Hi, I'm Dr. Kim Logan-Nowlin.
And I'm Arthur Nowlin.
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And welcome to Making it Work.
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Arthur, when you
think about the unexpected,
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and today we're going to
talk about the unexpected.
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What comes to mind?
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Something that
should not happen,
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something that I
had not anticipated
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that it was gonna occur,
something out of the blue.
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That's like when I met you.
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You were very unexpected
and you're blessing to me.
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Well, same for me.
Yeah. Oh, praise the Lord.
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But listen, I
just want you to know
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that I'm excited
about this program, Arthur,
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because I have known--
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or she is a
friend to both of us.
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Absolutely.
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And I'm gonna let you know
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that we were at
the beauty saloon,
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getting our hair done.
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You both go to the
same beauty saloon?
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Yes, we go to the same place,
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and that's why
every time I would see,
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she will be so beautiful.
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Is that a place where
you guys talk and gossip?
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No, we talk,
but we don't gossip.
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Okay. We communicate, we engage.
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I didn't think that you do that.
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Well, it was
unexpected communication.
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You know, I like
to put it like that.
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But her name is
Iris Fordjour-Hankins
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and I want to welcome
her to Making it Work.
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God bless you.
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God bless. God bless you.
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Thank you, I'm
so glad to be here.
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Really? Really, really blessed.
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Well, praise the
Lord. Excellent, excellent.
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You know, when
we were at Johann's,
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we were getting our hair done,
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and I overheard you
sharing your testimony.
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And you told me
your whole story.
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And I felt that it needed
to be told to Making it Work,
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our listening
audience, our viewing audience.
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And would you be so kind
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to share your
testimony with them please?
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I'm delighted
to share the story.
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It's a story of
faith. Yes, it is.
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I started out as a
Detroit Public School's teacher.
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Yes. Okay. I
won't tell you how long.
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But it was long enough for
me to be vested and a veteran.
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I loved every moment of it.
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I was blessed
from the beginning.
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God placed me in
the right environment.
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I met the right
people, I had good students,
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good relationships
with my principals,
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co-workers, and the community.
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I was privileged, but
it was all God's doing.
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This is only God's story.
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But in October of
2011, I got a layoff notice.
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Really, it wasn't a
notice, it was just instant.
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I just was laid off.
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The principal was unaware of it,
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I was unaware of it, no notice.
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If I had known
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that, that was going
to be my last paycheck,
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I think I would have done
something different with it.
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You know, I have two
children Iman and Earnest,
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ten and seven.
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And I have a wonderful husband.
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And so when he noticed
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that I was gonna
not be working anymore,
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I was expecting him to be upset,
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a little impatient
maybe, saying, you know,
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hurry up wife, find a new job,
but instead he said, stay home.
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And those were words
that I wanted to hear,
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because, you know,
you can recognize this.
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When you have a child,
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you want to be at
home with that child.
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You don't want the child
to be sent off to grandma,
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not that there is
anything wrong with grandma
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or to daycare.
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I wanted to be
home with my children.
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And so I was
really happy about it,
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but getting laid off for me
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was a answer to prayer.
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I know it sounds odd,
as much as I loved my job,
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a feeling came over me,
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and that feeling made me want
to ask God for something more.
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I just knew he had
something more for me to do.
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And so, on my drive
to work every morning,
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I would ask God,
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"What is it that
you want me to do?"
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Sometimes I would just
get filled with emotion,
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the power of the Holy
Spirit would come upon me.
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I would go into
prayer, I would often cry.
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You know, there was even a day,
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I went into work and
I had an accompanist,
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I teach vocal music.
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And my accompanist is
a minister of the gospel.
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Yes.
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He recognized that
something was off with me.
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He said, "You know,
you need to take this day,
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go home and pray.
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I'll cover your classes."
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You know, that
was nothing but God.
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I took his advice and
I went home and prayed.
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And I felt settled, you
know, that when I talk to God,
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He heard me, I trusted Him.
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Well, on the day
that I was laid off.
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It just happened, kind of weird.
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I was going to put
grades in my grade book,
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which is done over the internet.
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We have login words
and things like that.
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My access codes didn't work.
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So I contacted the
principal and said,
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"You know, is
something wrong with the system,
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what's going on?"
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She said, "Not
that I'm aware of,
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but we will call the helpdesk."
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When I called the
helpdesk, they said,
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"Your pass codes
have been disabled,
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you need to call
Human Resources."
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Wow.
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So I called Human
Resources, and they said,
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"Well, your pass
code has been disabled,
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because you've been laid off."
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I said, "Where, how?"
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You know I didn't get a letter,
not a smoke signal, nothing.
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You know, and so the
principal got on the phone,
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and they told her,
they'd sent her a text message
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to let her know.
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Well, she didn't remember
receiving a text message,
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and who would expect to find out
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that one of their employees
was laid off via a text.
