this time.  DE&I is a given for me however.  I have trained on this topic for years.  AND, I love it!  Knowing the difference between DE& I, is that Diversity is inviting individuals to the dance, Equity is making sure everyone has a decent pair of shoes to dance in, and Inclusion making sure they dance.

Critical Race Theory (CRT) is just that a theory to me--discussing among other things systemic racism.  I've heard that CRT puts an emphasis on outcomes, not merely on individuals’ own beliefs.  Not sure if this is really true or not either.

As I train on DE & I and think about the pandemic and how this topic still matters.  This topic is high on any CEOs agenda since economic pressures may make it harder for businesses to maintain their focus on and investment in DE& I, but not so much within the CRT arena.

Skipping around a little, the pandemic has been quite a challenge even more so than the global financial crisis.  The lock-downs, lack clarity about when and how the crisis will end contribute to increased anxiety and uncertainty for management teams and employees alike. Furthermore, the pandemic’s burdens have fallen unevenly.  This is an offshoot of sorts of the CRT called Public Health Critical Race Praxis (PHCRP), that originated in the field of law, which was developed for the purposes of conducting anti-racism health equity research.  Yes, for sure, I can make more sense of CRT now. 

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion? Conducting of anti-racism health equity research?  The pandemic?  I can see clearly now!  After reading articles, listening to MSNBC, CNN and other channels and knowing that most folk that lack healthcare and are not seen at the hospitals and ERs as much, are people of color; this is a certainty.  Is this CRT?  Yes, possibly!  Is it part of the highlights of the pandemic?  For sure!  Can this be marked within the lines of DE & I?  Most definitely!

But, here's what I know for sure -- People—white or nonwhite—who don’t intend to be racist can nevertheless make choices that fuel racism.

September is my birth month, and every September I tell people what I want for my birthday.  Here's what I want for my birthday--it's for YOU and YOU, and YOU to be the Change in order to bridge the gap between all nationalities.  Can you give me that present for my birthday??