{"id":2229,"date":"2022-12-19T12:31:19","date_gmt":"2022-12-19T17:31:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/2022\/12\/19\/the-mailman\/"},"modified":"2022-12-19T12:31:19","modified_gmt":"2022-12-19T17:31:19","slug":"the-mailman","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/2022\/12\/19\/the-mailman\/","title":{"rendered":"The mailman."},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/92a1c33c-9cbd-48b7-8884-8d0f80c77837-1-1.png?resize=576%2C1024&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"wp-image-2227\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/92a1c33c-9cbd-48b7-8884-8d0f80c77837-1-1.png?resize=576%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 576w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/92a1c33c-9cbd-48b7-8884-8d0f80c77837-1-1.png?resize=169%2C300&amp;ssl=1 169w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/92a1c33c-9cbd-48b7-8884-8d0f80c77837-1-1.png?resize=768%2C1365&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/92a1c33c-9cbd-48b7-8884-8d0f80c77837-1-1.png?resize=864%2C1536&amp;ssl=1 864w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/92a1c33c-9cbd-48b7-8884-8d0f80c77837-1-1.png?w=1080&amp;ssl=1 1080w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>We were about 1.5 hours away from our destination and no matter how my brain told me to keep on moving, my body said \u201cyou better go use the restroom and then get back on the road.\u201d What\u2019s a girl to do when you want to make good on your time but your \u201cwater pill is kicking in?!!\u201d You guessed it right, I listened to my body and stopped at the nearest gas station. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>William had to use the restroom as well, so into the Shell gas station we went. When I came out of the restroom I looked around for William. He hadn\u2019t gone far but I couldn\u2019t help but notice a few eyes glaring in my direction. I felt kind of weird so I told William to hurry up so we could leave. William being William asked if he could get something to drink. I reminded him of the drinks we had in the trunk. And then out the door we went.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I hadn\u2019t noticed the man who walked out behind us, but by what happened next, I could tell he heard me tell my son no to the drink out of the gas station. The gentleman with pearly white teeth, a mustache that reminded me of my father, and a low fro like James Evans from Good Times approached me from behind. He asked me if I would mind if he brought William a drink. I thanked him but declined the offer, telling the man that we had something to drink in the car. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The man insisted on buying William a drink. He smiled and said, \u201cplease let me buy little man a drink.\u201d \u201cCome on it\u2019s the Holidays.\u201d So I wouldn\u2019t seem like a Scrooge or possibly blocking their blessing, I agreed. I turned to walk back into the store so William could pick out his drink but the man pulled out his wallet. He reached for a 5 dollar bill but looked up at William, smiled, and handed me a 20 dollar bill. Obviously I had a puzzled look on my face, and said \u201cno sir, I can\u2019t take this.\u201d He replied, \u201cIt\u2019s the holidays, Merry Christmas.\u201d As he but his billfold back in his back pocket he said \u201ctell your son it\u2019s from the mailman!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Before I had a chance to give him a hand shake, hug, or anything he was gone. No signs or trace of him. I didn\u2019t see which way he went and the cars that were at the gas pumps nearby were all still there. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now there was a FedEx truck parked at the farthest pump but a different guy got out. <em>Nevertheless, I wanted this mysterious man to know that he made my day. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To honor his good deed we went back inside to let William pick out his drink. The cashiers (two young men) and three customers looked at William and I and after William picked out a sprite we went to the counter. One of the cashiers said, \u201cthat was a nice man, wasn\u2019t it?!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He went on to say that the man who gave William the 20 dollars saw William in the aisle looking around. He inquired with the other customers if the little boy was okay. They told him his mother (me) was in the restroom. <em>Now I understand why all eyes were on me when I got out of the restroom. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019ve spoken before about angels on earth, being kind, loving, and caring people. But for todays message I want to focus on when God places something or someone on your heart. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I don\u2019t know what that man was thinking when he looked at William. All I know is he had a bright smile as he asked to buy him something to drink. Have you ever felt a nudge to do something for someone else who wasn\u2019t asking or expecting anything? Have you ever thought about someone but hesitated to call, visit, or text them and kept putting it off. And by the time you got around to it, you saw them in their caskets?! <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>My brothers and sisters with a heavy heart I write todays message reflecting and reminiscing on the life of the late Robert Moore aka Joker who tragically lost his life on last night. Although I had known of Joker since middle school, his brother was good friends with my brother, and he was one of Rico\u2019s best friends; I had known him to be outgoing, caring, kind, funny, hard working, and the \u201cwild one\u201d of the bunch. He was so full of energy and life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As we all grew up, we chose different paths and some paths led ultimately to their demise, just being transparent, their death. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Scripture reminds us in the book of Mark, chapter 13, verses 32 &amp; 33, \u201cBut about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in Heaven, nor the Don, but only the Father! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Like Ecclesiastes 3:1: There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens: a time to be born and a time to die\u2026..<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And then you can read what the Bible says about our appointed time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>No one wants to have these conversations but we have to accept it\u2019s apart of life. And as we live our lives, we have to make sure we are not wasting it. We have to make sure to check in with our family, friends, and even those persons we may not care for. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s too many of our friends and family dying due to drugs, guns, hate, even death by Suicide. We have to stop going on social media posting \u201cRIP, SIP, get your rest bruh, or you will missed but never forgotten\u201d, yet we don\u2019t check the time to check people or even say hello. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019ll admit sometimes I\u2019m the last person to pick up a phone and call but that won\u2019t stop me from texting (some folks daily) to see how you doing or even stop by. Sure we all have busy lives but somebody didn\u2019t wake up this morning and could have used our words of encouragement on yesterday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We have to let go of grudges, stop worrying about unpaid debts from ten years ago that cause bitterness and resentment, we\u2019ve got to stop worrying about who slept with who back in high school because we too grown for that, we\u2019ve got to stop being retroactive and shedding tears for the lost WHEN EACH DAY GIVES US THE CHANCE TO BE PROACTIVE AND SHOW PEOPLE WE CARE AND LOVE THEM! <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I don\u2019t want to bury another family member or friend wondering why I didn\u2019t take the time to check on them so I\u2019m sending todays message to check on EVERYONE. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>How\u2019s your mom, dad, sister, cousin, brother, auntie, and uncle? <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How\u2019s life treating you? <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How\u2019s your family? <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How\u2019s your children? <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How\u2019s work? <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How\u2019s school? <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How\u2019s church?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>What you been eating or not eating? <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How\u2019s the neighborhood? <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019m tired of wiping tears wishing I would have checked in, stopped by, called or texted before it\u2019s too late. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The mailman didn\u2019t hesitate to buy my son a drink, he said it blessed him. Writing this message is blessing me because I intentionally care about YOU, your MENTAL HEALTH, and your heart. I LOVE YALL and I want us to be more intentional TODAY, tomorrow, and next week (don\u2019t wait until 2023) to see how your people are doing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019m giving you your \ud83c\udf38 \ud83c\udf3a \ud83c\udf39 \ud83d\udc90 \u2764\ufe0f while I can. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In honor of those we will miss whom we can\u2019t write their name on a Christmas card and they won\u2019t get any gifts this year on this side, let\u2019s show love and support for those who are still here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ephesians 5:15 says, \u201cMaking the best use of the time, because the days are evil.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Our days are numbered! <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>It\u2019s time for us to wake up from our slumber and ACT NOW. It\u2019s time to be present and be active in thought, word, and deed. It\u2019s time for to plant, heal, build, laugh, respect those who cry or mourn, embrace, search, keep, mend, speak, love, and be at peace. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sending peace, love, and prayers to all reading and\/or receiving todays message. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We were about 1.5 hours away from our destination and no matter how my brain told me to keep on moving, my body said \u201cyou better go use the restroom and then get back on the road.\u201d What\u2019s a girl&#8230; <a href=\"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/2022\/12\/19\/the-mailman\/\" class=\"readmore\">Read more<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">The mailman.<\/span><span class=\"fa fa-angle-double-right\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2228,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[29],"tags":[200],"class_list":["post-2229","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dose-of-reality","tag-resteasyjoker","content-layout-excerpt-thumb"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/img_2976.jpg?fit=556%2C524&ssl=1","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2644,"url":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/2025\/12\/10\/choosing-to-trust-god-in-the-struggle\/","url_meta":{"origin":2229,"position":0},"title":"Choosing to trust God in the struggle.","author":"Whitnee","date":"December 10, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"A penny short Left work the other day and had to ask God for a miracle on the way home. Driving a total of 100-150 miles daily just to make sure the boys get to school, we get to work, they get to their practices, games, the grocery store, etc.