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So it was
something we couldn't undo.
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So I looked at my classroom,
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I thought, I'm
gonna take the things
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that are more
special for me here.
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And I want to put them in my car
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and all else is now property
of Detroit Public School.
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Now I'm not saying this
about Detroit Public School
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to put a bad smirk on its
name, that's not the purpose.
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But it is a sad testament
of the times in which we live.
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Yes.
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So I went home, and stayed home
until December of that year.
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My husband and I
went into savings
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that we really
hadn't planned to touch.
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And I was able to contribute
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to the family's
finances that way.
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But in January,
it became apparent
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that I would have
to go back to work.
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So I began seeking work.
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The places I was
looking didn't seem appealing.
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The pay was low.
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The amount of time
I have to put into it
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didn't seem to
match the pay scale,
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not anything that I
was used to earning.
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And so I thought, well, maybe
we can make it another month,
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may be something
else would come along.
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So in the midst of
my planning and asking,
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you know, because I
figured I had to do something,
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maybe God was just
giving me a little time,
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that's what I thought.
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Maybe God will
send something else.
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So, you know, I went
on minding my business
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as any mother
would do, any wife.
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Taking my kids to
school one morning,
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I got out of
the car and decided,
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"I'll walk the
kids into the building."
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Most mornings, you know,
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I drop them off
and give them a kiss,
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we pray and you
know, go have your day,
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but this day, I
decided, I'm going in.
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I saw another mom,
I'd never met her before,
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but we greeted each
other and it was pleasant.
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And I went my
way, she went her way.
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Well, on my exit
from the building,
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here comes this mom again.
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We meet up on the way out.
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So we stop and
talk with each other,
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and we got
talking about the Lord.
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And it was an
incredible conversation.
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Right. In just a few seconds.
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You know, how we women do
it. Yes, yes, I know that.
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So you can find out
a lot about the lady.
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Don't take it literally.
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I don't know
how you women do it.
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Okay. Okay.
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So on our way out,
we opened the door,
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and all of a sudden,
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I find myself
flying through the air.
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I kicked my foot up
against the slab of a sidewalk
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that was raised higher
than it should have been.
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And just maybe three feet away
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from that slab was a metal fence
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with these big heavy poles.
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I know the lady tells
me, she tried to catch me.
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It seems like time slowed down.
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All I could say
is, "My God help me."
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Mercy. I thought
I'm going to die.
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I'm going to break my
neck and as soon as I said,
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"My God help
me," the second time,
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I was out like a light.
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I hit all three
poles of that metal fence,
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all the way down, bam, bam, bam.
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And at the bottom of
it was a raised sidewalks,
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then I hit the sidewalk.
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I remember saying,
"I have broken my neck."
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That was what I
thought. I was out.
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Next thing I know, they're
putting me in an ambulance.
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I wake up at the hospital.
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It wasn't as bad as I
thought, but it was bad enough.
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I'd broken my
jaw, split my lip open,
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twisted my back,
busted my knee open,
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twisted an ankle.
00:10:00.96\00:10:02.80
And it was
unexpected. Unexpected.
00:10:02.83\00:10:06.70
There are no emotions for that.
00:10:10.97\00:10:12.34
Bam, bam, bam.
00:10:12.37\00:10:13.71
And my husband--
00:10:13.74\00:10:16.01
Now, let me ask you,
where was your husband?
00:10:16.04\00:10:17.38
Who contacted your husband?
00:10:17.41\00:10:18.75
The lady that was
with me. She contacted?
00:10:18.78\00:10:20.62
She contacted my husband for me.
00:10:20.65\00:10:24.02
Yeah, I'm glad you said that,
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because I left out something
that was extremely important.
00:10:25.42\00:10:27.99
Now I told you about
how I was waiting for God
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to give me an answer
as to what I should do.
00:10:31.19\00:10:34.06
When I come to this lady
00:10:34.10\00:10:36.36
that I had just met
only for a few seconds
00:10:36.40\00:10:38.83
was over me praying.
00:10:38.87\00:10:40.20
My Lord.
00:10:40.24\00:10:41.57
And she was praying,
"God help her, heal her,
00:10:41.60\00:10:46.47
you have directed her path."
00:10:46.51\00:10:49.41
And you never knew this woman.
00:10:49.44\00:10:50.78
I didn't know
this woman. Never knew.
00:10:50.81\00:10:52.41
She didn't know
anything about me
00:10:52.45\00:10:53.82
other than what I
shared in those few seconds.
00:10:53.85\00:10:56.48
You maintain a
relationship with her now?
00:10:56.52\00:10:58.22
I have called her,
and prayed with her,
00:10:58.25\00:11:00.72
and thanked her.
00:11:00.76\00:11:02.46
I told her, "You know,
00:11:02.49\00:11:04.33
God gave you
that prayer for me."
