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Welcome, Welcome, Welcome to Malik's Bookshelf, bringing a world together with books, culture and community. Hi, my name is Malik, your host of Malak's Bookshelf. This has been an emotional time for me, given the fact that I'm dealing with the death of someone near and there, my mother, which I love deeply. I've done several podcasts mentioning this. This is probably another podcast, Not probably, but yes, I'm going to be touching on some of the things my experiences
that I'm going through. I'm just making it a little bit more personal because what I've been experienced is very personal and deep. And one of the things that I realized that a lot of people would say during this whole experience was my mom is in a better place, meaning death is a better place than life, Like my mom was in some pain. You know, we've been dealing
with this cancert for over a year. She fought the good fight, and she was a tough cookie, and she said when I interviewed her, but nevertheless, this was terminal and eventually led to her last breath. And but one of the things that a lot of people in there consulting would say to me, she's in a better place. She's in a better place. And I'm trying to internalize what that really mean and what they really saying that death is a better place what than life? To be honest,
that just don't sit well with me. And I get what they're saying, and I get the consoling and the affection and the love, But saying death is a better plan, how is that? How is that relieves me of what I'm feeling? And how does that bring understanding to what I'm feeling? Death is a better place than life, you know? And I'm saying, why do we say things like that? And for what purpose? I'd rather hear something like she lived a great life. She was a great person, she
was a lovely mom, she was a great individual. She can cook real good boy. I tell you, she's truly gonna be missed. Why not things like that? Why do we make death like it's a place? We know life is a place because we're here and you listen to me and you're alive. But death is a better place When nobody never died. The only place I know about death is a person that's buried in the ground, in that body, and as far as the energy and the essence of them, that's departed. Okay, But how is that
being separate from your body life? And if that's the case, then how is it that you're able to have the same experiences you don't have no body? Isn't that the purpose of having a body? How is death a better place? There's a whole lot of everything in this world, in this universe, but the ain't a whole lot of life. You know, life is the most precious gift given to.
You and I.
In animals and insects and birds and fish. Life, it's sacred.
Life is.
A blessing.
You didn't create yourself.
You didn't say, oh, here's the sperm, or go fertilize that. You didn't say that. You ain't tell that sperm what to do. That sperm knew exactly what to do. You know why, because intelligence already put in it. And then it multiplied and it grew a heart, and it grew a brain, and it grew organs, and it grew eyes, and it grew everything on his own. And you ain't instructed to do none of that.
It created, you know what I'm.
Saying, It created it itself in a sense, right, A magnificent being comes forth, a magnificent life comes forth, and while you're alive, people fight like hell to keep that life. You know, people give up their whole wealth. People will go and sell their homes and go bankrupt to save their life. You know, people will go to war in order to preserve their life, their legacy, their country. The acts that we do to keep our lives.
And then you.
Say death is a better place, Well, if death is a better place than life, why everybody just ain't committing suicide dying if death is a better place, No, because I think you know that life is a better place. I think you know that this is the greatest gift. I think you know that this is a blessing to have, and then you should hold on to this life as
long as you have and to your last breath. To sit there and say death is a better place, it's a fullish statement because it cannot be, and no one can prove death is a better place, because the ain't nobody died to come back and tell you otherwise. So to say that that ain't comforting. That is not comforting. Death is a better place. No, life is a better place life. Death is just a process that all things have a turn. So eventually all things with her, all
things age, all things pass away. But what did we learn? And it is neither created nor destroyed. It just changes form. And that's why I have my remarks, my reflection at the funeral. I'm going to air on this particular podcast episode my words that I spoke as a reflection of my mom as when we gave the funeral July eighth, and I'm going to feature my words and what I
said on this episode. But this whole things about you know, words matter and words are important, and I don't think that we have analyzed some of the things that we say sometimes and I don't know how that started. Death is a better place. People say, oh, heaven, and then you got you know hell, right, So people associate death in life, you know, they asserch that living. You know, when you die, either you going to heaven or you going to hell. Some people when they die they're going
to heaven. Right, Okay, where is it at? A People have been up in space, people been in the airplane. I mean, tell me where's that because it sounds like it's a place. Okay, so you say heaven on earth, right, okay, Heaven, right, I'm going to heaven. Right, I'm drinking milk and honey is filled with a road of gold. Okay, aren't those physical things? Aren't those things that we see in physical life? Okay? So let's say you your spirit and that you departed your body.
