Thankful Archives – Page 3 of 3

When Diversity is Missing..

February 10, 2016 Comment : 1

I’m sure you read the title of this article and figured it would have to do with the MANY diversity and racial issues going on in the United States right now. However, this is more so a open letter or venting session of how hard it is to be a Black woman living in Montana sometimes.

I haven’t had any aggressive or negative run ins with people of any color here in Montana due to my skin color. This, unfortunately, is not the same story for my husband, but that’ll be a topic for another day. If anything, Montanans have been genuinely some of the nicest people I’ve met in my 27 years of life. People smile and speak when they walk by you, and most even stop to ask you how your day is going, and expect a response! Crazy, right? This is still something I’m adjusting to coming from living in Chicago prior to living here where people don’t even make eye contact with you let alone truly care enough to speak and ask you how you’re doing. I share this information before getting into what I want to vent about because I don’t want to paint Montana as some unfair, terrible, place to live, when in reality…my life in Montana isn’t too bad. But at the end of the day, I still live in Montana, and as I’m sure most of you know, Montana isn’t know to be home to many people of color or much…diversity.

Montana lacks diversity so much that when we go out to eat people usually automatically apply the military discount to our bill because we’re Black, dining in Montana, and the only explanation of us being here is the military LOL. I’m reminded every time we go visit another city or state how much I miss seeing people of ALL colors on a daily basis. When we first moved into our house here on base and met our first set of neighbors, apparently she shouted to her husband (who is Mexican), with excitement, “WE HAVE BLACK NEIGHBORS”! Hahaha! To this day this is one of my favorite stories, but one of the saddest at the same time, because seeing a Black person in Montana is like seeing a unicorn. I have a handful of other stories like this one from run-ins with other people of color who were happy to see another one of “us” lol.

However, the hardest part of living in a place that lacks diversity, are the lack of culturally different activities and lifestyles around us. I sometimes get jealous seeing my Facebook friends and Instagram and Twitter followers post pictures of RSVPs to concerts and events I know I wouldn’t be able to find in the entire state of Montana. Some examples are R&B/Neo-Soul concerts, blues/jazz lounges, festivals, upscale evening lounges, restaurants, etc. When you live in a place where diversity is lacking you miss out on all of these amazing things to do, and see, which add appreciation and cultural value to our lives. Do you all know how much I took having authentic Thai and Caribbean restaurants within 10 minutes from my apartment in Chicago? Do you know how much I appreciate walking into a Mexican restaurant and seeing a menu in Spanish and seeing an all Mexican staff cooking my food? Do you know how much I would love to go to a Jill Scott concert for a date night with my husband instead of the two options we have here of dinner and/or a movie? Do you know much it means to walk down the street, through a store, or drive by people of all colors, ethnicities, shapes and sizes? For my friends who live in places that offer all of these options and then some, take a minute to just soak up the beauty that is diversity surrounding you.

As a military wife I try my hardest not to complain to my husband (in a non-joking manner) because I know he is/we are here because it is what is needed for our family at this moment. I also try to remind myself of the countless military spouses whose loved one is overseas or died serving this country before I complain. As upsetting as it is some days that I’m not surrounded by everything I want I remind myself I have everything I need. I know there are plenty of people who would trade places with me if it meant being with their loved ones everyday. Sometimes it’s hard to not be selfish and think about what I want, but I’m human. However, I feel it is important, no matter who you are, what you do, or where you live to be exposed to life outside of your little bubble. It’s much harder to understand someone else’s life and experiences if you’ve never had the opportunity to explore their culture and lifestyle.

As much as Montanans love their bejeweled flare legged jeans, cowboy boots, country music, hunting, rodeos, and cowboy hats…I miss professional sports, multi-cultural authentic food, big name concerts, date night in a little black dress, and round trip plane tickets for under $200. But the upside of being a military wife also means this won’t be my location forever, but man, it sure does feel like forever when diversity is missing.

Brie <3

[02.10.16]

All Posts, Dear Diary, Music Favorites

Thank You Maurice White!

