Men’s Mental Health Month is more than awareness. It’s creating space for conversations many men were taught not to have. For generations, men have been told to be strong, push through, carry the weight, and keep moving. Yet behind many of those expectations are stories that rarely get told. Stories of grief, pressure, loneliness, sacrifice, healing, and survival. This reflection series invites men to pause and tell the truth about what they’ve carried. Choose a prompt. Follow the question wherever it leads. Write the story. Speak the truth. Give voice to what silence has been holding. Because healing begins where honesty lives. Which prompt speaks to you? #LoveAndLyricsAngel Kim Where Words Have Freedom #MensMentalHealthMonth #HealingMenHealFamilies #MentalHealthMatters #WriteToHeal #PoetryCommunity

A Sister got at me, in the spirit of negative energy... Heard the depths of That Voice... The sound coming from a Black Woman... Blew her mind.... Wrote, "GOD is not the author of confusion". Yet here we are and you doubt your ears... Falsely accusing me of being a male... Because, That Voice shook your being... This is the CV of my life... People can't see beyond the exterior.. Won't engage the Sister in her brilliance... Stuck on, she sounds like a Man... This resume is extensive... Started hustling as a kid to stave off hunger... Babysitting, cleaning garages or carrying groceries for Seniors.. Cashier in a candy shop, counting the money... Washing windows, pumping gasoline and managing petrol stations... Even as a fifteen year old college freshman never safe... Radio Announcer, DJ spinning records at the Black American Legion Hall...Serving drinks at the Bar... Spiked railroad tracks in steel toe boots... Suffering through the threats of sexual harassment and rapes... Never afraid of hard work... Concrete crew, paid less because of being a "Girl".. Working three jobs, because I was running from poverty... Driving transit buses, school bus, limousines... Always excelling, yet always paid less.. Truck Driver and spoke out about the discrepancy, in operator pay, everyone received the raise except me.. That Voice buried... Singer...shut down, because giving blow jobs not part of the mission... Weldor, was able to shine working for a Father and Son.. Almost received a break making my favorite food... Started building a business only to get hurt by a Semi on the way to work. Back to another life... Black Sister getting the shaft again... No matter the smarts, and problem solving... Broke into I.T. early... Experiencing oppression again, treated unequal... Built a better business in home computer service... Hustling, smuggling, hoping to go into home ownership.. Speculators, killed the housing market... Back into the Commercial Operator seat... Class action lawsuit paid...

Today centers contact around…Mantras (What are some mantras that you live by, or your favorite mantra that carries you throughout your day? ) A small trace. A mark left without explanation. What you offer can be brief. A line. An image. An acknowledgment. Leave it where attention happened to land. Here's my Offering: "My joy is personal,y peace in non- negotiable" "I am standing on every version of me that I outlived" "I release what I cannot control" "In order to get something that you never had, you gotta do something that you've done"

✨This week’s report is in with you guys keep shining. You are all amazing!!!✨ Here Are To Our TOP Three: @Ericka Floyd @Naomie Thomas @Tiara Nelson Honorable Mentions: @Michelle Cox @M. a. Dennis @Tierrah Nicole @Craven Smith @Brian Griggs @Antwion Shamar @Laron Henderson

Did something different. Got asked to write a murder mystery piece. This what I came up with. I got an invitation All the elite people in town were going to be there From wealthy billionaires to mayors Doctors and lawyers You know The who's who in the city At first I wasn't interested Hesitant to participate in the event Cuz lately There's been some shady shit going on in the city I was told I got the finest wine in the town And it wouldn't be an event without my speciality novelty drinks And they only wanted me to serve the guests And if I did I would be paid with a handsomely check Thought for a minute After sipping on my finest wine Fuck it I'll go It'll be easy money to make Got dressed in my best attire The invite said to arrive at 8pm And it'll be on Until dawn I get there at 7:00pm As you know I like to arrive early Me and my crew Get set up for the party The guests will be arriving shortly But still I'm getting a little uneasy The sky is a little more gloomy than usual A little chilly out The wind whisps by my face I swore I could hear it cackle a little laugh As if it knew sometimg evil was going to happen Something seems to be amiss Can't quite put my finger on it Yet Complete my set up Just in time As the guests began arriving Party gets started Everyone is lively So far A good time is being had be all The line at my bar Is long Almost wrapped around the entire hall I serve them one by one Making sure they get their favorite drinks For the evening So far everything is running smoothly Then all of sudden A crowd starts forming around Lots of screaming and shocked faces As a dead body laid on the ground Ummm how did this happen I knew something was going down I have my suspicious to who may have committed the murder No gunshots were heard No blood was flowing from the body This was certainly an inside job The conspirator must've been close to the victim Thinking of who it could've been That I served that night I bet it was that short little sweet thing