Okay, you got.
Eyeballs, you got a mouth, you can speak, you have a stomach that you're gonna eat. So okay, what's the form of a spirit, and just tell me how it can move, how he can speak, how he can talk, how he can think, because all of those things associated with having a physical body. So if you physically did and you just a spirit, well then tell me how spiritually you do all the things that you do physically. Okay,
it makes no sense. And that's why I know. That's why the life we have don't have the kind of respect that this shit have. That's why people get out here and kill people, sensely thinking that they going to a better place. Oh well they're going to have and so oh well they're going to oh they're going to hell, and you're torture. Okay, how you torture you ain't got a body? How you feel pain? And you ain't got no nerve and you're in hell?
Right?
How do you feel agney? And you don't even have pain receptacles?
All right?
And no nerves?
Okay? Anyone ever think about this? I mean, you describe heaven. You know, you have a person and you torture them physically, They feel agney, they feel pain, they hardship, they fell, all these things right, you know, in terms of how we describe as hell. Right, you got to have a body to experience all the things that you say you supposed to experience in hell or in heaven. This makes no sense and we need to know today. And that's
what science is all about. It's a whole lot of fairy tales being told just to make you feel good and feel a certain way and to believe a certain thing, instead of you putting your energy and your life on the line to make heaven on earth, to make life better for you, to come out of the hell of a condition that you in. You ain't got no money,
you're broke, you're suffering, you're in agony. You got all kinds of diseases, You got all kinds of problems in your community, and you don't even associate that with hell on earth. You know what I'm saying, It's time to build heaven on earth. When you have all your needs and your desires and everything you need, and you live in a life of right business, and you're walking around with your fellow man and you're embracing each other with love and your kindness and giving and so for isn't
that heaven. That's heaven on earth. So heaven is on earth. You're either in heaven or you in hell on earth. But certainly when you physically die, that ain't a better place because ain't nobody cutting their wrists, jumping off the Eyefra Tower in Paris or any other tall building in the world and killing themselves, or just stabbing and shooting themselves.
Ain't nobody committing a whole lot of suiter like that on an epic, even a pope one time, take me to the doctor, got shit because he want to hold onto his life. You want to hold onto that breath.
Health is wealth.
Let me say it again, health is well. So this statement about death is a better place, I'm not buying it. I think we should stop saying it. I don't think that is appropriate. I know you're trying to say it in a very comforting way, but I don't buy it. And I'm not gonna sit here and try to talk to age and everybody to come and say that word. You know what I'm saying. I'm just saying in my mind and my heart and on this podcast today, these are my thoughts. This is my opinion, this is how
I see it. You know, I don't think you should say it death is a better place. Say something more appropriate. That person lived a wonderful life, That person lived that gave you know so much and with such a beautiful soul. Say things like that. But certainly stop saying death is a better place, because.
You're lying to yourself. Life is the better place. Life.
So hold on to your life, hold on to every breath you got, hold on to everything that is sacred, because you know what you ain't God, but dislike because ain't nobody died. Come on, it's coming on back physically, right, So hold on. You're unique, You're one of a kind.
No one's like you, and.
You need to cherish the life you have because it's a blessing.
No one.
You know what I'm saying. No one's like you, no one's ever going to be like you. And this right here is a gift, and it's a gift from God. And you have the breath of life, so hold on
to that breath. So that's my thoughts on this. Stay tuned for the rest of this podcast, especially my reflection of my mother, and my brother Darren's reflection, and my sister Ladonia's reflection, as well as an interview that I did recently at Maleague Books during a book signing with doctor Robin Brown, who wrote a book or Joker to King, a Comprehends of God to Manhood is basically get a transitional book from being a teen to an adult. So hey,
stay tuned for that interview. It's an excellent book.
