Part 2 of my cruise - Bahamas

We all love to go on vacation but this particular time , It's about to go down.

Let's listen to what Ashley and Dion have to say in the video below

Enjoying a fun -filled three days in the Bahama's celebrating my sister's birthday on the Carnival Liberty. We met many people from all over the world. This was my sister's Renata and her fiance Jai's first time on a cruise ship. I'm deligthted that no one got sea sick or jumped overboard as we all had a good time walking around and looking at all the amenities the ship had to offer. 

To start with, good music was played by the Dee Jay and we ate great food round the clock. Three whole days of entertainment for all age groups. When the ship docked in the Bahamas we had 24 four hours to explore the Island before we set sail at sea again. Renata and Jai had purchased excursion for jet ski's and I purchased the bus tour package of the top ten things to see and do on the Island.

I had the most wonderful tour guide named Mr. Leslie Bowlegs, he did a great job of explaining the history of the Bahamas . I recommend this trip to anyone that had never visited the Bahamas before. My newly acquired friends -Ashley and Dion were assigned to my fine dining table and had accompanied me on the bus tour. I never met such wonderful friendly people with a great sense of humor. In fact everyone I met on the cruise ship was very pleasant and respectful .

I even won 1,200 dollars at the casino , but Renata witnessed  a man that won 10,000 dollars playing 50 cents on a Lighting Machine. I thought about me winning 10,000 thousand dollars and what I would do if it was in my hands. Jai replied " if I would have won 10,000 dollars I'm out of here ,even if I had to swim back to shore ",we all laughed. It was nice to see that people could win such a huge amount of money on these cruise ships. 

My only concern was when Ashely and Dion were at the club trying to have a nice time, then trouble broke out. Someone could have really gotten hurt and to think it was seven to eight Black men fighting. I pray that this will never happen again amongst our people .We have been labeled with bad reputations enough in the society.  We should stop the violence and killing among the African Americans and learn to have more love and forgiveness in our hearts. 

Overall, I still plan to take a cruise every year and hope that family and friends will be able to join . It's a must -see  for all age groups to experience a wonderful time away from the same old every day routine. Break the monotony and live life a little . We just get one chance at it. Have fun while you can because life is definetly too short! 

 

 

A Cry For Help...

Jumping off the ledge into a lake , Damon hit  his head on the back of a tree stump while blood filled the surrounding area where he landed like a rock. Jasmin seeing  him floating face down  screamed out for help. She never learn how to swim for this was the day she regretted  for the rest of her life.

By the time the paramedic arrived  Damon was pronounced dead. They were only 19 years old and twins. Jasmin didn't know how to tell her mother about why they was at  the lake  after being instructed by her mother Jewel not to go. She approached her mother in the living room, crying. She said " Damon fell into the lake and I couldn't save him ". Jasmine was still  in a state of shock . Jewel looked at though she could kill and asked " who fell in the lake ?" she replied "Damon has drowned .

Suddenly ,Jewel heart pounded and tears streamed down her face,  her son has died and know one was there to help him. Yelling out to Jasmin she  asked   " What exactly happen ?, tell me now! ". That was when a knock was  heard  at the door . It was the Denvor County Police coming by to take her to the morgue to identify her son.

Falling to the floor and screaming aloud, the police rushed to assist her. ''Please madam  we need your help in identifying the young man we found in the lake. Are you okay?'' he asked.Using foul language  she looked over to her daughter and said " Where is my son ?''. Jasmin ran out of the house for she felt it was her fault for disobeying her mother's rules ,and not being able to save her twin brother .


 She went to her grandmother's house for refuge while her mother went to the morgue. Looking at  her son's lifeless body  stretched out on that long steel table she sobbed uncontrollably , reaching out to touch his beautiful face for the last time. "How could this have happened? ''. she said . ''My only son , my beautiful boy I carried for nine months.  She asked the police officer what had happen. They said  " It appeared he broke his neck and damaged his skull from the fall off the cliff into the lake.


But know one suspected that his twin sister had pushed him over the cliff . She felt that he was loved  and favored by most people. That she couldn't do nothing right and was always ridiculed.
Damon was loved by all , he was very well spoken and out going. Know one made fun of him as they did to Jasmin. She planned to get rid of her brother to become her mother's only favorite child . I can have everything she thought, if he is out of the picture.


