Power Inn and Ramona Questions

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Much has changed. While living abroad for eight years, my family stopped recognizing American holidays. I viewed the occasions as capitalistic schemes to boost the economy.

They aided the status quo while keeping the most vulnerable populations poor. I laughed at the plot.  

While I still find many of the dominant holidays silly and materialistic, I have softened my stance.

Last week, my children celebrated Halloween for the first time. My oldest is almost fifteen and a freshman in high school; the boys are right behind her in seventh and eighth grade. They pleaded and we complied.

My wife and I bought three costumes. A dancing alien, a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, and a Jurassic Park dinosaur made the cut. The purchases contradicted my previous boycotts of Halloween, but the looks on their faces made it worth the sacrifice.

I acknowledged that childhood lasts for a short time. If my children want to spend an evening trick-or-treating and wearing masks, I can release control and let them be kids.

Power-in

Moving to Mexico represented starting over. We rented a home, and the children learned to speak Spanish. Two years in, and like our lives in the US, we found ourselves leaving Dia de los Muertos and many of our possessions behind.

We moved to Antigua and Barbuda. Our “forever home” under the sun and near the Caribbean Sea lasted six years before circumstances pulled us back to the States. We never planned to return.

Destiny, the Divine, or the damned economy brought us back.

Can you tell? I still have days when I fixate on purpose in our current situation. My work is solid, the family is adjusting, but something on some days makes me question everything.

I am not supposed to have every answer. A voice from inside whispers. It just is.

The purpose is to be present and focus power into the moment. See what happens.

I told myself a version of the two previous sentences as the children put on their costumes, rushed to meet friends, and later returned with more candy than I would ever buy.

Ramona

The next day, I found myself at a Starbucks café on Ramona Street. My wife’s grandmother’s name was Ramona.

Did she guide us here?

If the Holy Spirit can grant salvation, can a human spirit order our steps? It's a difficult question to answer.

Why am I sitting in a Starbucks on a Saturday evening at Power Inn and Ramona?

My daughter volunteered to help with an event down the street, and I agreed to join a capoeira school’s performance. I went to the café to write a draft of this post while I waited for everything to start. After an hour, I returned to the festival.

The group warmed up behind the stage. We played music, practiced movements, and waited for our time to perform.

Afterward, I waited a bit longer for my daughter's shift to finish.

On the way home, I found myself in another contradiction like on Halloween evening.

She was hungry, and I stopped at Jack in the Box. I added fries, chicken strips, and a milkshake to her week of trick-or-treating. With my pending travels for a work conference, I needed to extend the bonding time with her.

If Ramona were still here, she would have wanted me to do the same. In her lifetime, she earned the all-star badge for spoiling the ladies in her life. One of which became my wife.

As I packed my bags to attend the conference, she suggested I take her grandmother's mudcloth suitcase. Was it a coincidence or a sign of the pending trip's significance that my wife asked me to take something from Ramona with me? Another question, I can’t answer. 

Writing for Power and Freedom

Fast forward four days later, I found myself preparing to lead a session for one hundred high school students about the power of writing to create freedom. I planned to share how writing had enabled me and others to excel in school and place the words of marginalized people in the center of articles and books. The session's outline had interactive components about the benefits of building a writing habit.

Like you saw in this post, writing helps with reflection. It can also help manage anxiety and establish priorities. One last question.

What is freedom? If freedom is a state of mind, use your pen to manage the Central Governor responsible for how we interpret our potential.

In this week of Halloween, café visits, and conference travel, I also celebrated a birthday. Your gift to me can be as simple as subscribing, contributing to The Keep Vernon Writing Fund, buying a book, or enrolling in coaching sessions. You choose.