– Bescye P Burnett, Harbor District Anti-Racism Team
The place…. on Oct. 22, 2022 was the Onslow County Public Library in Jacksonville, North Carolina. The place where we gathered to be welcomed by four authors who share part of their story through books for children… Get to Know Your Author sponsored by the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc Tau Omega Omega Chapter, Jackson, NC.
….Robin Bennett. Aunt Sissy Boone’s Magic Rainbow
“Aunt Sissy Boone’s Magic Rainbow is a story about accepting what makes us different. Aunt Sissy Boone answers a call for help from children in a town where everyone is bickering about their differences. She brings her magic rainbow which helps them see that although they are different, they have more in common than they realize.”
….Jennifer Langston. Antsy Agatha
“Antsy Agatha does what she knows when she doesn’t know what to do. In this book we see how the symptoms of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder impact Antsy Agatha, those around her, and how therapy helps her improve.”
….Nancy McCurtin. Topsey the Blind Sea Turtle
“Topsey was the teacher in the Turtle School. He loved to go adventuring, but one day he was caught in a stinky toxic chemical spill that left him blind. This series tells how Topsey adjusts to his new life with this serious handicap. There are other sea creatures with different handicaps who enter into the story. This endearing tale emphasizes how the whole community works together to have happy and successful lives. There are sea turtles, octopuses, sea gulls, sharks, and many other sea creatures that form this community. There is even a handicap turtle that becomes a famous hip-hop star. There are also mermaids that enter the scene to assist all the sea creatures in this endeavor. Join us to learn how all these characters work together to be kind to each other and teach some valuable life lessons.”
….Dr. L. Reaves, Green and Miles Reaves
“Ray of Sunshine has been written for children who move to different schools, have to deal with change and need to conquer their fears. It is for all the children who are afraid to express their fears of any kind. It is a socially- and emotionally-charged story of Ray shared from a young man’s perspective, as he struggles with attending school and making friends outside of his beloved dog, Rex. The message of the book is one of hope. You can rise above your fears and endure whatever life throws at you.”
The space to share… our diverse community with and for children…our difference and how we live together because of our differences…this month to focus on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and the impact on our children….working together with our abilities and disabilities…our fear of change especially in our young people…the elderly and the young…a space of listening….seeing…hearing…hoping…loving.
The place… The space…of God’s Grace …Living into the Beloved Community… Living into the new creation…the “beloved community” includes engaging more and more as servants and engaging our hearts…our minds…our souls…our entire body. Colossians 3:12-17 (ESV) speaks to us on “Living into the beloved community”. “Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility , meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. “ (NIV)
The Beloved Community….place where the impact of our holding means ALL
(I use periods to allow the space of and for grace)