February 5, 2016 Leave a Comment

Today, the world found out the co-founder and band member of the legendary Earth, Wind & Fire, Maurice White, passed away in his sleep yesterday. To say I feel sadness would probably be an understatement considering how much I adore the music EW&F shared with the world. If you haven’t been able to tell from my musical taste and blog posts I am a huge fan of old school music. I often tell people I was born in the wrong generation because my heart belongs to old school music. The hardest part about getting older is realizing everyone else around us is also growing older. This year has hit the music world pretty hard and it’s only February :-(.

I want to thank Maurice and his band mates for sharing their beautiful, classic, funky, legendary, soulful, and timeless music with the world. I may only be 27 years old but I know musical genius when I hear it. I also know how much you make me even more proud to be a September baby! 🙂

I will share some Earth, Wind & Fire songs with you all below. They have WAY too many hits to put them all on here so I will share my favorite ones.

Rest in peace,

Maurice White.

Brie <3

[02.04.16]

All Posts, Dear Diary, Music Favorites

Robert “Bob” Nesta Marley

February 3, 2016 Comment : 1

This upcoming Saturday would have been Bob Marley’s 71st birthday. If you haven’t been underneath a rock the last twenty plus years, you know how much influence Bob Marley had, and continues to have, on our culture. You can even count the multiple Bob Marley quotes you see while scrolling down your Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter timelines every day.

As a young woman who loves being part Jamaican, and representing the Jamaican culture, I thoroughly enjoy how much people have continued to embrace Bob’s talent. When I’m not in the best of moods, I can always count on my Bob Marley playlist or Pandora station to lift my spirits. I will share my two favorite Bob Marley songs. The first one: “Is This Love” always makes me think of my husband and daughter. Reminds me as long as we are together, even with the bare minimum, I will always have and be surrounded by happiness and love. My second song: “Redemption Song” reminds me of how resilient and strong Black people are. Through everything we’ve seen and been through in our history and lives, we still stand. Bob also reminds us how real mental slavery is too. In light of it being Black history month this is perfect to share with all of you.

I wonder how much genius was left in this man when he passed away at such an early age? Can you imagine what music would be like if one of the greats, such as himself, were still around to make music? In a perfect world, the music world would be MUCH different, which means it could only be better. Rest easy and happy early birthday, Mr. Robert “Bob” Nesta Marley.

Fun Brie Fact: While typing out Bob Marley’s full name I said it in my head the way Matthew from the show, A Different World, says it when answering a question at the Campus All-Star Challenge. I’m sure all of my fellow A Different World fans remember that scene too 😉

All Posts, Dear Diary

Be Patient Be Kind

November 25, 2015 Leave a Comment

We are only two days away from Thanksgiving Day which means it will be a week of craziness and last minute grocery shopping, making plans, and finalizing who is making what and traveling from where for Thanksgiving dinner. The ironic side of Thanksgiving week is because of people stressing out about different life events and/or plans, they tend to be running low on patience, especially when dealing with strangers. Due to the way I have seen people treat each other, and unfortunately how I have reacted on some days as well, I decided to write a post giving a perspective on being nicer to those around us. With all of the sadness going on the world, we always talk about wanting “peace on Earth” without realizing it’s the little things we do every day that is the stepping stone of peace.

Be patient, be kind means exactly what it says. While you’re out and about this week preparing for your grand Thanksgiving meal, I want you to think of others before yourself. Many of you may be thinking along the lines of giving back through volunteer work of some sort, but as nice as that is I’m talking about your everyday interactions with others. For example: while you’re out driving and you get stuck behind the one car going 10 miles under the speed limit, try and consider the person who is driving the car. Maybe the person is elderly and doesn’t have anyone who is able to run errands for them, or drive them around to get their errands done. Maybe the person driving under the speed limit is driving with tears in their eyes because of receiving some bad news about themselves or a loved one. When you go to the grocery store and there is that one person holding up the line with tons of coupons and/or multiple payments, maybe they are struggling to feed their family and this is the only way they can afford everyday necessities. Maybe they recently lost a job, or they are helping care for someone else and trying to find a way to make it work the best way they know how. On the flip side there are some people who are generally not the nicest people to others, but even for that person, consider the holiday season may make them sad and they respond with anger because they don’t have anyone to spend the day with or anywhere to go. Maybe the holidays bring them memories of pain instead of happiness due to their childhood. Not everyone grows up in a household that makes you feel happy and loved any day of the year let alone during the holidays.

