Confessions of a Single Parent (Actress)

My daughter, Maya, is in her last year of high school. She has completed all of her college applications and so far has received acceptance letters for 4. As happy and proud as I am each time she receives a YES, I am reminded at how often she received a NO. And I often wonder if I was a parent who believed the system and the tests, and lowered my expectations for her, where would she be?  What would be her trajectory if NO had taken control? When Maya was 2 years old she was diagnosed with a severe receptive and expressive disorder, and speech therapy was prescribed, twice a week. At the time of her birth, I was on public assistance which meant Maya was placed under a medical microscope. A team of specialists entered my home and determined that she needed speech, but that there may be more issues down the line in regard to attention deficit or more. I decided to let the speech therapy happen but we continued to keep her at home instead of daycare, and that was the best decision f...

While getting my hair cut the other day, I overheard a conversation. A guy believed his current girlfriend was cheating on him. Despite the fact that he doesn’t like labels anyway. And he is usually the side piece for a few women. He turned over a new leaf. He is now faithful and open about his emotions. But he is also mad that she doesn’t recognize that and appreciate all that he does for her. But he just wants her to be honest. Then it ended with him mentioning karma for all that he has done in the past. And he is mad about all of this. But, who is he really mad at? Relationships, whether friendships, friends with benefits or actual serious partnerships, can be difficult. Mostly because we get mad about not making a decision. When you are faced with strife in a relationship often we let anger simmer because we never state to our partner or ourselves the truth about our actual feelings. If something is stressful outside of said relationship, that can result in horizontal anger. Mean...

This question along with, When you get your big break, make my ass hurt. It truly makes me want to slap the taste out of someone’s mouth. But more than that it’s disrespectful and rimmed with a level of ignorance. There are many levels to working in this business. You can be famous. You can have a list of  co-star one liners or a string of regional Theatre credits. You can be on Broadway. You can be a commercial principle or background. You can be a stand in for a series. And the star of your own YouTube channel or web series. All of these make you a working, hustling artist. So the next time someone tries to shoot you down because they simply do not get it or even worse they are jealous because they haven’t pursued their own dreams. Or even worse, they stopped believing in them altogether. Simply say, yes, I am a working actor who is grateful for all of my wins and opportunities. And most of all I am grateful that I will never give up.  And then turn on your heel and let th...