Better late than never! The Triple 7 Writing Challenge

November 14, 2014November 14, 2014 / Robin T. / 5 Comments

When I heard about the 777 Writing Challenge, I thought “How hard can it be?” All I have to do is pick one of my MANY unfinished works in progress (WIP) and post 7 sentences from the 7th page appearing 7 lines down. My problem is that I am way too picky and every time I decided on a piece, I would find a reason not to post it. This has gone on for a few weeks now – so better late than never! Here goes…

Have you ever felt mistreated or victimized and no one came to your aid? It’s a terrible feeling of helplessness that can stay with you for years. The following is an excerpt from an essay called “The Token” that is written about the first time I experienced blatant racial prejudice as an adult. It seems so random to pluck a paragraph out of the middle of the piece, so here’s a little background. I was on my first job after graduating from college with a Masters of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree and a 3.8 GPA to boot. However shortly after being hired, when I was introduced to an older white co-worker, he instantly replied “I’m glad to see tokenism is alive and well here at the airline”. To him, there was no way that I could be qualified for the job when I was actually over qualified. Looking at my brown skin, I couldn’t be anything more than a token – just a show piece.

I was only about twenty-three years old at the time and I didn’t know what to do. If this were to happen to me today, my response would be VERY different. In fact, I almost wish that it would, but it won’t because people typically prey on the young or the weak. Over 20 years have passed since this incident and I’ve gotten over it, but it’s still an invisible scar that jogs my memory from time to time whenever I’m faced with an injustice. One day, I may post the whole piece, but it will probably end up a chapter in my memoir someday. Let me know what you think…

When I told my supervisor about the pseudo apology from the old fart, he was satisfied and pronounced the case dismissed like a judge on the Supreme Court. I was totally disgusted and far from satisfied. There was a restlessness on the inside of my stomach that could not be calmed down like the Hulk was in there trying to get loose. I had to do something, or I would explode so I marched down the hall to the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) office to file a complaint. The airline only had one Black vice president in the entire company and the EEO VP was it. Since he was Black too; I was confident that he would be my savior and my redeemer in this awful situation. Surely, he would understand how wrong I had been treated and I would be vindicated, right? Wrong. After recounting my verbal altercation with old fart in painstaking detail, the VP opened his script to the last page where my Supervisor left off and said, “I think it’s time for the healing process to begin.” Those words hit me like a ton of bricks. And, I knew then that I was out on a limb all by myself with no safety net and no one to come to my aid. To this day, over 20 years later, I hate to hear those words “Let the healing process begin” for any reason. I wanted to vomit all over his desk. Instead, I did what any self-respecting 20-something young lady would do who’s run out of options; I went into the ladies room and cried my eyes out.

So I guess I failed!! I posted more than 7 lines, but I couldn’t just stop cold. There is so much more to the story. Maybe one day I will share it with you – once it’s finished. 😉 Thank you Truly Tafakari for inspiring me to take this challenge. Better late than never!

If you have ever been in a situation and felt helpless, how did you deal with it? Does it still bother you?

P.I.N.K. With Purpose (Part 2)

October 22, 2014October 22, 2014 / Robin T. / 2 Comments

by Robin Turner

P – Perform breast self-examinations monthly
I – Inform your doctor of any breast changes immediately
N – Never miss a mammogram after age 40
K – Know your family medical history

Since October 1^st, everywhere you go and everywhere you look everything has been “pinked” – from soup cans and bottled water to jewelry, accessories and even candy. This happens every year during October, Breast Cancer Awareness month. For the most part, this is a good thing because it increases awareness and honors survivors and many who have lost their lives to breast cancer. However, at the same time, many of the companies that pink themselves are donating very little (if anything at all) to actually raising money for breast cancer research, prevention or educations programs.