00:11:04.36\00:11:06.70
Then she said, "Yes."
That's all she could say.
00:11:06.73\00:11:09.96
And I feel, you know,
when you're connected with God,
00:11:10.00\00:11:13.54
sometimes He speaks through
us and we don't always know
00:11:13.57\00:11:17.01
why we're saying
what we're saying,
00:11:17.04\00:11:18.57
or why we're
doing what we're doing.
00:11:18.61\00:11:20.44
But God put us together,
00:11:20.48\00:11:21.81
because He knew I needed
to be blessed at that moment.
00:11:21.84\00:11:24.75
I had to have some
words I could replay
00:11:24.78\00:11:27.52
over and over in my mind,
00:11:27.55\00:11:28.98
because I didn't know what kind
of journey I was headed down.
00:11:29.02\00:11:31.55
It's almost God
gives you a revelation,
00:11:31.59\00:11:34.09
then He will give
you a confirmation.
00:11:34.12\00:11:35.76
Yes. And listen
to the word you use.
00:11:35.79\00:11:38.19
She used the word,
Lord direct her path,
00:11:38.23\00:11:40.46
direct or you're directing.
00:11:40.50\00:11:41.96
And you've been
asking God to direct you.
00:11:42.00\00:11:44.13
Oh, yes. Oh, yes.
And she said that word.
00:11:44.17\00:11:46.43
But then she
said something else.
00:11:46.47\00:11:48.47
She said God has
ordained your path.
00:11:48.50\00:11:51.97
So not only has God directed it,
00:11:52.01\00:11:54.21
but He blessed it.
00:11:54.24\00:11:55.91
He set it aside
for a holy purpose.
00:11:55.94\00:11:58.71
You know, and so, you know,
00:11:58.75\00:12:00.42
through all the healing process,
00:12:00.45\00:12:03.95
for a long time that was
not to the back of my mind.
00:12:03.99\00:12:06.86
And God brought it to me,
so I had to call her, I said,
00:12:06.89\00:12:09.92
"Do you know what you prayed?"
00:12:09.96\00:12:11.46
And I explained
to her my journey,
00:12:11.49\00:12:14.33
it's awesome.
00:12:14.36\00:12:15.70
It was awesome.
00:12:15.73\00:12:17.07
So she and I have prayed
together from time to time.
00:12:17.10\00:12:19.40
How long did you
stay in the hospital now?
00:12:19.43\00:12:21.70
They sent me home the
same day. Okay. You know.
00:12:21.74\00:12:24.31
But they had taken X-rays of you
00:12:24.34\00:12:27.68
and determine the
extent of your injuries.
00:12:27.71\00:12:30.85
The first hospital I
was taken to missed it.
00:12:30.88\00:12:33.82
They sent me home and
said, "Go, see your dentist."
00:12:33.85\00:12:38.82
Without being too graphic,
my top teeth were pushed back,
00:12:38.85\00:12:42.46
my bottom teeth
were pushed back.
00:12:42.49\00:12:44.06
I swallowed a tooth
and my lip was burst open.
00:12:44.09\00:12:48.53
They gave me a Tylenol,
took some X-rays and said,
00:12:48.56\00:12:52.63
"Go see your dentist,"
00:12:52.67\00:12:54.00
and asked me had I
had a tetanus shot.
00:12:54.04\00:12:56.34
So we went over to the dentist
00:12:56.37\00:12:58.47
who happens to be not
far from that hospital,
00:12:58.51\00:13:01.61
and she was afraid to touch
me, she said, "I can't believe
00:13:01.64\00:13:04.58
they released you
from the hospital.
00:13:04.61\00:13:06.85
You need to go back."
00:13:06.88\00:13:08.68
So we wound up going
down to Detroit Receiving
00:13:08.72\00:13:11.45
which is a hospital
00:13:11.49\00:13:12.82
known for working with
extreme emergent cases.
00:13:12.85\00:13:16.12
So when I got there,
00:13:16.16\00:13:17.49
they actually gave me
the treatment that I needed.
00:13:17.53\00:13:20.53
Praise the lord.
Excellent, excellent.
00:13:20.56\00:13:22.43
But then something
else happened in your home
00:13:22.46\00:13:24.83
after this incident?
00:13:24.87\00:13:26.30
After this incident,
00:13:26.33\00:13:28.94
well, what the
devil meant for my harm,
00:13:28.97\00:13:31.17
let me say, God
used for my good,
00:13:31.21\00:13:34.01
because you know we
still need a second income.
00:13:34.04\00:13:38.81
I was able to collect
a little insurance money
00:13:38.85\00:13:42.12
that paid my medical bills,
and also gave me extra money,
00:13:42.15\00:13:46.29
so that we could live
until the end of 2012.
00:13:46.32\00:13:52.13
So that was a
blessing. A tremendous blessing.