Her  grandmother knew that she had despised her brother and said " What happen to Damon  because they were both inseparable?'' .She hesitated and  asked  " Do you love me grandmother ?''  as she contemplated killing her grandmother too.  Stepping back away from her granddaughter . Grandmother Carol had become afraid. She knew that Jasmin was a wicked child and could do anything when she doesn't  get her way. As Jasmin started to approach her grandmother , an  older boy in his 20s came down the  stairs as she paused, with eyes glared on him, she had never seen him before. Carol gestured to the young man to come stand by her side , He said  " Who is this young lady grandma"? Jasmin replied "Grandma."


Breaking out in a deep sweat and heart racing furiously she ran up to him and  looked him up and down and asked  " Who are you ? ''. The room stood silent,  That's when Raymond  grabbed  Jasmin by the throat and slung her down to the floor. He then stomp her in the chest and face as though she had killed his only best friend in life. Carol pulled him away from her and said  " Stop this at once this is your sister. That is when he pulled the knife from underneath him jacket and cut at his grandmother throat.

Falling to the floor in fear, Grandma Carol grabbed her chest from pain she suddenly felt.  Jasmin walked over to her and said  " This is what you deserve, keeping little known secrets . Why did you allow me to sleep with my older brother.  I'm carrying his seed now and my twin brother is dead.  All of you deserve to die .  That's when her mother Jewel walked into the house with Damon and found Jasmin  in a state of rage ,cutting herself with a knife and pulling her hair, foaming  from  the mouth like a mad dog. She had started hallucinating from the newly prescribed medication called ( Zyprexa). A history of violence,and schizophrenia runs in our family Jewel stated to Damon.

My first cruise experience

Narrated by Ronnie....

My heart pumped the more as the Sea wind continued to blow with vigour . Everywhere was felt by the waves, yet the ship stood still and remained unshakable like the rock of Gibraltar . It was a mixture of fear and joy on the Carnival Splendor Ship. We had set sail from Florida heading to Mahogany Bay, Belize, Consumel  and Grand Cayman where our ship berthed.


I'm glad to have brought some over the counter items with me such as ,  Motion Sickness Pills, Tums, Oral Gel , and Tylenol Extra Strength. One lady  came up to me and said,  "this was her first cruise and she never felt so afraid looking out to the Ocean. She felt like vomiting and had to go lye down."  I'm surprise we didn't have any motion sickness ourselves.

The itinerary  had planned events for  every day non-stop. From Musical, Comedy Shows,  Art Museums, Casino and Night Clubs just to name a few. It also had excursion being offered for a additional fee for those who wanted to spend the day abroad. After we had settled in our cozy rooms, we decided to tour the ship. It was amazing the amenities it had to offer. Junior stated  " this is a beautiful ship and I'm glad to be spending it with my family." We never thought we will meet so many different people so excited from different  cultural backgrounds that were very respectful and nice.

The ships staff crew were very friendly anything you needed such as small snacks or sweets throughout the night , extra pillows or blankets, bottles of wine , they were happy to oblige. Every morning they will clean your room, make your bed, and leave a little towel made stuff animal on your bed.

 The waiters and waitress at the Captain Dinner  which were more of a exquisite course of fine dining that you wear  a nice suitable attire for dinner. They served thousands of people without missing a beat and their service is outstanding. 

 My son Ronald was happy to know they had a Club. He said to Junior " This is where we are going to hang out , dance and have a few drinks " This was right up Junior alley because he loved to dance and have fun. He has always been the life of the party. A little secret for those who don't know. Junior was a professional dancer back in his days so he couldn't wait to show off some of his many talented moves as the crowd gathered around him watching and the women couldn't wait to get their turn to dance with him. 

As  night crept in we found so many food courts to choose from. All the food were prepared and arranged in a seductive way and of course every deck had an activity on it , from watching movies, playing miniature golf ,  dancing, reading room ,  weight room, spa, casino, musical shows, comedy shows and a host of many other activities. You can never get bored here.