Take the NFL for example. Turn on any game in October and the players, coaches, officials, cheerleaders and fans are all wearing anything pink – from ribbons and cleats, to towels and warm ups. They raise millions of dollars from their NFL Breast Cancer Awareness merchandise, but less than 10% of the funds raised actually go to breast cancer research according to BusinessInsider.com. And, approximately 50% of those funds go directly to the “retailers”. The retailers in many cases are the NFL themselves through their official online site, and team or stadium stores. In essence, the NFL and other companies like it are making millions of dollars in the name of supporting breast cancer, but pocketing the majority of those funds to add to their $10 billion in annual revenues. And from what I can tell, there is very little messaging, if any, promoting breast cancer prevention or early detection. This is not right!

On the other hand, I was pleased to see Belk’s television commercials not just promoting pink apparel, but also promoting that women get their mammograms, which is one method believed to increase early detection and increase more effective treatment of breast cancer. Belk also supports mobile mammography efforts in some local communities. They “Pink with Purpose”.

Generally, there is nothing wrong with buying and wearing pink merchandise in honor of breast cancer survivors and those who have lost their lives to breast cancer. I do it myself. But, companies that profit from the pain of breast cancer should do more than merely add a pink ribbon to their logo or sell pink merchandise for thirty-one days in October to increase their bottom line.

If we as individuals want to truly support finding a cure for breast cancer that affects nearly 1 – 8 women, then forgo purchasing pink products that may or may not support cancer research and make a donation directly to the American Cancer Society, local cancer research hospitals supporting your community, or organizations that you know truly support the fight!

P.I.N.K. With Purpose

October 12, 2014October 12, 2014 / Robin T. / 1 Comment

Breast Cancer Awareness by Robin Turner

Teal is the color for Ovarian Cancer Awareness. I am impressed with how teal is not merely a color for ribbons, t-shirts and accessories but has a greater meaning. T.E.A.L. is used to help women remember the potential warning signs of Ovarian Cancer, which are:

T= Too Frequent Urination
E = Eating & Feeling Full Quickly
A = Abdomen Bloating and/or Pain
L = Loss of Appetite or Lack of Energy

With Breast Cancer Awareness month upon us, anything and everything that can be “pinked” is pink for the month of October or what I have seen referred to as “Pinktober”. As a breast cancer survivor, I wear pink to remind myself how blessed I am to have found out extremely early my diagnosis during an annual mammogram, and also in support of other survivors, those continuing in their fight, and those who have lost their lives because of breast cancer. And like ovarian cancer’s T.E.A.L, I want pink to be more than just a cute color to wear in October.

Truth be told, there is nothing cute about breast cancer (or any type of cancer). It’s actually the opposite of pink. It’s not cute, pretty or proper. I thought – why not give P.I.N.K. a real purpose? P.I.N.K should help women be proactive in the fight against breast cancer. So the next time, you put on that pink ribbon, bracelet or t-shirt…tell someone what P.I.N.K. really stands for. P.I.N.K. with Purpose!

15 SYMPTOMS OF CANCER THAT MEN AND WOMEN SHOULD NOT IGNORE

By Robin Turner

With ovarian cancer awareness month coming to a close and breast cancer awareness coming soon, this is the season of a host of races, runs and walks to find a cure for various forms of cancer. I have been wearing the color teal all month in support of a dear friend who is fighting ovarian cancer. I, myself, am a one-year breast cancer survivor and I am compelled to help others either avoid cancer altogether or know the warning signs so that it can be detected early enough to be effectively treated.

In my research on cancer prevention, I found two separate articles on WebMD.com outlining the symptoms that men and women should not ignore. I thought it would be helpful to have the warning signs for both men and women available in one place to make it easy to remember, so I took it upon myself to make the following chart. Many of the warning signs listed below are very common and alone should not cause alarm, but when symptoms persists and do not get better over time, they should not be ignored. Seek medical advice immediately.

I am not a medical professional. The information posted below is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all the possible warning signs. It is meant to help increase your knowledge and help you to be proactive in detecting cancer early. The first steps in fighting cancer are knowing your family history, knowing the warning signs and then not ignoring them. When found early, cancer is more treatable. Take a look at the list below and talk to your doctor about anything that may be concerning you.

15 Symptoms of Cancer