00:13:52.16\00:13:55.30
You know, but
at the end of 2012,
00:13:55.33\00:14:00.24
I was down in my basement,
00:14:00.27\00:14:02.50
getting some books
from the bookshelf.
00:14:02.54\00:14:05.57
And the bookshelf fell down
00:14:05.61\00:14:09.08
and it fell down in such a way
00:14:09.11\00:14:10.88
that it came across my back
00:14:10.91\00:14:13.65
and caused me
extreme discomfort.
00:14:13.68\00:14:16.62
I missed the
discomfort when it first fell,
00:14:16.65\00:14:18.62
I thought, "Ooh, that hurts."
00:14:18.65\00:14:19.99
Yeah.
00:14:20.02\00:14:21.36
You know, I got up
and went on about my way,
00:14:21.39\00:14:23.19
but the next
morning when I got up,
00:14:23.22\00:14:24.83
everything was in extreme pain.
00:14:24.86\00:14:28.46
So my mom suggested that
I go to the chiropractor,
00:14:28.50\00:14:31.07
which I did.
00:14:31.10\00:14:32.67
And when he saw me, he said,
00:14:32.70\00:14:34.24
"Lady, I don't
know what you've done,
00:14:34.27\00:14:36.10
but I haven't seen anything
this twisted in a long time."
00:14:36.14\00:14:40.01
And I explained to him
that I had a slip and fall
00:14:40.04\00:14:43.61
where I broke my jaw
00:14:43.65\00:14:44.98
and so you know
that misaligned my spine.
00:14:45.01\00:14:48.18
And so he went to working on me.
00:14:48.22\00:14:50.75
I see.
00:14:50.79\00:14:52.12
And you could hear the
sound that the bones make
00:14:52.15\00:14:54.26
when all that
air passes through,
00:14:54.29\00:14:56.36
it made me cry.
00:14:56.39\00:14:58.83
I cried, because finally
I was put back in alignment.
00:14:58.86\00:15:03.93
But it also
released a lot of emotion.
00:15:03.97\00:15:06.53
Yes. I began
talking to God again.
00:15:06.57\00:15:10.11
And I said, you
know, JBS prayed a prayer,
00:15:10.14\00:15:13.17
"Bless me indeed,
enlarge my territory.
00:15:13.21\00:15:17.25
Don't allow me to be harmed
00:15:17.28\00:15:20.32
nor allow me to
cause harm to others."
00:15:20.35\00:15:23.69
I was reminded
of that prayer. Yes.
00:15:23.72\00:15:25.79
And I said, "God you
have something for me to do.
00:15:25.82\00:15:29.29
For some reason,
00:15:29.32\00:15:30.66
the enemy is
attacking this body of my,
00:15:30.69\00:15:33.09
I can't figure out what
it is, why he wants me?"
00:15:33.13\00:15:36.26
But he was attacking me.
00:15:36.30\00:15:39.77
But it led to depression,
and I have to be honest.
00:15:39.80\00:15:43.34
You know, when
you're waiting for God
00:15:43.37\00:15:44.71
to do something for you,
sometimes that wait isn't easy.
00:15:44.74\00:15:49.34
People would ask me,
00:15:49.38\00:15:50.71
"Why don't you go back to work?"
00:15:50.75\00:15:52.45
I said, "God doesn't want me to,
00:15:52.48\00:15:54.68
He has something
else for me to do?"
00:15:54.72\00:15:57.39
I could never
bring myself to say,
00:15:57.42\00:15:59.69
"You're right, I
should go back to work."
00:15:59.72\00:16:02.29
I just knew that God has
something else in the works.
00:16:02.32\00:16:06.90
And I was asked
that several times,
00:16:06.93\00:16:08.76
and it was always my
response, "I'm waiting on God."
00:16:08.80\00:16:11.37
Yes. So I was depressed.
00:16:11.40\00:16:16.00
I spent a lot of
time reading in the word.
00:16:16.04\00:16:18.31
And I learned that when we pray,
00:16:18.34\00:16:21.24
we can't have
doubt, follow that prayer
00:16:21.28\00:16:24.81
and so I didn't
allow myself to focus on,
00:16:24.85\00:16:28.22
"God, you won't do this for me."
00:16:28.25\00:16:29.78
I knew God would do it for me.
00:16:29.82\00:16:31.82
It was just the
waiting that was hard.
00:16:31.85\00:16:33.96
Yes.
00:16:33.99\00:16:35.32
It was hard eating
peanut butter sandwiches,
00:16:35.36\00:16:37.89
when you were used to
having something else.
00:16:37.93\00:16:41.16
But I did learn to
appreciate black-eyed peas
00:16:41.20\00:16:44.83
and pinto beans and greens.
00:16:44.87\00:16:47.30
Good protein. Yes. Oh, yes.
