The Girl Who Sings to Bees

a great day today. And I'm feeling good. Actually, I'm having a very very good day, and I'm very excited because what I have to share about is something that's very dear to me, something very new and different, and it has to do with a new book. And it's called The Girl who Sings to Bees and it happens

to be my first children's book. Guys, it's my fourth book, but it's my first children's book, and I wanted to talk about it because I think some people are like, uh, why maybe, But those that know me know that I'm very good with children. Kids always are very drawn to me. Maybe because I'm an older sister and a lot of people grew up watching me on our reality shows and me being like a second mother and stuff like that.

I don't know, but I am really good with the children, and this idea came to me like eight years ago, and it's something that God put in my heart. And I didn't feel ready then, I guess, and now I feel ready. I don't know if it has to do with my age or where I am in my life, but it just all happened, I feel at the very right time. So I am excited to share this with you guys, and share what it's about and why I wrote it. So, like I said, it is called The Girl who Sings to Bees, and I love bees. If

you didn't know that already, well now you know. But I love bees and I have boss by Nation, and I love the story of a bee, and you know, and I've talked about it plenty of times, and I just knew eight years ago, about eight years ago when I thought about this, Actually no, I'm lying, more like seven six years ago. I knew that I want it to be about bullying. It was either going to be about bullying my children's book, or it was going to be about Have you guys ever read that story The

Little Engine That Could? I read that book when I was a little girls, one of my favorite books, and you know, the little engine said, and the little train said, I can, I can, I can I'm going to do it. So I kind of had that idea of you know, I was struggling in my life and so many people thought I wouldn't make it, or I couldn't make it, or I shouldn't or whatever it is. And I had a lot of adversity. So that's kind of how it started. I'm like, Okay, I'm going to show myself that I can.

And I wanted to, you know, write a children's book so that children can know the power that they have within themselves. And with that also came the bullying, and I felt like with social media and stuff, that became more prominent to me where I'm like, okay, this is this is a real issue that we're living because I dealt with bullying my whole life when there was no social media, and then social media came, and then it was even more so, and I started noticing that it

wasn't just me. There are you know, internet trolls, mean people that just want to talk mess and I felt like, this is a real issue and it starts with our children. Something that I'm passionate about is something that I've experienced, something that I see other people experience, and we have to nip it in the bud. And that's why I decided to write this book because it starts in schools, it starts with the kids. It obviously starts at home.

Parents need to speak to their children about it, about not being mean or you know, bullying other children and stuff. In my mind, I'm like, if I were to write a book and go to the schools and read the book to the kids, then maybe I'll just plant a little seed. And that's where the passion came from. And I did think, I'm like, should I wait until I have kids to write a children's book? Is it going to make sense? And I'm like, you know what, I'm going to try it and if it happens, and it's

meant to be, and that's it. And it happened, you know. I pitched it to my book agent and she pitched it to publishers and they were happy and excited about it, and I said, okay, cool. It's crazy because it takes a while to get all this going, you know. So I've been working on this for about almost three years now and it's barely going to come out now in July. And I'm really excited because that's what it's about it's fiction but real at the same time, and let me

read it. I'm going to read a little like summary. I guess for you guys of what the book is going to be about. So it says Janee and her mom always sang together to help the flowers in a Wilita's garden grow, but now her mom is gone and Janey's song is stuck somewhere deep inside. Bullies at school don't help. Every day, Janey watches one particular beat in a Wilita's garden, working harder than the others, focused and unafraid.

The tiny bee doesn't give up. Janey begins to feel inspired by the hard working beat as the season's change, until one afternoon, media escapes her lips and Jane's song once again fills the air in the garden, and when the music begins, her mom's song sing through her heart, giving Janee the strength to overcome her fears and sing loudly and proudly to the bees and beyond. So you kind of get what the book is about. I was

very close to my grandma. She helped raise me, so I felt the need to include her because my grandma, as I was growing up, was very important to me. I always said like she was kind of like my first mom because my mom was so young and my grandma had to take care of me while mom went to school and worked. So I had a very close relationship with my grandma. And although my grandma didn't have

a garden, it was more like in the kitchen. But I wanted to kind of bring in the bees because I love bees and I love their story, and I wanted to kind of show how my boss bees inspire me to become my best self, even though there are mean people that come and try to distance and disturb your peace and bully you and say that you can't. But the bees inspired me and so which is why I put it in the book, because a bee inspired me.

