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When thinking of a story that would keep readers on the edge of their seat, the theme Secrets of a Kept Woman sprang forward like a pendulum and the drama of finding out why a woman’s best friend would taint a beautiful friendship by coveting her best friend’s husband was mind boggling. Intrigued with the idea of exploring this imaginary drama, I started writing Secretsof a Kept Woman in 2006.

The story developed from a scene of Rhonda Jackson telling her dearest friend that she will talk to her later only to crawl back into bed with her dear friend’s husband for round two of the best sex she has ever had. Whoa…yeah, you read that right.

The fact that she’s in love with her best friend’s husband doesn’t deter her, nor give her the slightest bit of humility. She’s determined to have what she wants. She’s determined to live her life to the fullest, and if that means having a piece ofwhat belongs to her friend, then so be it.

Having just written about two women that were staunch enemies engaging in a power struggle over a man in Keepin' It Tight, I thought what if they were best friends? That surely would make things more interesting and the devastation of the betrayal even more dynamic. I didn’t know where Rhonda Jackson’s character of the “kept woman” betraying her friend would take me on this whimsical writing journey, but her voice and mannerisms spoke for her.

She is a living and breathing character! Rhonda is a woman that has been betrayed all of her life, even by her own mother - the person that was supposed to love and protect her. Therefore, she finds it easy to throw away a life time of friendship for the love of a man.

When she was only 16 years old her mother chose a man over her throwing her out onto the street, so she can’t really figure out what’s the big deal. Sometimes life lets us down, right? Her best friend that took her off the street and gave her shelter in the storm should just get over the loss of her her husband, right? Things happen, right?

There is real truth behind Rhonda's betrayal and that is her very own pain and desparation.

Since the beginning of time, people have betrayed one another in friendships. Just as Cane slew Able, sisters and brothers to this day kill, hurt, and betray each other for less than a bag of chips. Jealousy, greed, and desperation are a few deadly sins that affect friendships – but nothing affects relationship more than how we are trained to treat people. Well, not necessarily trained as in attending aclass or workshop, but what we observe from our surroundings as we grow in one way or another comes out.

As the saying goes, trash in...trash out:roll:

Ever heard the saying, "you train people how to treat you?" Well, this is true to a certain extent. However, people really begin to learn the way they are going to interact with others from the moment they are born. If a baby is nurtured and loved to grow in a healthy environment, they will be more likely to have healthy relationships and friendships.

As the world taints us all with her many imperfections, it is up to individuals to decide how we are going to treat each other.

So…no more Secrets?  Let's make that no more Secrets after you’ve read Secrets of a Kept Woman.

Enjoy your summer reading!

When you hear the words, "there is no substitute for hard work," you better believe it because it is so true. Sometimes people think what you do is easy and wish and pray to be in your shoes, but if they could take a look through your lens to see the long hours, sacrifices, and hard work that you put in to see your dreams become reality they would know that it's not all roses. They would also be able to see that their dreams are at their fingertips - on the other end of hard work. 

Don't believe the hype. Reaching your dream will take Hard Work. There is no substitute.

~Shani

When realization comes

neither you or I

have the capacity

of hearing or understanding

there are no more

words to be spoken

so we weather the storm

until the river begins to calm

slow and steady

silence whispers

pearls of wisdom

in our ear

saying if the love

was ever so true

as the connection

between me and you

no simple storm will do

to break the life line

that was built for us two

the bond may get weak

but it will never break

the love may change

but even then

it remains the same

When realization comes

(c) Shani Greene-Dowdell, 2010 - Nayberry Publications

This week, Ebony Adams was a guest blogger at the Black Love is Beautiful Blogspot and these are her thoughts on being Stripped and Restored through God.

***

Iwas listening to Bishop Eddie Long one night and his sermon spoke to mein a way that touched me. In his sermon, he used the example of afather taking something away from his child, something that the childloved very much. However, the child only loved it so much because hewasn't aware of the fact that there was something even better than whathe had out there waiting for him in life. The child was unaware that hehad higher blessings waiting for him in the Kingdom of God. Therefore,the child cried, and became sad because he lost something that hethought was good.

In the eyes of the father, he had taken awaythe "toy" the child had, in order to give his son a shiny, new bike.Bishop Eddie Long used this example of the toy to illustrate how Godoften does us. We cry and pray and have the nerve to get very upsetover life's trials, and then when things are taken away from us,whether it be a man, woman, family member, material things, or a job,we feel as if God has taken something very valuable from us and we arehurt. In all honesty, it usually is something or someone that we haveput a lot of worth into and means a lot to us. It could be a personthat we think we can not live without. However, if we were to allowourselves to step out of the box for a minute and think along the linesthat ‘God has NEVER taken anything or anyone out of my life and notgiven them something even better’ we would be better off in the end.

Afterlosing someone from our lives, it is a very emotional time and we arestill emotionally attached to that person and feel that they are stillwith us in spirit. Your loved one may have seemed to have left you now,which is devastating, but if you allow him to God will change things inyou to prepare you for the changed man/woman you're praying about.Then, he will make that person an even better person than you everimagined them to be!

The same goes for jobs. I lost a job thatI truly thought was the best job ever and I thought I would keep thatjob for years. The job was in my field, it was nearby, it paid well,and I loved going to work everyday. But when God all of a sudden tookthat job from me, I was so hurt that I cried. My husband did his bestto encourage me, but I honestly didn't even want to work in my fieldanymore. It was GOD that stepped in and showed me that I had been onthat job for the time he intended me to be there, but it was time forme to get an even better job, and do even bigger things.

Thepoint I'm trying to stress here is that God will never take anythingaway from you without giving you something ten times better than whatyou had, so rejoice in trials, rejoice in tribulations, and justrejoice to be rejoicing. If you know like I know, then you know God hasa plan bigger than anything we could ever conceive.

Be blessed in the Lord family!

Ebony Adams is an inspirational blogger at Ebony’s Intricate Mind.She currently works in information technology and is an aspiringauthor. Visit her on the web at http://ebonysintricatemind.blogspot.com/

For more from the Black Love is Beautiful blogspot, go to www.blackloveisbeautiful.blogspot.com

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