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Restoring Peace&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Restoring Peace","link":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/category\/peace\/restoring-peace\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/hebrew-135.png?fit=940%2C788&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/hebrew-135.png?fit=940%2C788&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/hebrew-135.png?fit=940%2C788&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/hebrew-135.png?fit=940%2C788&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1405,"url":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/2021\/01\/19\/ill-always-have-your-back\/","url_meta":{"origin":2229,"position":1},"title":"I\u2019ll always have your back.","author":"Whitnee","date":"January 19, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Out of the blue I got a text message from Jamika inviting my boys to the skating ring. I\u2019ve noticed family skate night is a tradition that Jamika and her family have adopted quite some time ago. I didn\u2019t have anything planned and thought anytime we could get the kids\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Encouragement&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Encouragement","link":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/category\/parenting\/encouragement\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/img_2182.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/img_2182.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/img_2182.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/img_2182.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/img_2182.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1830,"url":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/2022\/04\/27\/father-knows-me-the-best\/","url_meta":{"origin":2229,"position":2},"title":"Father knows me the best.","author":"Whitnee","date":"April 27, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"It had been quite the emotionally draining day already when William came home on one of his tangents. I was looking forward to a good nap to rid me of a headache that had been brewing up all day. Well let\u2019s just say after a short conversation with William, my\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Encouragement&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Encouragement","link":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/category\/parenting\/encouragement\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/img_4554.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/img_4554.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/img_4554.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/img_4554.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/img_4554.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2573,"url":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/2025\/04\/29\/has-that-girl-gone-mad\/","url_meta":{"origin":2229,"position":3},"title":"Has that girl gone mad?","author":"Whitnee","date":"April 29, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"I had come home from work yesterday mentally exhausted. As soon as I walked through the door, I noticed it was unusually hot. So I thought, \u201cnot this again, I do not have the time or the resources for this!\u201d Just what I dreaded, our air went out. I had\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Finding Peace&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Finding Peace","link":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/category\/peace\/finding-peace\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/img_2203.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/img_2203.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/img_2203.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/img_2203.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/img_2203.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/img_2203.jpg?resize=1400%2C800&ssl=1 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1381,"url":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/2021\/01\/07\/stuck-in-the-mud-again\/","url_meta":{"origin":2229,"position":4},"title":"Stuck in the mud again!","author":"Whitnee","date":"January 7, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Have you ever found yourself in a vicious cycle of grief, turmoil, pain, anxiety, stress, etc.? How did you get out of the cycle? Many people were so ready for a new year due to all the stress and losses we endured in 2020. Have those same losses and stressors\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Grace &amp; Mercy&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Grace &amp; Mercy","link":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/category\/grace-mercy\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/img_2128.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/img_2128.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/img_2128.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":252,"url":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/2019\/10\/17\/do-you-know-what-today-is-its-my-baby-boys-7th-birthday-and-its-throwback-thursday\/","url_meta":{"origin":2229,"position":5},"title":"DO YOU KNOW WHAT TODAY IS&#8230;.ITS MY BABY BOY&#8217;S 7TH BIRTHDAY&#8230;AND IT&#8217;S THROWBACK THURSDAY!!!!!","author":"Whitnee","date":"October 17, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"William @ 600am ready to go to school. He is the coolest little man I have ever met. He said \"mommy I'm going to pick out my own outfit and it's going to be white.\" I told him okay and said it was his choice and then he snuck in\u2026","rel":"","context":"With 3 comments","block_context":{"text":"With 3 comments","link":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/2019\/10\/17\/do-you-know-what-today-is-its-my-baby-boys-7th-birthday-and-its-throwback-thursday\/#comments"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Williams-7th-bday.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Williams-7th-bday.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Williams-7th-bday.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbfCFX-zX","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2229","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2229"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2229\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2228"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2229"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2229"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inspirationallaroundme.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2229"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}