Talent Search

2nd Verse

2009-04-01T13:13:00.000-07:00

writing and poetry

2009-04-01T12:45:00.001-07:00

writing and poetry

2009-04-01T12:34:00.000-07:00

writing and poetry

2009-03-31T23:00:00.001-07:00

writing and poetry

2009-02-02T13:02:00.000-08:00

"You must be the change you want to see in the world." - Mahatma Gandhi

2009-01-25T21:12:00.000-08:00

"IT'S AMAZING HOW MUCH CAN BE ACCOMPLISHED,
WHEN NOBODY CARES WHO GETS THE CREDIT"

JOHN WOOTEN

Hater/ By Maya Angelou

2009-01-19T22:32:00.000-08:00

A hater is someone who is jealous and envious and spends all their
time trying to make you look small so they can look tall.
They are very negative people to say the least. Nothing is ever
good enough!

When you make your mark, you will always attract some haters...

That's why you have to be careful with whom you share your
blessings and your dreams, because some folk can't handle seeing
you blessed...

It's dangerous to be like somebody else... If God wanted you to be
like somebody else, He would have given you what He gave them! Right?

You never know what people have gone through to get what they
have...

The problem I have with haters is that they see my glory, but they
don't know my story...

If the grass looks greener on the other side of the fence, you
can rest assured that the water bill is higher there too!

We've all got some haters among us!

Some people envy you because you can:
a) Have a relationship with God
b) Light up a room when you walk in
c) Start your own business
d) Tell a man / woman to hit the curb
(if he / she isn't about the right thing)

e) Raise your children without both parents being
in the home

Haters can't stand to see you happy.
Haters will never want to see you succeed.
Most of our haters are people who are supposed to be
on our side.

How do you handle your undercover haters?
You can handle these haters by:

1. Knowing who you are & who your true friends are
*(VERY IMPORTANT!!)

2. Having a purpose to your life: Purpose does not
mean having a job. You can have a job and still be
unfulfilled.

A purpose is having a clear sense of what God has called you to be.
Your purpose is not defined by what others think about you.

3. By remembering what you have is by divine
prerogative and not human manipulation.

Fulfill your dreams! You only have one life to live...when its your
time to leave this earth, you 'want' to be able to say, 'I've lived my
life and fulfilled 'my' dreams,... Now I'm ready to go HOME!

When God gives you favor, you can tell your haters, 'Don't look at
me...Look at Who is in charge of me...'

'A woman's heart should be so hidden in Christ that a man
should have to seek Him first to find her.'

Maya Angelou

writing and poetry

Book Signing: "Through My Eyes"

2008-12-02T22:48:00.001-08:00

Hello All, Just writing to let you all know that I will be officially having my book signing for my first published book, "Through My Eyes" on Dec. 13th @ Winestyles @ 6pm. The address is 16353 Huebner and Bitters I believe. Don't quote me on that. You can mapquest if need be. I may or may not have extra copies of the book to sell so, I would advise getting your copy a.s.a.p to have in time for the signing. You can purchase a copy of paperback or hardcover @ Lulu.com/content/4470519. For hardcover purchase, I suggest just doing a general search with the name Vanesha Nation or the book title. I urge you to get yours quickly to insure prompt arrival of your copy. Those of you I have selected to read a poem, this is a definite must do, for you need your own copy so, that you may also have it signed. While there, you can also enjoy some fantastic wine from the finest vineyards and @ 8pm stay and enjoy some of the best local poetry in the San Antonio and surrounding areas for the monthly "2nd Verse" poetry show hosted by Vocab, Glo & Kinton and our gracious host with the most, Mel Williams, owner of Winestyles. Please come out and support me in my new endeavor and be a huge part of my prosperous journey as a poet and writer. Thanks for the love and encouragement. Go in peace and Blessings:)

Ralph Waldo Emerson 1803-1882

2008-11-14T18:00:00.000-08:00

Talent Alone Can not Make A Writer

There Must Be A Man Behind The Book....

writing and poetry

A Search No More

2008-11-14T17:43:00.000-08:00
You look so hard,

So hard you stop.

And when you stop,

Is when it comes.

When it comes it pours,

It pours down like rain.

A long awaited rainstorm,

The drought is no longer.

No longer is the pain,

The pain you were given.

A given security,

The blanket is there.

You look so hard,

So hard you stop.

And when you stop,

Is when it comes.

