Feel Free Friday! 

​Good morning ♡

For this last Feel Free Friday for the month of September 2016, I wanted to share with you an experience that brought on a great sense of peace & upliftment. If you know anything about me, then you know I love to read. my daughter has the same love for books & so I decided to take her to a bookstore I’ve known of but hadn’t visited before: A Different Booklist. What I thought would be a regular trip to get some new books for my little one’s collection, turned into a Spiritually connected visit that both my baby girl & I will never forget.

After driving for nearly and hour in bumper to bumper traffic, we finally arrived at our destination. I had heard so many good things about A Different Booklist, a local Black owned bookstore that carries a variety of titles by Black authors, but I  hadn’t had the chance to visit until last week. Walking into the store, it was quaint & quiet, but the positive vibration was palpable. Itah Sadu, the owner, greeted us warmly & immediately took to my daughter as we looked at books together. With such pure joy, she & my mini-me chatted about children’s stories & shared jokes & laughter. After choosing my daughter’s books, they sat together sharing imaginative stories & laughed at the funny day to day things that kids chat about with adults 🙂 I chose my books & got to speaking with Ms. Itah myself. I commented on her way with children & thanked her for welcoming us so warmly & with such familiarity as though we have known each other for many years, as this was our first meeting. The comfort here made my daughter & I feel at ease & so at Peace. I didn’t feel rushed nor did I really want to leave anytime soon. Ms. Itah expressed much gratitude, as she spoke about the importance of having a safe space for all people to come & see what our African-Caribbean-Canadian- & Worldwide culture is all about. As much as it is a Black- owned store with predominantly Black-authored materials, everyone from all walks of life & cultures are welcome. What touched me deeply was her free spirit. Ms. Itah spoke about playing with her granddaughter right there in the store earlier before we came & she lit up so brightly talking about playing with her & how the importance of cultivating & encouraging the freeness of childhood its  importance in their growth. Her inner child energy was evident & so refreshing. It reminded me of the importance of remembering how to be carefree sometimes is the best thing one can do to shed the stresses of life & just soak up the Love & energy that children bring out of us. 

Ms. Itah signed my daughter’s favorite book of which she is the author (Please, Clean Up Your Room!) & took pictures with us. We even recorded a video as part of raising awareness for the store as they prepare to change locations for more space. This store & beautiful owner & staff, are definitely a diamond in the rough, bring Peace & Love to all who enter their doors. I encourage you to visit & take a journey into a place where the outside world goes on pause as you dive into a world of imagination & Peaceful freedom. With that, as part of the campaign to raise awareness for the store, I say, “I am a Different Booklist Cultural Center.”  Please visit! I know will be back there very soon♡ Love yourself & be yourself. Peace & Love ♡☆

“We nurture our creativity when we release our inner child. Let it run and roam free. It will take you on a brighter journey.”-Serina Hartwell