00:16:47.34\00:16:49.40
We are the healthiest
family walking around.
00:16:49.44\00:16:52.11
It was good eating. Come on now.
00:16:52.14\00:16:53.54
So here we're
talking about two tragedies,
00:16:53.58\00:16:55.71
one tragedy after another.
00:16:55.74\00:16:57.08
Yeah.
00:16:57.11\00:16:58.45
You know, something
that's totally unexpected.
00:16:58.48\00:17:00.45
So give me some meat
as to what happened next?
00:17:00.48\00:17:06.72
What happened next was,
I went to get a massage.
00:17:06.76\00:17:12.29
And I met this woman
00:17:12.33\00:17:15.13
that said I can
bring you instant relief.
00:17:15.16\00:17:19.90
What turns out
00:17:19.93\00:17:21.27
that this woman
works for the enemy.
00:17:21.30\00:17:24.51
Her form of massage
is called Reiki massage.
00:17:24.54\00:17:31.51
And when she massaged me,
00:17:31.55\00:17:34.35
water began
dripping off her hands
00:17:34.38\00:17:38.99
and I heard her
making these strange sounds.
00:17:39.02\00:17:44.29
And I thought, what is this?
00:17:44.33\00:17:49.33
She was placing,
she was talking to Satan
00:17:49.36\00:17:53.87
and it was causing
my body to feel good,
00:17:53.90\00:17:57.37
but my mind was saying
something's wrong with this.
00:17:57.41\00:18:01.21
And I had to ask her,
00:18:01.24\00:18:03.51
"Are you a Christian,
who are you praying to?"
00:18:03.55\00:18:06.65
And I asked her, you
know, "Do you read the Bible?"
00:18:06.68\00:18:09.45
And she said, "Well, I
used to read the Bible,
00:18:09.48\00:18:11.75
but I don't have any more reason
00:18:11.79\00:18:13.32
to read it any more."
00:18:13.36\00:18:14.69
And that was when
I realized I was in--
00:18:14.72\00:18:16.62
I was, because I
was so depressed,
00:18:16.66\00:18:18.33
I'm being honest.
00:18:18.36\00:18:19.69
I had allowed
myself to go into territory
00:18:19.73\00:18:24.50
that God's people don't belong.
00:18:24.53\00:18:26.87
And so my prayers fattened up.
00:18:26.90\00:18:29.60
Because I realized
00:18:29.64\00:18:31.21
not only am I being
physically attacked now,
00:18:31.24\00:18:33.54
but I'm being
spiritually attacked.
00:18:33.58\00:18:36.61
I got into the Word
of God in a deeper way,
00:18:36.64\00:18:40.02
deeper than I knew I could go.
00:18:40.05\00:18:43.99
There is power in
God's word. Yes, it is.
00:18:44.02\00:18:47.19
And so I knew that
I couldn't seek relief
00:18:47.22\00:18:51.29
from anyone, but God.
00:18:51.33\00:18:53.53
And so I said,
"God, You are the healer,
00:18:53.56\00:18:55.20
You are also the
provider, You are Jevoah-Jireh.
00:18:55.23\00:18:58.10
Yes, He is.
00:18:58.13\00:18:59.47
And so I'm going
to sit back here,
00:18:59.50\00:19:01.24
and I'm going to trust
that You're going to heal me,
00:19:01.27\00:19:03.04
and I'm going to trust
that You're going to provide
00:19:03.07\00:19:04.57
for my family.
00:19:04.61\00:19:05.94
Was it only one session
that you had with this person?
00:19:05.97\00:19:09.58
Actually I had two sessions.
00:19:09.61\00:19:11.45
The first session
when she touched me,
00:19:11.48\00:19:13.45
I just felt instant relief.
00:19:13.48\00:19:15.38
You know, that's how
the enemy sucks you in,
00:19:15.42\00:19:17.62
he makes you think that
what he has to offer is good.
00:19:17.65\00:19:20.36
So I made an appointment
to go back a second time,
00:19:20.39\00:19:22.72
and that was
when she began this--
00:19:22.76\00:19:25.73
she told me I was
laying on her altar.
00:19:25.76\00:19:28.40
Oh, okay. Okay.
00:19:28.43\00:19:29.93
And I'm trying not to go
into too many details about it.
00:19:29.96\00:19:31.90
Right, right, we understand.
00:19:31.93\00:19:33.44
But I was on the
devil's territory,
00:19:33.47\00:19:36.50
which let me
know by the intensity
00:19:36.54\00:19:40.48
that the devil was pursuing me
00:19:40.51\00:19:42.38
that God has
something else in plans
00:19:42.41\00:19:45.45
and I should hold on.
00:19:45.48\00:19:47.65
So I got into the word,
00:19:47.68\00:19:49.02
and I was reading about
the weeping prophet Jeremiah.