By: Courtney Swain

writing and poetry

STUCK

2008-11-06T12:38:00.000-08:00
One glance and you are stuck,

Stuck into a world of fantasy,

A fantasy filled with emotion,

An emotion you can not describe but a feeling,

A feeling that everything is right in your heart,

A heart that is open to someone,

Someone who makes you feel stuck with one glance

By: Courtney Swain

writing and poetry

Bravery is Being Afraid, but Doing It Anyway

2008-11-02T11:41:00.000-08:00
Bravery is being afraid, but doing it anyway. In life there are leaders, and there are followers. Leaders posses the skills to persevere through peer pressure, through negative comments, and essentially through self ideas of failure to achieve their goals. Followers tend to do the opposite, they are afraid of stepping outside of their comfort zone, and their self esteem thrives off of the little bit of recognition they might attain by following the crowd; therefore they can not surpass the stage of normal, and become great. Bravery is being afraid, but doing it anyway. I can not recall the number of times I've been told that I can not do something, that learning from your experiences is not the best teacher, that I should just settle and save myself the heart ache, and disappointment of failure. For a weak minded person those phrases alone are enough to make them want to give up. Keep in mind that the most successful entrepreneurs of today and of the days in the past did not aquire what they have based on following the crowd, or solely on pure luck. They went out on a limb against the grain, took a chance, and succeeded.

I have also been told that if a person lives life normal and expected i.e. go to school, graduate, get a job, and work in that specific field for a specific amount of time, that a person is guaranteed a happy normal life. That works, for those who want a normal life. The biggest icons on the face of the earth including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, Bill Gates, Malcolm X, Donald Trump, Sean "P Diddy" Combs, and even Jesus Christ did not have normal Life's, but look at their recognition in todays society, and the legacy of their lives. Some of them had to endure with losing friends and or being outcasts from the norm, others had to face public humiliation, and some suffered the ultimate sacrifice of death. Was it all worth it; some would say yes, and some would argue no, but that is a judgement question, which requires a judgement answer. The phrase that would best sum up this sentence would be to attain greater rewards, one must assume greater risks.

Some people got to where they are in life not because they were the best candidate, or the most intelligent, but by something as simple as the other person was scared to step forward and compete. Therefore I feel that success can be aquired by faith, belief, and the guts to listen to your instincts and act upon them. What I find amazing and also sad, is, people plan for failure more times than they plan for success, the amount of time spent on the "what if" question is infinite, but being brave is doing the complete opposite. A mind state of "Im not good enough" or "there is surely someone else that can do the job better than I can" is embedded in peoples minds. Where that mind set of thinking surfaced from I will leave up to the psychologists and sociologists. My overall opinion is failure is not final unless you quit, or do not attempt to take a chance. In conclusion there are two types of people, leaders and followers, and there are two types of talent, pure talent and applied talent. We are born with pure talent and a large amount of people have it, but only a select few apply it. Be brave enough to do it!

writing and poetry

2008-10-30T23:23:00.001-07:00
I’m a 25 year young University Student pursuing his Bachelor’s Degree in Healthcare Administration, with 2 months until graduation I don’t know why I didn't start this blog until now. I’m slightly older than the average college student I've seen a lot, partied a lot, and still want to do it all as well. I’m blessed with not only book smarts, but also street smarts. I believe some people who obtain power only do so for the title, sort of like bragging rights, not necessarily to help those who are in need. I believe life is like shooting dice, one day you're down, the next you're up, but I don't believe one solely succeeds by his or her actions; I believe there is some kind of divine force that occurs, causing a particular action to take place for whatever reason, good or bad. I believe the perception of skin color is a curse, and unless you've walked a mile in a person's shoes, judgment should never be rendered, only deferred until that person's actions justify your judgments, and if they don't, you owe that person an apology. I grew up in a two parent household, regular city kid, not poor, but not rich either. I grew up with anger issues early because my father and I didn't always see eye to eye, I claimed he was never there, and he’d claim when you’re the head of the household, that’s what men do. Maybe it was me being a middle child, or just a stubborn child that made me who I am today…who knows. I knew how to follow the rules, I just never did. I knew the norms and what was expected of me, but I never fit in. The out casted crowd is who I knew, I could relate, they felt robbed, and in a way I felt the same. Not necessarily that someone owed us anything, but rather that no one cared.

I don't know why I’m writing this, I've always been a secretive person, never showing feelings or emotions because of that one bad experience in my past, you know…that one experience that won't allow a single sole near your heart, just so that pain never repeats itself again. I’ve learned that letting go of old habits is hard, it requires skill, patience, and discipline, and if anyone of these elements is missing the process cannot take place. I’m all for positive change in all aspects of the meaning, and I believe that change must occur in order for the evolution of mankind to continue to exist. I’ve started this blog to get positive insight on decisions, issues, and life… I don’t know where my life is headed, where I’ll wind up at, but I know where I want to go, and I hope you’ll join me on this journey!

writing and poetry