News — inspiration

Happy Girls Day .... Happy Hinamatsuri 2017! Hinamatsuri, or Girls’ Day, takes place every March 3 and is mostly celebrated by Hawaii families of Japanese and Okinawan descent and its origins go back to early Japanese immigrants who first brought the holiday to the Islands. Following Girls’ Day tradition, elaborate dolls were given to Japanese girls upon birth, detailed with brocaded silk kimonos, fans and musical instruments. Young girls would display their dolls in arrangements up to seven tiers high, each carrying it's own level of meaning and significance.  Let me tell you a little story about one of my favorite...

Who do you look up to? I want to share a story about someone whom I admire. I was challenged to list 5-10 of my favorite writers, artists, actors, directors, or creators, choose one, and jump on Facebook Live to share our story with my friends.  You can catch the LIVE video replay here. When I was going through my list, I had a whole bunch of people come to mind. Some of those on my list were (in no particular order): Diana Gabaldon (author of Outlander series) Veronica Roth (author of Divergent series), Michelle Rodriguez (Girlfight, Fast & Furious franchise, Blue Crush, S.W.A.T., Machete) Denzel Washington...

You may remember Nelly and Kelly Rowland's "Dilemma" was the top hit song of the time followed closely by Justin Timberlake's "Just like I Love you" from his first solo album Justified, released soon after he left popular boy-band Nsync. While American audiences were going crazy over these pop hits, I found myself halfway across the world on the beautiful sands of Egypt.  Egypt has a deep, rich history that spans thousands of years and it was an exciting yet humble opportunity for a girl in her 20s to be standing on the sands of this majestic land. For many...

As I was driving to work this morning, a song came on the radio that really resonated with me..... And there's a hope that's waiting for you in the darkYou should know you're beautiful just the way you areAnd you don't have to change a thing, the world could change its heartNo scars to your beautiful, we're stars and we're beautiful It got me to thinking of the days when I did not realize my beauty (inner and outer) and my strengths.  Particularly, it reminded me of the day - many years ago - when one of my aunties pulled...