00:19:49.05\00:19:55.06
And I was reminded
through Jeremiah's life
00:19:55.09\00:19:58.49
that sometimes when
you're on a mission for God,
00:19:58.53\00:20:02.00
it's not easy.
00:20:02.03\00:20:04.27
And I said, "God, I'm not
likening myself to a prophet,
00:20:04.30\00:20:07.30
but I do recognize that
you have a mission for me,
00:20:07.34\00:20:10.51
and it's not going to be easy.
00:20:10.54\00:20:12.37
I have to buck
up and take this."
00:20:12.41\00:20:15.01
Right.
00:20:15.04\00:20:16.38
Now listen, we
have eight minutes,
00:20:16.41\00:20:17.75
and we need you to jump
over and tell us the clincher
00:20:17.78\00:20:21.25
'cause I'm telling you,
what she's about to tell you,
00:20:21.28\00:20:23.79
you better hold
on to your seats.
00:20:23.82\00:20:25.19
All right.
00:20:25.22\00:20:26.55
I met a lady, I went to
sing for a festival in Detroit.
00:20:26.59\00:20:30.33
She said to me
after she heard me sing,
00:20:30.36\00:20:33.60
"Do you have your doctorate?"
00:20:33.63\00:20:35.10
And I told her, "No, ma'am,
00:20:35.13\00:20:36.73
I don't ever want
to go to school again."
00:20:36.77\00:20:38.70
I don't want to go
to school as a teacher
00:20:38.73\00:20:40.74
and I don't want to go
to school as a student.
00:20:40.77\00:20:43.14
She said, "Well, yes, you do.
00:20:43.17\00:20:44.77
I like to give
you a list of places
00:20:44.81\00:20:47.24
that offer
scholarships to women of color,
00:20:47.28\00:20:51.91
women who have big
heavy voices like yours,"
00:20:51.95\00:20:55.05
and I thought
okay, I'll take the list.
00:20:55.08\00:20:59.25
I've got the list and
at the top of the list
00:20:59.29\00:21:01.26
was the University of Kentucky.
00:21:01.29\00:21:03.73
Yes.
00:21:03.76\00:21:05.09
So I called
there and I found out
00:21:05.13\00:21:07.90
that one of my
former classmates.
00:21:07.93\00:21:10.63
Dr Angeline Clay is on staff.
00:21:10.67\00:21:14.10
I met her at Oakwood University,
00:21:14.14\00:21:15.90
we were both students together.
00:21:15.94\00:21:17.27
Okay.
00:21:17.31\00:21:18.64
And she said to me,
00:21:18.67\00:21:20.01
"Well, if you want
to go to school here
00:21:20.04\00:21:22.34
in the coming fall,
which will be fall 2013,
00:21:22.38\00:21:25.58
you've missed the
deadline for auditions
00:21:25.61\00:21:27.62
and prescreening."
00:21:27.65\00:21:29.32
So I thought, well
maybe this isn't for me,
00:21:29.35\00:21:31.35
I need an answer now. Now.
00:21:31.39\00:21:33.19
Well, she arranged it for
me to talk with the person
00:21:33.22\00:21:37.43
who does the auditions.
00:21:37.46\00:21:39.06
All right. Yes. They
allowed me to audition.
00:21:39.09\00:21:42.36
I drove down in two weeks later
00:21:42.40\00:21:44.93
I'm prepared mentally
for what was about to happen.
00:21:44.97\00:21:48.70
The audition went
well, and I thought,
00:21:48.74\00:21:50.54
"Oh, well, I could
go to school here."
00:21:50.57\00:21:53.51
They said, "We're
going to try to see
00:21:53.54\00:21:54.88
if we can find you some money."
00:21:54.91\00:21:56.54
I thought, "Well, that's nice."
00:21:56.58\00:21:58.01
You know, nothing major. Right.
00:21:58.05\00:21:59.81
I got a phone call and a letter
00:21:59.85\00:22:02.45
and an e-mail
that said be prepared,
00:22:02.48\00:22:04.45
because at the end of this week,
00:22:04.49\00:22:07.56
you may get a
call from us that says,
00:22:07.59\00:22:09.29
"Come down here to audition
00:22:09.32\00:22:11.29
in a scholarship
contest competition."
00:22:11.33\00:22:14.00
I thought, "Okay,
it's not going to happen."
00:22:14.03\00:22:18.70
Iana Gardner, a dear friend.
00:22:18.73\00:22:20.64
I was telling her
about it, and she said,
00:22:20.67\00:22:22.14
"You know, you
might feel like the tail,
00:22:22.17\00:22:25.07
but if you're God's
child, you'll be the head."
00:22:25.11\00:22:27.34
Oh, say so, say so.
00:22:27.38\00:22:29.01
I got a text message,
and all the text message said
00:22:29.04\00:22:31.75
this was Sabbath
afternoon that said, "Come."
