Questions???

Last night I fell asleep (briefly) in the steam room at Bally's in Hyde Park. The smoky, humid atmosphere enveloped me and I began to let myself drift deeper inside of my unconsciousness.

Come...
...Join Me...
...Inside a Writer's Mind.

It felt like I floated out of my body and saw the world from various vantage points. I saw a little girl being raped and I cried for both the child being raped AND the illness possessing the person doing the raping. I saw a man burning his wife with gasoline and I prayed for them both. I saw a woman stabbing her boyfriend and my heart almost stopped. I saw a man being fired and feeling lost. I saw a woman forsaking her family for a dream of wealth and prosperity. I saw a family struggling with mental illnesses. I saw a newborn thrown into the garbage by his drug addicted parents. I saw a homeless man passed by, by the more affluent society. I saw a teenager with suicidal ideations facing her parents for what she knew would be her last day. The common thread I kept sensing in this dream was pain...but it was not my own.

I sensed the world's pain.

I sensed your anxiety, your agony and your distress.

In my sleep, I saw myself writing. I don't know what or why I was writing...but I just was. At the conclusion of my writing...I sensed relief. Not my relief, but your relief.

Regardless of what happens in our world we can choose to react in the way most beneficial to our well-being. I know that I can't change some of the challenging situations that has occurred or will occur...but my hope is that I can hold your hand and begin to retrain your thought processes. If we begin to find the light even in our darkest hour, we empower ourselves to reshape our destiny. An aura of amazing power begins to surround us and we only need to reach out our hands to feel more of it. The motivation of feeling, seeing and tasting our GREATNESS beyond limitations will then move us to look inward to find our greatest strength. At this point you will become unmoved in your choice to not just live life, but have a GREAT life!!

I am living the life that I have designed for myself, but it is important to express to you that I am not without my struggles. I, however, differ from many because I am always hopeful that a brighter light exists...so I equip myself with the tools needed and I get out of my bed and go out to find the light that I know is out there.

I am constantly asking myself the following questions:
"What can I do today to move closer to my goals?"
"What am I grateful for today?"
"What can I do to make at least one person's life better today?"
"In what way can I challenge my mind to grow?"
"Today I will stretch outside of my comfort zone and experience something new...what shall that be?"
"What else could this mean?" When faced with any situation seek to venture outside of what seems to be your reality and look for possible alternative meanings.

Whatever happens to me in the day...I stay rooted in my choice for happiness.

Whatever happens to you in the day... choose to think positively.

In finding your power to create a better life...put your focus on what you want, not what you lack. Visualize what you desire your life to look like. I want you to actually see the details in your vision. What are you wearing? Who is around you? Where are you at? What colors are you seeing? What is the weather like? You will begin to feel this vibrant energy radiate within you NOW...not later...as if this great vision of yours is happening NOW! Research what is needed and equip yourself with those tools that will further your life. Stop making excuses.

I am committed to completing one of my novels by December 2009. No matter how tired I am...no matter what happens in my day...no matter how many deadlines I have...I have pledged to myself to spend at least one hour nightly working on my craft.

What pledges are you making to yourself?

What ever happens know that you are not alone.

My fellow neighbors in life...

We are divine beings worthy of Greatness.
We all are capable of stretching our minds to areas of unbounded space.
We can draft the life we want and choose success.
We don't have to choose to be victims in life.
When my neighbor cries I will feel his pain.
When my neighbor reaches out to me I will open my palm to receive his hand.
When my neighbor rejoices in a personal accomplishment I will sing with him in sincere praise.
If my neighbor falls I will guide him towards the skillsets that will allow him to stand up stronger.
When I cry please open your hearts and understand my pain.
When I reach out to you please embrace me with your love.
When I rejoice in a personal accomplishment please put on your dancing shoes and step with me.
If I fall don't pick me up but teach me how to get up.

Neighbors in life...
I have a few questions for you. Are you ready to live in your greatness? Are you willing to stay the course? Are you willing to change the paradigm of your thought processes? Are you willing to take calculated risks by stepping outside of your comfort zone?

When you are ready...I offer you assignment number one:
First, visualize and truly contemplate what you want and how you want to move (metaphorically) through life. Second, write it down and hang it in a place conducive to you being able to see it every day. Third, read your words (your goals/wishes/desires...whatever you call it) daily and hold onto the feeling of actually being where you want to go.

That is only the beginning... Very soon, we will together draft an organized plan of action.

