13 years old Archives - After the Altar Call

Hello World!!!

So all week long I have been thinking about how to spin my birthday…which is TODAY!!!!

One-year-old Jackie

There are so many other more popular ages…Everyone loves one year olds…They smell new (well, not always)…They can barely walk and talk which is good if you want to ignore them from to time…And you generally feel sorry for the little parasites because they are dependent on everybody for nearly everything…

Jackie at six…

Six year olds have fans too…They are excited by notebook paper and pencils which makes them pretty easy to please…They have started loosing teeth which makes listening to them hilarious…You can scare them easily…Even the

Me at 13…

unlucky 13 year olds are praised….The boys’ voices start to crack which is good for laughs…The girls start to stress out over boys which is also good for laughs…And you can leave them at home by themselves at least for a short time unless you have bad seeds…And of course,

Sweet sixteen…

there are the sweet 16 year olds…Every 16 year old I’ve ever met reminds me of why I loved Molly Ringwald movies…teenage angst at its best…It makes all of us feel pretty good that we are no longer in agony or have pimples which is why 16 is a pretty good age…There are tons of Sweet 16 greeting cards in every store…And they can drive you around…

21 baby…

And of course, the 21 year olds live in a constant state of nirvana…Everything is tight and right… Legally, they can do anything they please…And still people loan and or give them money because they are only 21….The 30 year olds get love

30 & Flirty…

too…They get sympathy because everyone recognizes there is no turning back to childhood…But everything is still tight and right…And people start respecting them more because they are finally stacking more paper…Even the 40 year olds get

40 & Fabulous…

props…People compliment them like crazy if they still look good and or younger…And they get no judgment if they look a little lived in or have gained a pound or two every year for the last 10 years…And they are usually deemed pretty respectable because they have pretty good jobs, wives and or husbands, well-cared-for pets, grown up houses, etc. and take fabulous vacations…

But nobody’s really checking for the 41 year olds…So what if they look good for age? They are 41 so that cancels that out…So what if they have a nice house and or apartment, etc.? They should by this age…So what if they take fabulous vacations? They should by this age…Fill in blank…

But then again, maybe 41 is the gateway age…By that I mean it’s first age that people are still surprised they are here at all…Seriously though, I’m truly grateful that God allowed mr to see 41 and any other age I’ve been or will be…Won’t He Do It?

Happy Birthday To Me!!!

Any thoughts?

Hello World!!!

As of yesterday, I am 37 years old…Maybe that’s not a big deal if you’re 73….but if you’re me, 37 is three years away from 40…Wow! I mean it’s all good…I’m here…I’m still alive…I’m healthy as far as I know…I’m cute…but I think every year that you are alive, you should grow in wisdom and grow more into the person that God created you to be…I think I’m growing in wisdom and I have been striving to be all that God created me to be so I feel like I am making progress…But it’s just amazing that I can remember turning 13 and now I am 37…Oh yeah, maybe I am going somewhere with this post and maybe I’m not…Here’s a thought…If I could go back and tell my 13-year-old self some wisdom and some revelations about myself, below is what I would say…

1. You are enough…If the kids around you think you’re ugly or lame or lacking in any way, ignore them because you are enough…

2. Hang around some of the kids that rap and sing and maybe don’t go to class in high school because Ludacris, Bone Crusher, Tiny from Xscape better known as T.I.’s girlfriend, Mike Crooms aka DJ Smurf aka Mr. Collipark and the original DJ from OutKast went to Banneker…and maybe you could have been in their crew or a video or gotten a free album or something…

3. You will meet some of the nicest guys you will ever meet in high school…You may meet guys who have more money or who are more sophisticated after high school but pay attention to the nice guys because you will always want be in the presence of one…

4. Having parents who have a ton of rules is actually really cool…You won’t get pregnant in high school, be tired of clubbing at age 20 or have reached your peak at age 16…

5. Treasure your friends. No one lives forever, but the young die too…Rest in peace Shakita and Shonda…

6. That girl who threatened to “kick your heart in” in homeroom ended up on Divorce Court (yes the television show) years later looking unkempt, hefty and just plain ghetto…karma, ha!

7. Never tell a female associate about your good man because she may just take him…Shout out to N…I guess I really can’t be mad at you since you married him and everything after high school…Guess it was meant to be…But I still learned the lesson…

8. You are a writer…(Still affirming that truth…)

9. Slow down girl…Don’t believe the hype…

10. Keep journaling…It’s therapeutic and a good way to hear from God and yourself…

11. Continue to be unflinchingly polite…You will be surprised how many people don’t bother to say please, excuse me, thank you, etc. anymore…but being polite makes you feel good about yourself even if others think you’re corny…

12. Every goodbye ain’t gone, every shut eye ain’t closed and every adult ain’t grown…

13. Exercise actually feels good…