I say all of this to remind everyone to try and remember compassion when you feel yourself getting angry. Remember everyone is fighting a battle of some sort, and most battles you can’t see by their outward appearances. Remember we are only here and able to share joy with our loved ones because of the wonderful grace of God. If God can bless us with the gift of grace and mercy through all of our downfalls and sins who are we to not extend grace and mercy to those around us. We know of the atrocities happening in this world to our brothers sisters and we know the answer to all of it is love and peace. We can’t ask and/or pray for love and peace if we’re not willing to extend it to those in our own communities on a daily basis. Will we all fall short and find ourselves losing patience in some situations? Of course, we’re only human. However, it is what we do to correct ourselves and our behavior afterward that counts. Maybe you’ll be lucky enough to run into that person again within your community. (Six degrees of separation is real) If so, apologize to them even if you feel awkward in the process. Your apology may make their entire day. They might have even forgotten about the interaction, but you could very well restore their faith in humanity with your apology, which may lead to them extended the same grace to someone else one day.

Although this post fit perfectly into my “thankful” Jamieson Diaries theme for the month of November, this post works for every day and every month in life. I would like to incorporate not only being thankful every day of my life, but to always extend love, and be an example of the peace I pray for in this world.

Brie <3

[11.24.15]

All Posts, Family Love

Happy 70th Birthday & Thank You Grandma/GG..

November 19, 2015 Leave a Comment

Today is my Grandmother’s 70th birthday, and oh man, what a blessing she is to this family. Not only has she been blessed to see another day, but she’s here to see the start of a new decade.

If you know me, you know I am for sure a “grandma’s girl” and it’s a title I wear with pride. I have always been extremely close to my grandmother. We have an unexplainable bond that I thank God for every time I get the chance. I had the privilege of growing up either living in the same house or down the street from my Grandma, and for that I am thankful.

In conjunction with a post on the Humans of New York Facebook page (click here to read it) last month, and FLOTUS, Michelle Obama’s, Let Girls Learn initiative, I began to think of my Grandma and how much she has influenced me, but particularly my education. I don’t know if I ever told anyone before, but a huge part of getting my degree was for my Grandmother. Although I always knew I wanted to go to college and receive a degree in a subject I love; my love grew out of my love for my Grandma. When my Grandma got married and had children it was a much different time for women and the life options they were presented to chose from. I remember the first time my Grandma said if she was given the opportunity back then she would have gone to law school to become a lawyer. It never really hit me until I was in high school how privileged I was, as a young Black woman, to be able to go to college and pursue my own dreams. I still remember how proud she was of me at my college graduation, and how she was wiping tears away when I walking up to them after the ceremony to take pictures. In all of the hard work and personal pride I felt in receiving my degree, I was even more happy to have made my Grandmother proud. For me, walking across the stage was my personal way of saying I have listened to everything you have taught me in life and this is my way of saying thank you.

As my grandmother celebrates her 70th birthday, the beginning of a new decade, I want her to go into it knowing how loved she is and how thankful I am for God blessing her to see another year, and how much she has already taught me and continues to teach me about life. On her birthday I want to say a million thank yous and they still wouldn’t be enough.

Happy birthday Grandma/GG! We love you so much and pray you have a wonderful day. You make 70 look GOOD! 🙂

Brie <3

[11.18.15]

All Posts, Dear Diary

Happy Veterans Day

November 11, 2015 Leave a Comment

I made the mistake of watching the video posted below before typing this post, so sorry in advance for any misspelled words and incoherent sentences while attempting to type through my tears. Today is the day we are grateful and thankful to all of the brave men and women who have served and continue to serve our country. I personally know many people who have served and continue to serve the United States of America. Out of all of them, my favorite military man in the whole wide world is my selfless husband, Kris. He serves in the United States Air Force and I couldn’t be more proud of him if I tried.

In addition to my husband I am thankful for all of our military family and friends and want to wish all of you a very special Happy Veterans Day as well. There are way too many of you to name, but you know who you are, and if you didn’t already know, you now know how much I appreciate and love you all.

This is my favorite military surprise homecoming video and I share it every year on my Facebook page. This year I’m sharing it on the blog so more people can see it and cry with me 😉

Thank you again Veterans! You are very appreciated!