00:22:31.78\00:22:34.78
Come? That's all.
00:22:34.82\00:22:36.15
That was it. It was
just one word "Come."
00:22:36.18\00:22:39.05
I got chills on my arms.
00:22:39.09\00:22:40.42
We went. Yeah, all right.
00:22:40.46\00:22:42.16
And the next day, I had to
compete in this scholarship
00:22:42.19\00:22:46.70
called the Alltech
Scholarship Competition,
00:22:46.73\00:22:52.00
where I met Dr Lyons
and Everett McCorvey,
00:22:52.03\00:22:55.10
all of these people
have gotten together
00:22:55.14\00:22:56.60
to University of Alabama
00:22:56.64\00:22:57.97
to provide wonderful
opportunities for students.
00:22:58.01\00:23:01.21
I was in
competition with other grads.
00:23:01.24\00:23:05.41
And I did the audition,
00:23:05.45\00:23:08.68
but it didn't go like I
thought it was supposed to go.
00:23:08.72\00:23:11.32
I started my aria,
and all of a sudden
00:23:11.35\00:23:13.86
I felt like I was
submerged underwater,
00:23:13.89\00:23:16.12
and I couldn't hear the piano,
00:23:16.16\00:23:17.56
I couldn't
remember what I was doing.
00:23:17.59\00:23:19.59
I just went on automatic pilot.
00:23:19.63\00:23:22.36
Is that the part
when you told me,
00:23:22.40\00:23:24.00
he didn't have your music.
00:23:24.03\00:23:25.37
Well, no, after that,
I had two songs to sing.
00:23:25.40\00:23:27.47
Okay, two songs.
00:23:27.50\00:23:28.84
So the first one I was--
00:23:28.87\00:23:30.21
The first song I
was really upset about.
00:23:30.24\00:23:32.07
The second song, you
know, the judges said,
00:23:32.11\00:23:35.28
"Well, now we'll
choose your second song,"
00:23:35.31\00:23:37.45
and they chose Do Ike
Nu which is by Strauss.
00:23:37.48\00:23:42.38
And I was excited to
sing this, it means devotion.
00:23:42.42\00:23:46.15
So I looked at the accompanist
and I said, "Let's start,"
00:23:46.19\00:23:49.49
and he said, "Ma'am,
I don't have the music."
00:23:49.52\00:23:51.49
Don't have her music.
00:23:51.53\00:23:52.86
Now I'm standing on stage
in front of all of these people
00:23:52.89\00:23:55.53
who are
watching the competition,
00:23:55.56\00:23:57.03
these judges from
Opera houses around the world
00:23:57.07\00:24:00.07
and I'm, "This is a
bad set of circumstances."
00:24:00.10\00:24:03.54
Well, they were
nice and they said,
00:24:03.57\00:24:04.91
"Go get your music."
00:24:04.94\00:24:06.27
So I walked off stage,
I was really, really hurt.
00:24:06.31\00:24:08.61
And you know, you never want
to be looking like an idiot.
00:24:08.64\00:24:11.41
Right, right.
00:24:11.45\00:24:12.91
I cried on my way
out to get the music.
00:24:12.95\00:24:15.58
I came back in
with my chest high
00:24:15.62\00:24:18.05
and I looked at the
audience and I said,
00:24:18.09\00:24:19.75
"This could only happen to me."
00:24:19.79\00:24:21.12
Did she really
said what I heard.
00:24:21.16\00:24:22.76
So I gave the music to
the accompanist, I sang.
00:24:22.79\00:24:25.29
Yes.
00:24:25.33\00:24:26.66
I don't remember
singing it, I know I sang it,
00:24:26.70\00:24:28.73
I don't remember singing.
00:24:28.76\00:24:30.33
And I walked off the stage
00:24:30.37\00:24:31.70
and I'm thinking all
of these other people
00:24:31.73\00:24:34.14
have done much better than I did
00:24:34.17\00:24:35.94
and I know I'll
get the last prize,
00:24:35.97\00:24:39.51
you know, I was convinced.
00:24:39.54\00:24:41.61
You know, that was
supposed like $500.
00:24:41.64\00:24:42.98
Five hundred
dollars. Five hundred dollars.
00:24:43.01\00:24:44.71
And I thought, "Well, God,
it will be $500 I didn't have."
00:24:44.75\00:24:48.15
That's right.
00:24:48.18\00:24:49.52
I'll be grateful for
whatever you give me.
00:24:49.55\00:24:51.55
So we came back on stage
00:24:51.59\00:24:53.49
and they started with
the lowest price first $500
00:24:53.52\00:24:56.99
and they gave it to a person
00:24:57.03\00:24:58.36
that I thought was going
to be first prize winner.
00:24:58.39\00:25:00.76
And I thought,
"Well that's odd."