And today I got the call that she passed away. While I was crying in morning, I wrote a letter and I want to share that with you. It's a farewell letter to my mom, Curly Hunter. Sweet Mom, as you begin your journey home to God, remember these words.
I love and adore you.
Thank you for being a lovely mom. Thank you for being a carry mom. Thank you for being a great mom. Thank you for being an extraordinary mom. Thank you for being a magnificent mom. Thank you for being an amazing mom. Thank you for being a compassionate mom.
Thank you for being a radiant light. Mom. Thank you for providing nourishment.
Mom.
Thank you for providing a home. Mom. Thank you for giving me life. Mom.
Thank you for all your prayers. Mamy, y'all know she prayed. Thank you for all the great memories.
Mom. Thank you for your wisdom. Mom. Thank you for your courage. Mom. Thank you for your inspiration. Mom. Thank you for your guidance. Mom. Thank you for your trust. Mom.
Thank you for being a sacred woman. Thank you for being a Godian angel.
Mom. Thank you for teaching me about God. Mom.
Thank you for giving me your very best. Thank you for teaching me to walk. Thank you for teaching me to speak. Thank you for teaching me to read.
Mom. Thank you for believing in me. Mom. Thank you for everything. Mom. Thank you for loving me.
Mom, resting power as you join the great ancestors. So I wrote that at a very private moment, sovereign, with tears in morning the loss.
But I want to show you the power of God right now.
I want every every child, her children her grandchildren, her great children.
To stand up and.
Come over here for this private moment with us. Stand up and come to the stage. I wanna show you the power of God. Come on, I wanna show you her legacy. I wanna show you that there is no death. There is no death. The energy is e is neither destroyed or created. Right you all learned that in school, right, Well, this is Mama transform right now. She is in all of us, and I want you to see she lives. She lives in all of us because we wouldn't be here without her giving birth.
This is how energy is transformed. This is light. This is light. We're here because of Mama.
Not only does she physically give birth to meet Londonia and Daris, which in return created more life.
You see that. That's the power of God.
That's why she's still here right now, because she's here with us. So get prayed. And I want to say this. She touched some of you out in that audience. Yeah, with more than just physical She transformed all of us. She gave us a spirit, she gave us a teaching, she gave us God's blessing. She touched us in many ways. And if she touched you out there in the audience, I need you to stand up. Man, if she touched you and that I need you to stand up, and
I need you to pray that she lives. She lives in all of us because she touched all of us.
She is all of us.
And when you get sad, I want you to hug yourself and say that she's raped us. Kiss yourself. Know that she's president in all of us. That's the power of God. And we here to celebrate my mom. Here to celebrate, not morn, because we're here because of her.
So we celebrated.
So when you think about Carolyn Sweet Hunter, know that she lives. She lives in every one of you and all of us. She's a woman of God. But this is the power of God because he gave us this blessing to live on.
And we here, and we will remember. There is no death.
It's how we perceive it, because if she's gone, we wouldn't be here.
God gave us this blessing. Let's cherish it.
We live for each other, so let's love each other, let's remember each other, because this is a blessing. Just yesterday a friend of mine, he called me and said, I'm in the kitchen making potato salad, and I said, well, you know, t potato salad can make or break a cookout, you know. And he said, I'm in here making that potato so that you made. And I said, wow. Here my mama passed away, but I hadne passed on her recipe, threw me through it somebody else and they was cooking
that potato salad. Then my mama taught me and Leadonia and Darius, she taught us another plate uh egg parma jion, one of her delicious egg parma zans.
Boy, I tell you you see, this is how we pass on. These are the things that we we pass on to one another.
And my my niece talked about her being a powerful, strong entrepreneur.
Now I'm here to say, mother.
