*Defend Your Dream*

Greetings Beautiful People..I hope everyone is doing well. I received an interesting voicemail this morning when I checked my phone. All I heard was an off key version of "I Just Called to Say I Love You" playing on my voicemail. As I was leaving work I couldn't help but have a huge smile on my face as I realized the message came from my mother singing off key on my phone. Now if you know my mother you know that she is strict, stern and sometimes high strung so this was surprising. This message meant alot for me since me and my mother didn't always have the best relationship. It's one of the situations that the mother and daughter are identical so we are always clashing. It's a blessing that our relationship has skyrocketed since I decided to pursue my dream .

It has almost been close to the year when I decided to stop pursuing my education at Alabama A&M university studying Education and decided to attend The Institute of Art- Chicago to study FAshion Marketing/Management. When I first made this transition the different responses were quite overwhelming. Lifelong friends who have seen me grow up since childhood were more than supportive. They understood exactly what my dream was and was not surprised that I decided to pursue this career. So I Thank you all who did:)Even though my parents were(especially my mother) were a tad bit concerned of the stability in the dream they were pleased I followed my heart instead of others opinions. They both said they saw me in the Fashion Industry before me teaching in a classroom. The reason why I chose to study Education was that it was a standard career that was stable and you could touch children's lives. But at the end of the day how was I going to teach children to follow my dreams when I had denied mine.

On the other hand, just as much support as I received...there was just as much as negative feedback. People who did not understand the creative, carefree ,passionate Ellisa felt that my decision was selfish, shallow and didn't make sense. It just made more sense for them to see a young black woman in front of a class than breaking down doors in the Fashion Industry. People often wanted to assume that everyone in the Industry is shallow and label groupies who are not concerned with anything but what they put on. In my case this is foolishly untrue. People saw one side of me and wanted to set me in a box to fix their criteria. I often heard that I had more to offer to the world and I should've just stayed in Education . It's funny because no matter what field or industry I am my goal on a day to day is not only to improve myself but others who surround me. My focus in the Fashion Industry is geared towards the appreciation of Black Beauty. Growing up a brown skin kinky hair girl, my high school years were not the best. I would flip open a magazine or turn the TV on and not see anyone who resembled anything like me. It was not until my last year in high school is when I was greeted by different blogs or Internet magazines that showcased a variety of Black Beauty geared towards a younger generation in women. of color. Black women need to see the natural beauty that lies within themselves. If we knew how much power that God has placed in us and How He created us gorgeous creatures we would begin to have much more self respect. Self respect and confidence can alter which road of destiny that you decide to go down, I know if I was bombarded by images in magazines that looked like me or went to the magazine rack and saw positive images of black women (not half naked pictures of video girls) it wouldn't have taken me up to my 20 years for me to become comfortable in my own skin.

I say all this to say ....Defend Your Dream! Dreams should be debatable. If everyone agreed with your dream than you would not see growth in yourself and you would never know if this is what you really want in life. Not only did I know that I made the right choice because I allowed God to direct me but also the fact that I pushed passed peoples;s negativity. People don't even realize how slight comments as "oh you would've been better in a more serious field" Or "I would have loved to see you if you were studying something else" are example of negative comments. That is equivalent to saying "You would be more attractive if you were lighter or taller" in both situations you can't change. I stepped on this road of destiny for a reason. I encourage all to throw everyones expectation of you out the door! Begin to set your own expectations that are lined up with Christ and the personal growth that YOU want to see will begin.

I was talking to my older sister and she told me this morning that no one can take away your gifts and dreams but they can make you drive yourself crazy by them questioning it. There is no point of even entertaining others opinions if it leaks negativity or tries to pull you back to your past and not allow you to step in your future. Protect your Dream. Until you and God have a clear understanding keep it to yourself. If not, a dream that is told to soon is extremely fragile and is in the state of breakage by negative comments. Once you allowed a dream to develop in you and turn to a goal, I still don't advise you broadcast it. Just Do It! Once people see you start taking step, comments are automatically going to start trickling in. Thats when you ask God for discernment to filter out what you need to take in and what you need to just roll off your back. When I was attending my old university many people were both shocked and confused as my decision to follow my dream. I only allowed them to see one side of me because my dream was still in a fragile state. Once I started making giant steps towards developing my goal, no one believed or understood my decision. I realized they are not suppose to.

God put gift in you for a reason. It is hard for people to understand when others pursue their goals if they are not pursuing their own. Once again protect your dream. let it develop before you share it. Love yourself. love Life. and don't let toxic people in your life.,,

"For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Luke 12:34

God Bless!!