00:25:00.80\00:25:02.50
They kept awarding, awarding,
awarding and I thought,
00:25:02.53\00:25:05.03
"I'm not going to get it."
00:25:05.07\00:25:07.07
Next thing I know
they're handing me this check
00:25:07.10\00:25:10.57
and saying I had
won second place.
00:25:10.61\00:25:13.14
Now second place
is not a small award.
00:25:13.17\00:25:15.58
It's a pretty huge award,
00:25:15.61\00:25:18.01
this check is the
award that I was given,
00:25:18.05\00:25:21.35
it says at the very
bottom in the memo line
00:25:21.38\00:25:24.45
that "It's a prize of
$100,000 to $150,000."
00:25:24.49\00:25:30.19
It simply means that
my tuition is paid for,
00:25:30.23\00:25:33.16
for a doctoral
program and upper studies.
00:25:33.19\00:25:37.17
That $8,000
there, it means that,
00:25:37.20\00:25:40.34
I will be given a
stipend to live on,
00:25:40.37\00:25:43.41
total went that much.
00:25:43.44\00:25:45.04
I also will get another stipend
00:25:45.07\00:25:48.44
of $2,000 per semester.
00:25:48.48\00:25:53.11
I have a job coming to
me and I have an opportunity
00:25:53.15\00:25:57.15
to sing in lots of
different operatic environments.
00:25:57.19\00:26:01.22
And I'm pretty happy, because
He answered to my prayers.
00:26:01.26\00:26:05.99
Get the unexpected. Unexpected.
00:26:06.03\00:26:08.50
And when you talk
about the unexpected,
00:26:08.53\00:26:10.40
only God could do
something like this.
00:26:10.43\00:26:12.70
Only God could do it.
00:26:12.73\00:26:14.07
And I also get a trip
to go to Graz, Austria,
00:26:14.10\00:26:17.74
to study in the AIMS program.
00:26:17.77\00:26:19.77
Really?
00:26:19.81\00:26:21.14
I'm just so
elated, because God knew
00:26:21.18\00:26:23.65
that this was the path
that He wanted me to take,
00:26:23.68\00:26:26.51
He'd ordained my
prayer. He's ordained this.
00:26:26.55\00:26:28.68
He left this, set it
aside for holy purpose.
00:26:28.72\00:26:31.99
Iris, would you
just sing a little bit
00:26:32.02\00:26:34.29
of one of my favorites I'm sure,
00:26:34.32\00:26:36.22
many of our
viewers, Amazing Grace,
00:26:36.26\00:26:38.56
so they can hear
this beautiful voice.
00:26:38.59\00:26:40.23
I hope it sounds beautiful.
It is always beautiful.
00:26:40.26\00:26:43.67
Amazing Grace
00:26:43.70\00:26:47.57
How sweet the sound
00:26:47.60\00:26:52.74
That saved a wretch
00:26:52.77\00:26:57.95
Like me
00:26:57.98\00:27:00.95
I once was lost
00:27:00.98\00:27:06.65
But now I am found
00:27:06.69\00:27:12.03
I was blind
00:27:12.06\00:27:15.10
But now I see.
00:27:15.13\00:27:21.70
Hallelujah, hallelujah.
00:27:21.74\00:27:23.81
I acted though,
one quick question.
00:27:23.84\00:27:26.07
How long, when was it,
00:27:26.11\00:27:27.84
as a child that you really
felt that this was your calling?
00:27:27.88\00:27:32.01
I was always known--
00:27:32.05\00:27:33.85
it's always been known
to me that I was a musician.
00:27:33.88\00:27:36.38
Okay. Always.
00:27:36.42\00:27:37.75
When I was one year old,
00:27:37.79\00:27:39.12
my mother has a picture of me
00:27:39.15\00:27:40.49
with a party hat on
sitting at a piano playing.
00:27:40.52\00:27:44.33
And I don't remember
doing anything else but that.
00:27:44.36\00:27:46.49
I'm just so enlighted,
00:27:46.53\00:27:49.46
I'm looking forward
to keeping up with Iris
00:27:49.50\00:27:51.97
and letting you
know how she's doing.
00:27:52.00\00:27:54.14
I want you to
know that God is able.
00:27:54.17\00:27:56.81
Iris, we want
to thank you again.
00:27:56.84\00:27:58.37
May God bless your
journey to Kentucky.
00:27:58.41\00:28:00.71
And you're going
to bless your students
00:28:00.74\00:28:02.11
and many, many people.
00:28:02.14\00:28:04.15
Arthur, all I can say is,
00:28:04.18\00:28:06.38
hold on to what
God's going to do for you.
00:28:06.41\00:28:08.62
The unexpected is coming.
00:28:08.65\00:28:10.15
I'm Dr Kim
Logon-Nowlin. I'm Arthur Nowlin.
00:28:10.19\00:28:12.45
God bless.
00:28:12.49\00:28:13.82