Crusader Praise Scott passed that spirit onto my mother.
Y'all witnessed it. My mother passed out on to me.
She would always talk about how I always want to win and how strong I my personality.
Well, I say, Mama, I got it from you.
You got it from Crusader Praise Scott. You say, we pass on the energy to each other's you know, That's how it worked.
And so.
I know that this reflection is nothing but an extension of my mother. And I like to remember my mom as a strong black woman, a independent black woman, an entrepreneur, someone.
Who loved God.
And in my final saying, this is what my mom used to always say, she said nothing it's.
Too hard or powerful for God to God be the col.
Thank you, thank you, thank you?
Is that I just wanna say.
My mama says, made the Lord watch between me and thee.
Why are we asking reprom another in Jesus name, Amen, she said, said all the time, all the time.
Thank the Lord, Donna Darius, I'm gonna be quick. I'm gonna be quick. Seeing what my mother went through.
I named the poem after her, and it's called Mama, You're a one tough cookie. Mama, going through your illness was tough and cut me like a knife.
But your no quick attitude gave me life.
Even when the doctor said your cancer was moving quickly and was very rare, my tough cookie fought to fight and didn't care. My tough cookie said them doctors can have all them degrees on the office wall, but my Lord and Savior, it makes the final call. I saw my tough cookie go days without eating, and it didn't make any sense. But prayer and strength and I'm sorry, but prayer and worship was your food.
They gave you strength.
But no stretch of the imagination has this cancer been kind. But my God's all fit that you kept a sound mind. Growing up was tough. Growing up, my tough Cookie taught me son, never be no one's fool. But I'm blessed to have you in my life for fifty two years because I had friends that lost their mom when they was at elementary school. That cancer took a bite out of my tough Cookie and left some crumbs. But now you're setting next to our father, and now cancer you look dumb.
All right.
One thing I've learned to be a tough Cookie, you have to have a fighting spirit. Can't be no rookie. My tough Cookie ran the race down to the very last mile. And for that, your baby boy, family and National Church of God gonna send you out in style. God called my tough Cookie home on June twenty fifth, And this is a celebration and an amazing gift. For those feelings sad and think this is a pity party, don't be because we're gonna celebrate tough cookie life for the whole world to see.
Right.
So, right now, I ask everyone to stand to their feet and give sister Carolyn a standing ovation.
Welcome, Welcome to the nice shall bring the world again with the hooks.
Coast Premier. Were greatly appreciate.
You coming to the New Books in the West World coach and sharing your time doing a book sign. But more important my autients that new books. You know something about your.
Book, which is called your School to King. Hello, this is doctor Robert Brown. Now tell us a little bit about your boutround.
Well, I'm a college professor. I've been in education all my life. I'm also a certified men's development coach. I work with men in order to bring health, happiness, and homeleness.
To their lives. I'm also a lot of people don't know this, and y'all first to know this.
I'm actually going back to school to get my license as a therapist.
Okay, okay.
My job is to help black being here here.
That's exactly right. Yeah, and that's where this book comes from.
About seven years ago, the first edition of this book was published. It became the most downloaded self help book on Amazon the week that it came out and he's level grand prize winning Southern California Book festivals. Okay, back in twenty sixteen years and the reason is because it's the first book of its kind. The idea is to teach young adults what healthy adulthood looks like from a
teacher's standpoint. I was challenged by my brother, you know, since I wrote curriculum for math, I wrote curriculum for English. He asked, is it possible to write curriculum to teach people how to be a man? And step by step with homework, assignments and everything. That's where this book came made it. The subtitle is your comprehension got.
To mad comprehensive.
So you're dealing with the transitional part from team to adult.
That's that's it right there. That's it right there, because a lot of adults they haven't learned, they don't even know what they don't know, they don't know what to ask.
There's chapters in here on how to cook, how to travel, to forget your parents, how to be anti sexist, the relationships between men and NaNs, and you know, how to build a strong work ethic. You want to learn how to overcome procrastation, as a chapter in the book aside everything from how to how to master small talk, to how to travel, all all that is.