We enjoyed the four stops the Ship made and met new friends  on the Islands. We did a host of shopping and took  pictures .  I think I was living the life of the rich and famous because we bought everything our hearts desired. My son stated as we walked to the ship with an abundance of shopping bags in each hand. My son Ronald said "  People  are all starring at us, and asking where we get all those named brand items" as  we strolled a little faster to the ship before we get robbed.  I smiled to myself and replied , " where are our body guards because i didn't realize how much stuff we were actual carrying including the jewelry we are wearing"?


The day was filled with curiosity, compassion and love as we met  some  less fortunate people  from a bus tour we went on. It was sad to see slum area's of the living conditions of the poor. My heart was broken. I prayed to be able to help out more as I looked around and saw  some    mothers and  children in need. I tried to help as many children that ran up to me as possible as we stopped for lunch.

Overall  we had a wonderful time on the cruise ship with lots of entertainment : the food was great and I met  new friends on the  Carnival Splendor.  However, the only advise for those who drink is to purchase the drink package . It's well worth it. 



As my annual ritual I had vowed to be booking a cruise every year,  therefore I  will go for another next month. For those who want to join in on the fun , I say " book you a cruise soon. You will find out that it will be a fantastic, memorable event for all"

A Planned Attack.....

 Gina was nine months pregnant and was almost due to be delivered of a baby. Suddenly she heard strange  voices coming from the attic of  the  house. She went to see if anyone was up there when a hand reached out and grabbed her. She fell  backwards down the stairs and  went into labor. Dazed and confused with no one around to assist her up from the floor, but in her emotional state, the voices drew closer.


She called   for help as her pains grew  unbearable, she finally got the strength to pull herself up from the floor and called 911 for help but  the  squeal  of a man being tormented and scratching the walls lingered in her mind. She had just moved into her new house a few months earlier with her husband Jim who was out of town on business. 

The paramedics arrived and took her to the hospital where she had a beautiful baby boy. Gina called her husband Jim and asked  " Where were you when I needed you ? I had to go through this alone'', Jim replied "darling you wanted this new house and I just started a new job I couldn't take off work. I'm sorry  for not being there . What is our child's name? "She responded, ''Daniel''.

Arriving back home from the hospital, it appeared that someone had been through the house , her belongings were disorganized  and her jewelries  were scattered on  the bed. She  wondered what could have happened in her absence as she  held  the new born closed to her bosom.  She immediately  called  her neighbor  and her cousin Janet who  both went  through the house to make sure no one was in there.  Janet decided  to stay with her until  Gina's  husband came back from out of town. Gina informed Janet  that she was grateful for her company, that she would not be alone in this big house .


Janet was in  a room close to Gina in case  she needed help with the baby. As Janet started to retire for the night she heard a weird noise downstairs. Leaving her room she peeped in Gina's room to see if she was okay before heading down the stairs. Once she got down there, she noticed the front room curtain was moving, all the windows and doors were close. She tiptoed over to the curtain and briefly looked behind it,but  was nobody . She gave a  sign of relief . It wasn't until she went back upstairs when a voice called out her name, looking around in fear she ran upstairs and barricaded Gina's bedroom door.

She frightened  Gina by doing this , Gina asked  ''what is wrong Janet?'', She replied , ''someone is downstairs  calling  out my name''. That was when Gina told Janet that she once  heard voices in the house before she fell. Both women were afraid  while they looked for any object to defend themselves  with. Janet yelled out ''let's  call the police now''.  When they went to pick up the phone it was dead.  An unknown voice spoke and said  ''GET OUT !''.


Gina went to grab the baby from his crib but could not find the baby  . She screamed   " Where is my baby?",as she  looked  frantically   every room yet the  baby was not found. Janet began to  cry and said  " I want to leave now. Let's go Gina''  but Gina  replied '' I'm not leaving without my child''. Janet held  a knife in her hand and Gina too grabbed  a Golf club stick as they  determined to find the child. 
 Suddenly windows started opening and closing by themselves and they began to hear the screeching sounds of fingernails scraping the walls, making them to  know the house  is  haunted.



Gina  fell on the floor grasping  for breath for she was  asthmatic  and needed her inhaler which was  in her purse upstairs. As Janet went to get the inhaler  Gina noticed someone standing over her with the baby. It was her husband Jim. He said to Gina   " You put me through hell . I never wanted this house or this baby''. Jim  had staged all  these events to make her sell the house and lose the baby by planning her fall down the stairs.


