My Blog Talk Radio Show

Hello All! I host a BTR show that's all about women... how we work, play and relate to the world around us. Please listen and LEAVE A COMMENT http://www.blogtalkradio.com/…ielleRicks

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Why I write

I write to set my soul free. I write to set my mind free. I read to escape my reality and visit places where my mind and soul can be free together!

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You deserve to be adored!

I have a really good girlfriend that I met while working at Walt Disney World in Orlando. We have become the best of friends. Over the years we have shared similar hopes & dreams for the future. One of those dreams was to finally, finally get married. We had given up so much for our careers and as newly crowned Cougars we wanted to settle down.

So, we dated. And we dated. And we dated some more. Then I saw a shift in her love requirements. She started to say she wanted to be adored. I liked that idea but I don't think I fully bought into the concept. That is UNTIL... years later I met her husband. By then I was living in DC and she had come to town with her new hubby to watch history being made with the inauguration of the first Black President of the United States.

I'm going to cut to the chase here... he adores her! So much so he has photos of their wedding on his PDA and has no problems whipping them out to show the world what a beautiful bride he has. A guy... with wedding photos... on his iPhone... that he WANTS to share. That's just one small example of his adoration. I could go on and on about how he adores her but that's not the point.

The point is she didn't change the men she was dating. She changed her consciousness about the kind of men she wanted to date. Not too long ago I made that shift as well and I've been attracting more nurturing, honest, down to earth brothers (with one or two exceptions here and there). I will be blogging more about that as time goes on. In the meantime I asked some of my Twitter friends to define what it means to be adored by a man by answering this question: "He adores you if______" (fill in the blank). Here are some of my favorite answers. Feel free to add your own. I'll continue to post more as more of my favorites roll in.

• @peachcandy24 #HeAdoresYouIf respects you, protects you, and provides for you
• @RachelRich69 #HeAdoresYouIf he honestly and openly shares his feelings with you about your future together
• @jujumama #HeAdoresYouIf He is willing and happy to give because you are so open to receiving
• @rixstarr @DanielleRicks #HeAdoresYouIf he displays one of the Big "P" manhood traits on a regular basis. That's Protect/Provide/Profess/Promote
• @cyntjemusic #HeAdoresYouIf he supports your destiny/goals even if it means him getting out of the way

These are just a few. Give me your thoughts! Oh... and follow me on Twitter @DanielleRicks

@ShannonRenne#HeAdoresYouIf he doesn't understand social media and supports your addiction anyway *LOVE THAT ONE*

It ain't easy being green or being a women!

I always struggle with this balance of what it means to be a woman. So often I have identified myself with the man in my life, the position I have held on my job... the kind of sister, friend, or daughter I am. But now, having reached what I feel is the half way point in my life, I'm called upon to be more reflective, to be more introspective, to ask myself... "just what kind of women do I want to be?"

I've had some ups and I've had some downs. I've learned the lesson of self-love, self-expression, and self-esteem the hard way. I have had great loves and I have lost what I thought was the love of my life (turns out he was just a great love of a particular season in my life). While I've been able to peel back the layers of my soul to get to who I am as a Child of God, I still struggle with who I am as this female energy called "woman". Am I to be this strong, go get ‘em woman that my job calls for… while I'm out in the world… "on the grind”… “makin’ that paper”. While I do that... can I also be vulnerable and open up to all parts of my myself in an intimate relationship with someone who I hold dear and who I desperately need to be the caretaker of my heart? Will one soul energy source of dominance or submission surpass or overshadow the other?

I struggle with this push and pull of the masculine and feminine energy every day. It is the Ying and the Yang of me. When I am centered, focused, and bathed in Christ Consciousness I am in perfect balance with these two energies. When I am off, even if only by a little bit, one or more of the opposite polarities that make up the human psyche throw me for a loop. In these moments I pray and meditate. I turn within and ask the Creator to bring me back to the center… to allow me to focus… to allow me rise to my higher self… but it is a struggle.

I strive to experience unconditional love, without judgment, and without conviction. As I do, I understand the road to unconditional love and non-judgment is paved with a path called forgiveness. In this moment I forgive all who I have perceived having done me wrong me and I forgive myself for being so hard on a yearning soul that simply wants to be free.

These are my struggles... what are yours? How can love and forgiveness help you to overcome them?