In this book. You was doing the book.
Side and one of the things out the people how to do say was about financial readership.
Yes, yes, tell us about that aspect, Yes, yes, yes. So the whole book is structured like the Decca cars. Right, So the car Deca cards.
Has spades, diamonds, and clubs, hearts. All the diamonds are all the lessons that.
You got to learn about fundings.
All the hearts are the lessons you have to learn about relationships me.
All the spades are the lessons you have to learn about your own mental emotional health.
And all the clubs are the lessons I have to do with your way in the world, and cook.
How to travel and a nice suit.
Right.
So that's the key difference between boy and man. The man knows how to manage those.
Four pillars of adult finances, relationships, mental health, and your way in the world.
You can manage those four things. You're a healthy adult.
You're a healthy So really like the strategy you simplify, You simplify.
That's what I do. I'm gonna teach you.
You know, my job is to teach always yeah, yeah.
Because because because you know, I always say this, everyone is locked. Who has the master grip to unlock? Right?
And that's how you put the words into a way it becomes a key. Because what you're trying to do with the fifty two debt is you're trying to unlocked.
A lot of people who are locked up.
In themselves and not understanding certain things that have manhood or how to be a man. These things are oftentimes are not addressed at home, and all of us bounce off the walls in the world in order to find out what we like and who we are, right, because we don't have those kind of conversations.
A lot of times. That's right there.
A lot of us have people growing up who walk us through the contracts.
Who walk us through the wisdom. These days that doesn't exist that much anymore. We need people like you and I to keep putting these pieces.
Of wisdom out there world to these young coachs that they know why growth how to be helped.
Well.
I think this book is an actually important it's a key to locking you to give you man hood. You too about being a man, you know, and that's important because it's a lot of men out here, brother, this women take care.
You know, they consider themselves players and their predators of women. You know, that's exactly right.
You cannot be a man of integrity if you do walk, think and act all the language. You know, what I say about myself and what I think about myself has to be lined up with how a moving world read. If I think I'm a man of integrity, but then I act a certain way of the women that is not protecting, providing, and I'm not.
Absolutely attack the.
Manage that said, that's why it's the first chapter that's characters as of space.
The space absolutely exactly.
I love it, my brother, I think this book is a great bread. I'm gonna read it myself. I just you know, I have some key, I have some teams. I also got some adult they might have been a fit off of this. They including myself, because I'm always open to reading books that are self help that I'm early.
On my Polie's bookshelf.
Are books that are nonfiction books that provide information.
You know, I don't read a whole lot of fiction and these days, and I'm gonna tell you one last thing. I'm gonna say. What we're doing here is we're starting to movement. It's not just a book, it's a movement.
There's a podcast, YouTube channel, Instagram, there's the book.
We have classes. In fact, we even have a free You don't have to pay for anything. Men's group, the Joker King Men's Group. All you gotta do is go to Joking the King dot com. Everything's right there. Well, if you're in the King, you're a joker. You heard it, King, I love it? Well, Hey, I enjoyed. Thanks for sharing you know the information about this timey book. Yes, yes, and no. Once again, Joking the King.
Your complidence is God to Manhood by doctor Robert Brown.
We gotta have it at Malik Books.
We're gonna put it on our web book website Milie books dot com.
Continue to do what you do because the more we have out here trying to deal with the trauma and the problems that we have. See, this is a solution.
This is not you know, we got problems, but are you willing to come up with a solution.
Stuff.
You can buy a solution our milieue Books. It's about solutions using book. Your book active is just like me.
You got a book to activate and make change and then I appreciate it.
Hey, how thank you? How people can find you, my brother? You know you can go to Joker too, King dot com.
Everything starts there, Joker to King dot com, bingo.
There.
You have to thank you, my brother.
Thanks for listening to Malak's Bookshelf, where topics on the shelf are books, culture, and community.
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