 Janet came back downstairs and met  Jim hovering over Gina with the baby. She went over to him and said  "Well done my Love ". The  fact was that Janet couldn't have any child and had always wanted a child for  Jim. Jim and Janet had been having and affair for years , now with Gina out of the picture . They believe  they can live a perfect life without Gina and  Jim could work at Janet's father's Company ,while Janet would  raise this little 'miracle' baby  that would be  delivered to her  that night. 

Little did Janet and Jim  knew that Gina had hired a private investigator that installed closed- circuit television (CCTV)  in the secretive corners of the building  because she thought Jim was having and affair with another woman. She then  had surveillance and security  camera throughout the house since she was there alone while Jim was always  out of town.  The CCTV  captured every episode of their plan. 
 Jim and Janet were arrested for the murder of Gina.

Will my Uncle change?

Finding her Uncle at his home with a needle stuck in his arm, Karman hesitated to approach him.



She thought he was dead after so many attempts from his over use of drugs. She asked " are you okay Uncle ?''.
 Falling to the ground he muttered  " Help me, you bitch ", but being afraid from the last incident made her reluctant. Uncle Marvin made unfavorable remarks. Karman remembered how  he was trying to touch her inappropriately  when she was  eleven years old,  this  act she would  never forget. The stench of alcohol from  his breath and the white powdery substance in his nose showed  that he is still doing drugs at sixty years old.


Karman told  her mother Susan at the time she was fondled by her Uncle, but her mother did not believe her. Her mother would scream  " you are lying young lady , my brother would never do such a thing. Go to your room right now and never speak of this again", those words played  over and over in her mind , and anytime she  sees Uncle Marvin she wished  bad things upon him.


As he laid on the living room floor,Karman   thought "should  I let him die , for he was a horrible man to be around?''. She  flashed back to his horrible ways   for instance  after having  a few drinks  he would   relocate the little girls in the house and go to a private part of the house  where no one could see the horrific, abominable   and unholy acts he unleashed onto the little girls. But Karman had pity on him and  finally called her mother who is a nurse to come help him.


When Susan arrived with her medical bag , Marvin her brother was unconscious, he had no  heart beat and was foaming from  the mouth. Starting CPR on her brother and asking Karman to dial 911. Susan broke down and cried , she spoke softly to Marvin asking " why do you continue to do this? " . Marvin did not  respond as she gave another rescue breathe. He finally coughed and raised his head. Susan and Karman were  glad  to see him come around as they waited for the paramedics.



  Arriving at a  Drug Rehabilitation Unit, Marvin was very upset to see that he couldn't release himself  from the hospital. His sister has power of attorney over his life and affairs. He must stay here for a period of eight weeks to see if  he  could  withstand the craving for drugs. He completed the recommended time . Karman came to pick him up from the Rehabilitation center . He had a lot of time to think about his action while receiving  treatment.


Marvin said  " I'm sorry for all the wrong I've done to you in the past , can you please forgive me?''.
Karman kept driving without uttering a word. Marvin broke the  silence and   said  " Please forgive me , I'm a changed  man now''. Karman turned  and looked at him briefly and then  replied  " You  have said that before Uncle  , I have forgiven you multiple times , go and  ask for  forgiveness from  those other young girls whose  lives  you have destroyed  from you doing drugs and had  sexually molested.  I know it won't be long before you go  back to doing drugs again and this time I won't be there to save you''.

When last you host your family.... True Life Event

Narrated by Veronica Abiodun
Real Life Event

• Junior dancing at our family gathering last Christmas eve

Gazing the blue sky  through  the window with a drink in my hand , I went down memory lane  and remembered how  to be a part of something great as a child growing up- and that is Family gatherings. 

For many years my cousin Johnnybell  invited  people to come  eat, drink, and celebrate the Holidays at her house and for years people attended and were happy to do so.  The dinner  table  had  a variety of Soul food that was prepared by her and music playing  from  the background while eating . Then we would  all laughed and joked with one another.

