My faith

I would say the two people who have had the most profound influence on my spiritual life is my Nana and my cousin Lesle.

My Great Grandma Agnes Stephenson's faith was a tangible thing to me from a young age. I remember a few times spending Sunday in church. Holy Sanctified. Ya'll ain't had no "chuch" unless you've been one of those services. Think that's where I got my love of bringing-down-the-walls-of-Jericho, gospel music. She was the first one to really instill in me that no mater what is going on in my life, God's got His arms around me. When I first heard this song, I thought of Nana.

I remember being in labor with JB, and hearing it over and over again in my head. Maw was there with me, but so was my Nana, she was letting me know that no matter what was happening right now, come the morning, all would be right. Nana never lied to me!






Next at bat was my cousin Leslie Ann Jones. One day I'm going to be able to sit down and write about our history. Today's not one of them, the hole left by her passing hasn't even begun to heal yet. Suffice it to say that no matter how much pain she was in, she'd shake herself loose and go at life full throttle. A year before she passed, we had a good talk, there were no words left unspoken, no laughter not shared, no memories we didn't rehash. I am a blessed one. I got to tell her what was in my heart, she shared her own with me.

Les, I'm still doing what you told me, and I miss you terribly my friend.