At church last Sunday, we had a visiting priest and I loved his 'takeaway' sermon...

"Be positive in your endeavors. Do your best and let God take care of the rest."

Can you feel it?

Recognizing True Leadership. That's the title of one of my hero's editorials -- Mr. Earl Graves, Sr., the Publisher of Black Enterprise magazine. I'm so inspired by Mr. Graves words each and every month. This man clearly loves his community and not only cares that we make a way for ourselves, but gives us the tools to make it happen. I value true 'leadership' and Mr. Graves brings it home in his message: While "leadership is highly valued in our society...it's far more than fame and fortune...leadership boils down to one thing; the ability to positively affect others."

Check out Mr. Graves entire 'Publisher Page' in the June 2008 edition of Black Enterprise - the one with the incredible Ms. Oprah Winfrey on the cover!

Just read in the NY Times, a Critic's Notebook piece by Cathy Horne, June 19th, 2008, that in the July '08 issue of Italian Vogue, all the models will be black and all the featured articles will be about black women in the arts and entertainment. Unprecedented. What? What? From what I understand and as the article explains, it's hard for black beauties to get a gig on the runways and in print. What blows my mind is that the Editor, Franca Sozzani, and the main photographer, Steven Meisel were both inspired by the American presidential race and particularly Mr. Obama!

Could it be what many have feared? Because of Barack Obama we're going to start having to really look at black people. See beyond the basketball players and hip hop artists. Maybe because of Mr. Obama, people we'll start 'seeing' just how diverse a group of people we are?

In one week, Michelle Obama was on the cover of the NY Times and a co-host on 'The View' That same week, The Obamas were on the cover of US Magazine! Lord, what is going on. Mainstream media finally giving props. Not a football or baggy pants in sight.

Check out the article.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/19/fashion/19BLACK.html

Let's be real. Friends are tough. As much as we depend on them and have fun drinking, gossiping, laughing, crying, etc. with them, they can also cut right to the core. Friends know us best. They know how to make us smile and depending on how the wind is blowing or if the prozac has kicked in or not, they know how to criticize and sting us when we least expect it. I guess I'm guilty of trying to 'one up' a friend every now and then myself. In regards to Barack Obama and his 'friend' the Honorable Jeremiah Wright, (Yes, I know this is leaning towards 'old news' at this point, but...) I always looked at the big picture. I never once thought Wright would sway opinions of voters one way or the other. Wright's outrage to me was a lesson for Obama to learn....Get used to it. Your friends are going to support, surprise and also let you down. Doesn't mean you're not friends, but egos, maybe jealousy are always at play and I can only imagine, in the ultimate game of Presidential politics...watch out. Through it all, I think Obama and his team have done well. The Wright business has caused no real harm as far as I can tell. Obama is still leading. The Wright experience was just a taste of what's to come if this man becomes our first African-American president. I could only imagine Sen. Clinton behind the scenes. She and her team probably had a good laugh -- after all this woman has been through every high and low imaginable. Honestly, I admire Mrs. Clinton. I had the opportunity to work with President and Mrs. Clinton at the White House where I directed a presentation on the importance of music education in schools that aired on VH1. It was an amazing project and the Clintons were a fantastic couple to work with. Anyway, it's looking more and more like Sen. Obama will be the Democratic nominee. It's an exciting time right now. You know that saying "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer?" Maybe Sen. Obama should consider keeping everyone within the same reach. Stay tuned...

Mariah sang a song a bunch of years ago "Make It Happen" which I fire up on my ipod every now and then. The lyrics 'if you believe in yourself and know what you want' and 'you must be strong, baby just hold on' have always inspired me to not give up. I've made up my own 'quick poem'... 'If I give up today, I'll have nothing to do tomorrow.' Among the many lessons I've learned over the past years include: It takes hard work to 'make it happen' and 'trust yourself.' In addition to sharing my art with the world, I hope you'll appreciate my insight on the people and current events happening in our lives and I look forward to hearing from you.