Brie <3

[11.11.15]

All Posts, Dear Diary

Selfish vs. Selfless

November 8, 2015 Comments : 2

In the spirit of the season, I have decided to make my Sunday blog posts for the month of November about giving and gratefulness. I know this tends to be the cliché trend of everything in the month of November, but what is wrong with doing something for others and sharing positivity? In a world where hatred and sadness seems to be more popular than love and happiness, I think a month of thankfulness is needed.

This won’t be a long blog post, because this post is simple. I challenge everyone (myself included) to be less selfish and more selfless this month. It is quite an easy task if we truly find the compassion in our hearts to put others before self. Becoming a wife and mother has taught me this lesson more than I could have ever imagined, but I can still be and do better. It doesn’t have to be some grand gesture to prove selflessness either. Maybe instead of buying that new shirt or pants for yourself, you buy a few pairs of sweatpants and sweatshirts at Walmart for the homeless. An alternative for those who may not be in the financial place to buy such items can go through your closet of clothes and give away anything you don’t wear or need anymore to the less fortunate.

Another example of a small, but large impact gesture, could be buying some cheap canned goods on sale at your local grocery stores and donating some to your local food bank or church. The alternative, you may be shocked at what you have in your own pantry and don’t eat/need that can be donated to someone else.

A few other examples of selflessness is donating your time to a cause to help others. Find a local church or shelter who may be looking for volunteers to bless someone in need this holiday season. You would be amazed how appreciative people are to those who share their time and love with complete strangers. Another idea is making sure your coworkers or neighbors have somewhere to go on Thanksgiving. As hard as it is for some people to understand, there are many people who do not have family and/or close friends to share Thanksgiving dinner with. So ask your friends, coworkers, and neighbors if they have plans for the holiday. Not only will you be given the opportunity to bless someone else who will always be grateful for your hospitality, but you have the opportunity to strengthen a relationship or make a new friend.

I hope we all have the opportunity to show multiple acts of selflessness this holiday season. I pray all of us are able to be a blessing to someone else, and in turn be blessed by them as well. What other ideas would you like to share of selflessness with others? Please comment below. Also, as the month goes on, please share your acts of selflessness with me and other readers by commenting below, and/or tweeting and Instagraming me @JamiesonDiaries.

Here is to a wonderful season of spreading love and happiness to those around us!

Happy and blessed Sunday everyone!

Brie <3

[11.08.15]

All Posts, Family Love

Happy Birthday, Ryan!

October 14, 2015 Comments : 2

I’ve grown up with my little cousins being more like my brothers and sisters, than cousins. Today is my little cousin, Ryan’s, 17th birthday. He has always been such a happy and joyful soul to be around since he was born. I mean, he used to give himself a big bear hug as he laughed hysterically when he was little. So when I say he was always a happy kid, I mean it. Lol. Oh, and did I mention how goofy he is? I’m pretty sure goofy is his middle name.

He is a such a great example of a young person who loves the Lord and isn’t afraid to show it. He also loves Jordyn more than most could imagine a cousin would. I remember when I first bought her home to introduce to the family, and we all went to church that Sunday. People kept coming up to me asking “where is Jordyn?” to which I would respond “find Ryan and you’ll find Jordyn.” LOL. And sure enough, each time, he was usually in the middle of a group of people showing her off to everyone. He wasn’t too happy about having to share her with everyone else though haha.

Ryan, I hope you have a wonderful 17th birthday. I pray God blesses you to see many, many more, and I’m thankful I get to call such a silly and sweet soul my little cousin.

Happy birthday, Ry! We love you!

Brie <3

[10.14.15]

All Posts, Dear Diary

A Huge Birthday Thank You

September 28, 2015 Leave a Comment

Yesterday was my 27th golden birthday. Not only have I been blessed to see another year, but I had such an amazing day of being spoiled by my husband and baby girl. I received a massage, brunch in bed, a family walk, alone time to blog, and a delicious shrimp scampi alfredo made by my chef-boyardee husband. Here’s a picture of my oh so yummy breakfast plate 🙂

In addition to all of this spoiling; my Mom sent me my annual beautiful birthday flowers, I shared food and laughter with my Montana friends on Saturday evening, many loved ones posted special pictures/messages on social media for me, and I received so many text messages, phone calls, face time calls, and social media birthday wishes filled with nothing but love and happiness. Receiving love for my birthday on these platforms isn’t anything new, but as each year passes I learn to appreciate and be so thankful for those of you who take the time out of your day to send so much love my way. We grow up to learn exactly how precious time is in our lives, and for people to chose to spend their time on me means the world.