After dinner with music still playing we would call out who would be card  partners, to get a good card game started, whether Bid Wiz or Spades it was on... Johnneybell would  be the first to call on me to be her partner, for she knew we were unbeatable together as I could recall  but nevertheless, we were good partners.


Recently my Cousin Johnnybell  passed on. Now it seems  that when the Holidays roll around , no one wants to come together anymore, everyone appears to be  on their own  and doing their own thing . Whether  staying at home alone or shopping on the Holidays. I now ask 'Where is the love for family values and respect I was raised on?'

But one good thing in speaking about  morals and values Johnnybell raised three beautiful children of her own, two daughters and a son who happen to have these values instilled in them. One of her daughters,  Janice has  been  carrying  on  her mother's tradition  by  inviting family and friends over for a Christmas' Eve Party every year and  I have  been trying to bring our family together by hosting small park events .  Janice's sister Bobbette has recently passed on but her brother Junior is a man of many talents while still trying to make it to any family affair.


So what I'm saying people , all of us must travel down that road one day losing a loved one, but until then , let's remember the ones that's still here above the ground level  by showing them  much love  and respect  and  by having a forgiven heart because we are all are not perfect. 

May we come together to live, love , and be happy, learn to appreciate life and be thankful for another day above the ground to tell someone that you love  him,  hold him  and kiss him. It might just be the last time....

Family

Don't turn your back...

Baby Stephanie fell from the top of her 3 feet apartment, those  who saw her  on the ground rushed to see the baby's  condition .  A woman yelled "call the ambulance ,we have an emergency here" .    When the paramedics arrived they met the baby at alert and smiling. They carefully examined the baby and wanted to take her to the hospital for further observations and treatment. 
 " Who is the mother of this child? ", one of the paramedics asked but  no one answered.The paramedics had a civic duty to take care of this baby so they arrived at the nearest hospital.

Dorrien had drifted off to sleep after a long hard day  work. She was tired from trying to work and go to school to receive her GED, being a single mother was very hard with no assistance.


Police was called to knock on every door. Finally they came to Dorrien's apartment and she had already awoken from her sleep.The Officer asked  " Do you have a  child whose ages is between three to five years of age? " Dorrien answered to the  affirmative. The Officer asked ''is the child with you right now?''. Dorrien in state of confusion ran into her daughter's  bedroom but did not see her . She screamed " where is my baby and Denise my babysitter?" .One of the  Officers replied " Come with us Madam we will explain on the way".

They arrived at the Hospital. Dorrien was compelled to look frantically in every room  as tears streamed  down her face, she cried again  " Where is my baby?''. One of the staff members brought out Stephanie, and as Dorrien ran towards here to  pick her up, while Denise stood there  in shame for she had gone to fix little Stephanie a snack when she fell from the balcony.  One of the Police Officers  spoke authoritatively " not so soon Madam and you are under arrest  for child endangerment". Dorrien responded " How could that be Mr. Officer ".?  The officer stated: ''Your child was reported falling from your balcony . Where were you  or the house sitter when this happened or did someone push her over?''. She was  handcuffed  while someone from the Division Of family Service came to pick her child up.



 Dorrien was fingerprinted and booked . She had the weekend to sit and think about how this could have happen. On Monday appearing before a Judge she pleaded not guilty. The Judge released her with one year probation and 40 hours of community service. She just wanted to see and hug her baby at this time but faced other problems. The DFS ( Division Of Family Service) wasn't so kind to released her daughter to her infact they brought up another set of charges against her. What else must I go through, she wondered. The court date was set for August 2019; time 10:00am. Division Of Family Service was there with her  daughter. She said ''I missed hugging and kissing her so much. The judge ruled for me to see my daughter only with supervise visits for a period of three  months and a final report from DFS saying I'm no longer a threat to my baby  or myself'', she said. 


Twenty One years old, Dorrien only thought about working and   obtaining her GED so she can  provide for her daughter better. She was  raised by a single mother . That she was giving up for adoption at nine years old made her hold animosity towards her mother and her six other siblings . Dorrien  thought  about  a  promise  she  made  to  herself  in which she said " Life has not been good to me , it's not  how far but how well . I will continue to strive and go forward to become a better person '',as she held her daughter close.