And yes, my mom is in heaven, so I felt the need to, you know, talk about that and how although my mom hasn't been here physically for twelve years, she has definitely especially on stage. In the beginning of my career, I was so afraid. I was so scared. I didn't believe in myself, especially because there were so many people saying so many mean things about me. But then I would close my eyes and I'm like Mom, I know that I'm here, I'm meant to be here,

help me. And for so long, I felt like it wasn't even me on stage in the beginning of my career, it was my mom, like would move me. And I know that sounds so crazy, but I felt that, and I felt like the only way I'm going to get through this is with my mom's strength from heaven. We will have a Spanish version as well, so there's English and Spanish, and the illustrations are beautiful, guys, and I'm

really looking forward to this. I'm looking forward to you know, if you heard the first episode of this fourth season, you'll kind of know where I'm at. And if you haven't heard it, go listen to it. But I just feel like this is just the tone of what to

this year twenty twenty five feels like for me. And I'm not necessarily planning a tour for music right now or recording an album right now, but I feel like I'm going to fill that void in a way with going on tour to different schools and reading the book to kids, and when it comes out, the children will be out of school, but I'm hoping I can start that tour in September when they start school again August September.

But I'm really excited. I'm excited to go to these schools and speak to these kids and tell them everything that I went through and how I didn't even believe in myself, oh for so long, because yes, there were so many naysayers and toxic voices that I call them around, But I believed in myself, and there was that little voice that for a long time was my mom, but then it became my own voice. And that's what you

guys will be able to see in the book. And there's a lot of little hidden messages and little hidden gems in the book why I chose certain flowers, and I'll get deeper into that once the book is launched, but it all is there for a reason. You'll see pictures or the illustration has a picture of my grandma, and my grandma does have short hair, and my mom. But the thing that I didn't add was my mom's mole. You know, she had like that mole next to her eye,

and I didn't add it. You know, I did that purposely because I wanted to be my mom, But then I don't. But it is my story. And then it's not, you know, because I just I wanted to make it soft and for children. And actually someone asked me the other day, will this be the only children's book that I publish? And I don't think so. I have other ideas. I'd love to come out with a different children's book about Pancho. This is exclusive here, Okay, only the Cheese

and Chill podcast listeners will know about this. But Pancho is very dear to me, and Pancho my dog, by the way, and Pancho came into my life when I was very depressed and he came and I feel like saved my life and he is exactly what I needed in that time and now, and I think there's so much healing through through pets, and so I want to write a children's book about my punch Eito and hopefully to inspire other people. And it's going to be him.

He's going to be talking about what it is to be my son and what he feels when I feel sad and stuff like that, because he's there for me. So I think there's something here, guys. And definitely with the soft era that I've mentioned, Like I said in the first episode, I feel like this is the perfect project for me this year, and it's kind of like setting the tone for everything that I want, which is

hopefully becoming a mother this year as well. And I feel like it's all just falling into place and it's happening, in my opinion, at the perfect time, and I can't wait. I cannot wait for you guys to read it. And even like, when you guys see the cover of the book, you'll see that the little girl's wearing those little bolita's a little hair ties with the little balls. That's all I wore when I was little. My mom put tons

and tons of them in my hair. So there's little things that it is cheeky's, but it's not cheeky's and it's my story. So so you guys, once you read it, you'll see and maybe I can read just a little bit one page for you guys, because there was one when I was looking at it right now that stood out to me. There's also even pictures of my mom and I as well, like real pictures, and I'm sure you guys have seen on the internet if you guys

follow me on social media. I also wrote an author's note there, you know, a note to my readers, from the bottom of my heart. I'm going to read one little part for you guys. Like my mother, I will sing in this garden and like the flowers, maybe one day I can bloom too. And that's really what I felt, guys when I started singing. It's like, this is something that I want to do and I want to try. And I was very scared because people would compare me to my mom and say that I couldn't and all

this stuff. And I even felt at times that I couldn't. But there was something deeper, something bigger, that was telling me this is what I was meant to do. And I'm glad that I listened to that because I kept thinking. I was like, Okay, no, I'm not my mom. I don't want to be like my mom, but I want to take those things that inspired me to become who I meant to be from my mom, and yeah, maybe

one day I will bloom. And I feel like I have I can look back and say, wow, I made it through those rough times and if I could do it, so could you, you know. And that's what I really, really truly feel. I feel like everything that I've gone through in my life is so that I can share the knowledge and the things that I've learned and how I grew and you know, share those tools with you guys, with the people that listen to me, that read my books, that you know, listen to my music, that listen to

my podcast, you know all these things. I feel like this is my mission and I always talk about it here on a podcast because I really truly believe it. But it wasn't always easy, and that's what this book is all about. This book is definitely intended for kids, but it helped me heal the little girl inside of me,

you know, my inner child. And it's so crazy because last year when I went on this spiritual retreat and a twenty twenty four, I still hadn't gotten the yes from the publisher that we were going to do it. We were still in conversations and writing it and like the whole thing, and I remember, it's crazy. I remember when I was in my experience when I went to go, you know, do the shrooms, the mushrooms. I took the

medicine because it's medicine. Guys. I saw a little girl that looks like the little girl in this book, and I don't know, it's just so crazy, Like I definitely am healing my inner child and helping her heal through things that we went through, but also it's helping me heal as a woman. I don't know if that makes sense, but it's just it's just part of the divine plan. And this is where I'm like, God, you are so good.