Twenty-six was a beautiful year filled with more ups than downs, and I can only imagine what golden year twenty-seven has in store for me. In the mean time, I pray and speak into existence this year brings blessings, grace, joy, love, prosperity, and wisdom. Not only for me, but for my loved ones as well.

Thank you again for all of the birthday love. You are all amazing and I love you all!

Brie <3

[09.28.15]

All Posts, Dear Diary

Give Thanks Anyway

November 30, 2014 Comments : 6

It is the Sunday following Thanksgiving, and lets just say, the holiday didn’t quite go as planned. This year we hosted Thanksgiving at our home. I love hosting holidays in our own home. As much as others complain about being busy, I love the hustle and constant movement during the holiday season. The added bonus- it was little Miss Jordyn’s first Thanksgiving! 🙂 As we had planned from the beginning of November, we would host Thanksgiving, and my husband’s sister and her boyfriend were going to spend thanksgiving week with us. In addition to having them in town, we were also expecting four of our close friends here in Montana to join us for dinner.

Well, two days before Thanksgiving, my husband’s sister found out she would have to work on Sunday. So instead of staying from Wednesday to the following Wednesday, she would stay from Wednesday to Saturday. They were planning to drive from California so they would need to leave early in the morning, a day in advance, to make it back in time. Although we were pretty bummed their visit would be cut short, we were happy we would get to see them at all. Fast forward about 3 hours later, and not only did she have to work on Sunday, she had to be in town for rehearsal on Saturday. Which means, they would have left California in the wee morning hours on Wednesday morning, gotten to Montana Wednesday evening, spent all of Thanksgiving Day with us, only to have to go to bed early to get up in the wee morning hours on Friday to drive back to California, and make it there in time to sleep for a few seconds before heading into work on Saturday. As much as my husband and I wanted to be with them for Thanksgiving, we knew expecting them to deal with a ridiculous driving schedule just to spend one day here in Montana with us, wasn’t fair or safe for that matter. I felt really bad for my husband all night on Tuesday and all day on Wednesday, because I know how much he loves his sister, how much he misses her, and how long he had been looking forward to seeing her for Thanksgiving. Then, to add one more change into the regularly scheduled program, by the time I had finished last-minute shopping for Thanksgiving necessities on Wednesday evening, my husband informed me that one of our friends were not joining us because he had to work as well. In the span of about 16 hours our Thanksgiving guest count had gone from 8 people to 5 people.

All I could think about was how much I would need to change in the amount of food being prepared, and the table set up I had already planned in my head. Then I was quickly reminded of how The Lord works in mysterious ways. Apparently, some parts of Montana were encountering some pretty bad weather, and the Montana Highway Patrol were advising people not to travel on the roads in such terrible conditions if not necessary. In the midst of all my prepping, cleaning, and maintaining a little one, I also realized I no longer needed to set up an additional table, make another centerpiece, or rearrange the dining room area. All five of us would be able to fit at our dining room table, and I actually had a few less things to make me crazy over the next few hours.

Once our few guests arrived for dinner, with their side dishes and desserts, we took our seats, prayed over the food, and proceeded to eat until we couldn’t eat anymore. After dinner, we hung out on the couch watching football games, playing video games, and cracking each other up in the process. One of Jordyn’s BFFs (Amelia) even came over to hang out after her and her Mom had finished their Thanksgiving meal with their family.

I say all of this, because this year I learned (for the hundredth time) that my plans will always be trumped by His plans. Thanksgiving may not have gone how we originally planned it to, but we knew Kris’ sister and her boyfriend were safe at home not battling dangerous snow storms. We also didn’t mind not having as much work to do in the kitchen and in preparation for the day either (haha). Even with all of the changes we had an amazing Thanksgiving, with even more amazing friends that are our family away from home.

I believe everything happens for a reason. This Thanksgiving taught me a very valuable lesson about life in general. When things seem to fall apart or are not working as I had originally planned..

Give Thanks Anyway.

Brie <3

[11.30.14]