Neighbors in life...
I love you and I thank you for venturing inside of my "writer's" mind.

Formal Introduction

Allow me to formally introduce myself to you.

My full name is Treena Renee Glover. I have loved and lived on this Earth for 36 years thus far. I was born into a wonderful, affectionate, good hearted family full of all of God's grace. I was born the youngest of four siblings. My oldest sister, whose name is Teresa is 41 years old. My brother, Darnell, is 40 years old. My older sister, but not the oldest, Tasha, is 38 years old. We are close in age, which allowed for an amazingly close relationship between all of us. There are many success stories circling around my siblings and I...but we are not defined by that.

Though I have an undergrad business degree in Accounting...and worked many years as a Financial Markets Accountant on the trade floor at Cargill in Minnesota...I am not defined by that. Though I have a Masters in Mathematics...and taught at Chicago State University for several years, while simultaneously working at Daley College, the Champs Program at IIT and leading students at Betty Shabazz Charter School as their Math Coach...I am not defined by that. Though I have received numerous awards, rewards and accolades from family, friends, co-workers and print media...I am not defined by that.

I believe we, the human race is defined by our will to give knowing nothing will be returned. Not by what we have or don't have.

I believe we are defined by our patience, our efforts, our compassion, our religion, our struggles to constantly improve ourselves and our ability to be humane. Not by what we look like or who we know.

I am on a mission to help as many people as humanly possible (this is partly what defines me). My love, my will, my zest and my passion for serving others. This is what led me to my current position at the not for profit agency of SOS Children's Villages with the ideas still circling in my mind that I would continue to educate via my writing.

Today I have five wonderful glorious children, ranging in age from two years old to sixteen years old. I don't like to sling the terminology around of foster vs birth...but today I will...in order for you to understand me better. I have a set of two year old twins that I have cared for, for over eighteen months. I am in love with my two bundles of joy. I also have a beautiful and intelligent six year old. My ten year old is a bit feisty, but her compassion runs deep. Though my children think of me as "momma", I am not their legal nor birth mother. I am their foster mother. To protect them and their confidential stories I will not make further reference to them. However, please know that each time I write or move in life they are at the forefront of my consciousness. I have one biological daughter; Essence Casmere Parleen House. Essence turned sixteen years old on November 21, 2008. Essence is the love of my life. I will share more of her with you through my writing.

My goal with my children and others that cross my path is to provide them with hope, information, love, understanding and a desire to push past their problems to become a success in life. In fact, I plan to spend the next ten years of my life working with the population challenged emotionally, mentally and physically.

What I have just shared is a brief insight into my world, my mind...my beliefs.

Now I'd like to share with you some of my interests...

I love to travel, having gone to places like Paris (France), Puerto Rico and states throughout America. I am a voracious reader, attacking books with an unquenchable thirst. My home has six bookshelves loaded from top to bottom with books. My closets still contain boxes of books waiting to be pounced on. I also like taking ceramic, arts & crafts, aerobics and health classes. I love living in Chicago and all of the family activities Chicago has to offer.

Photography is a huge hobby of mine. There was a time in my life when I never left home without a camera. I also love writing and reciting poetry. Speech writing and speech delivery are other facets of my intrigue. My toastmaster family (both in Minnesota and Illinois) played a major role in helping me to refine my presentation skills.

I love winter sports. I joined the Chicago Sno Gophers and have gone on some of the ski outings. I don't desire to be an expert skier, but I do enjoy it and think that it is fun. In addition to skiing, I like tubing and sledding down snow covered hills and mountains.

In the summer, I love going to the beach making sand castles with my children, nieces, nephews and other children who have attached themselves to me for the day. I love going to museums and amusement parks during our hot summer months.

In the fall season I am always taking people with me on nature hikes. I think Martial Arts is a great way to stay fit...so occasionally I'll stop by Bally's Total Fitness in Hyde Park and participate in the TaeKwonDo class. Ya'll I'm locked into a two year membership. I also love taking Belly Dancing Classes this time of year.

In wrapping up my introduction...I'd like to leave with one final thought. God. God is at the base of my life. Though I may make many mistakes...I strive to do what is right in God's eyes. God is my reason for being...my reason for serving others.

I hope you enjoy reading all of the stuff that resides in my mind. I look forward to hearing back from anyone that wishes to respond. I promise to respond to emails within 48 hours (if the volume of responses are reasonable)...otherwise I promise to respond soon.

God Bless!