You are showing up and showing off in my life because I couldn't even like plan this the way it happened. And even if I could, you know what I mean, Like, I couldn't like it. It's all just happening. And I feel like once I went to that experience and I hugged the little Janet because I literally did. When I was there, I cried and I hugged myself. If you guys haven't hugged yourself like, you should try it, Like you just literally put your hands around your shoulders and

just hug yourself and it feels so freaking good. And I learned that there at that retreat, and so many things have been flowing for me since then. So it's just it's I don't know, it's just it's a part of what I'm meant to do now and where I'm at in my life, and yes it is for children, but I know for sure adults can read it and feel inspired and feel like, you know what, I can

do it. I'll be okay, you know, because I know, unfortunately there are children out there that maybe have lost their mother or their father, or maybe their mother left them, or you know, like and this is where you can just hold on to someone one and know that you are loved and that you can surpass anything in everything. So the publisher wanted it to just be in the English version because books sell more in English. But to me it was very important because all of the rest

of my other books are both English and Spanish. We have versions in English and Spanish. I felt the need to definitely have it in Spanish. And it's doing very very well with pre order. So I'm so glad that we, you know, have the English and the Spanish version, because yeah, I mean, if I would buy both. You know, I'm bilingual and I want to read it to my child, to my baby in English and in Spanish, so I

fought for that. It was important for me to have it in Spanish as well, because my audience is bi lingual, and you know, a lot of them speak Spanish. So I don't know if I've ever told you guys here on the podcast. I'm sure I have because I talk about my boards and stuff. But back in two thousand and nine, I want to say, in nine, my mom was still alive. I was like really into vision boards and I put a picture of a book because I've always loved books. I love reading books. I just I

love the way they smell. I'm the type that definitely prefers physical books versus having it all like on the phone and stuff. Anyways, So when I had this idea or this desire to write a book way back when I never knew what it was going to be about, I just knew I wanted a book. I wanted to be an author. And then everything happened in my life and there were things that I needed to clear up. And that's how you know, my first memoir was born, and was because I needed to clear some things up

and talk about things and tell my truth. So that's why you know it was important to me, Yes, because I wanted to be an author to write about what was going on in my life and clear things up and then follow up with you know, Unstoppable. But before then, we had the Keto book, and you know, that's recipes

and stuff like that. But the second memoir was because again things were being said that were untrue and I was going through divorce and I said, you know what, like I need to quietly and in my way heal my heart and explain what I'm going through in a memoir. So that's why I did Unstoppable. But this is completely one hundred percent different. Because when people were asking me, you know, in interviews, what do you have, what's coming next,

I'm like, oh, I'm writing a book. They thought, oh, it's going to be another memoir and I was like, no, it's completely different from what I've already done, and it is completely different. And I just I don't know. I don't want to like explain myself anymore. I don't feel like I need to clear anything up. I don't even care what people think, Like, I don't know. I'm in such a different part of my life, and I don't

regret writing the books that I already wrote. That's what I had to do in that season of my life, and I'm happy I did, and I closed that book and that chapter, those chapters in my life. So this is just like a new bie beginning for me, where it's it's just a different era in every way, like I want to go back to before I started singing, and you know, really tap into my mission in this world, and this is part of it. These are things that I've had in my heart for a long time, and

I feel like I'm starting like this new life. It's crazy. I don't even know if I'm making sense right now, but I just it's definitely soft Girl era and this is the beginning, and this is the first step. This book is kind of like stepping into that fully, and it just feels really good. It feels so different. I'm excited to do, you know, the media tour and talk

about it and explain all these things. And I'm glad that we're starting here on the podcast first, because yeah, this is something very special, very very special for me. It's not going to be the last one for sure. So be excited, guys. Put intended be excited for this book if you have children or not. I think it's just a good book to have and to read. Again, it is intended for children, but I think adults will

enjoy it and resonate with it. And yeah, guys, I hope that you enjoyed this episode, Thank you for listening. And I just wanted to kind of, you know, talk about why you know, a little bit deeper than I did on my social media when I announced it. So thank you guys again for listening. And yeah, you can pre order it now anywhere. Really, So thank you guys so much. And I yeah, I will see you here or you will hear me on the next episode of Cheeky's and Chill Guys. Let's get on show. This is

a production of iHeartRadio and the Micudura podcast Network. Follow us on Instagram at Michael Dura Podcasts, then follow me Cheeky's, That's c chiqui S. For more podcasts from iHeart, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite podcast