From My Brown Eyed View is going through a change of content moment

From My Brown Eyed View is going to start featuring a change of content starting the week of September 19th.

This is a plan that I have been working on for a long time. I really want to share content of value with people who read this blog. 

The content is going to start maturing up to topics on aging. As a Black woman who is in the moment, it is a reality that I am actively engaged in. There are issues that older women face that are being dealt with by younger Black women as well. We need to make those connections. After all, we are Black women too. 

I am not seeing a lot of Black women writers in media approaching this topic. What I have experienced and learned while researching this topic indicates that there definitely needs to be more discussion on what happens in the lives of older Black women. 

What I thought that I knew and understood about growing older has been proven to be underdeveloped knowledge. I suspect that I am not the only one who realizes that what I did not know, is the body of knowledge that I have to find out about. 

As a member of the Boomer generation, I have the opportunity to draw insight from my mother's generation of women and make comparisons to my own generational experiences as my role as an adult daughter changes to meet my mom's needs. I also have a better understanding of what type of plans and decisions that I need to make regarding my life at this developmental stage. 

We need to have conversations and narratives that go beyond the idea that Black Don't Crack as we grow older

For example: 

• There are conversations and plans that every adult child should know about having with their parent/parents as well as with our adult children. 
• What resources are available to help us navigate through difficult topics? 
• How can we define our needs as older adults and determine how to meet the challenge of creating solutions?
• What type of problem solving is being applied successfully in helping older adults with remaining independent as they age?
• What type of planning needs to occur before a potential crisis situation arrives? 
• What is your support system plan as a single older Black woman?

• If I asked you these questions on a personal level would you be able to answer with factual information? 
• Could you share your plans and approaches with others to help them gain a sense of direction? 
• Are you currently engaged in making plans or dealing with aging-related issues? How is that working out for you? 
• Or have you honestly given any thought to what needs to be done to provide for this time of your life?

This is the aspect of aging that really needs our voices to be amplified on what needs to occur or change for our common good. 

There are social justice issues that we need to raise in our advocacy demands for older Black adults in the areas of health care, housing, and economics. 

Older Black women need to amplify our voice in the conversations about what happens to our identities and priorities in life as we age. What are we doing that is different or exciting? What are we really passionate about now? What type of advice can we share within our sista/circles? 

One of the changes that will become noticeable is more information about my experiences as an older Black woman. I need to make sense out of what is happening in my own life. 

Up until recently, I was unwilling to share a lot from my personal stories because that is not the style of content that was posted on MBEV.  I did not want to share what was happening in my life because there are moments when my vulnerability as a woman of color is just too painful to expose. The idea of providing an unfiltered glimpse into my life was way too daunting for me to handle. One of the changes that aging brings about is the ability to reassess what is shareable about those moments. 

Making this announcement is the outcome of spending time working through different levels of self-validation. I have wanted to start writing about aging from a Black woman's perspective but I was too hung up about having the credentials that would validate me as an individual. Learning to reassess my personal value and capabilities as a contributor to the conversation helped me to move past the idea that my thoughts as an individual woman have worth.

MBEV is not meant to be a WordPress style blog. This is not shade being thrown at the platform. People who are actively engaged in social media management and marketing use the platform to share content, create community, and create profit from the products and services that they offer. MBEV is food for thought and an informational sharing space. I want to develop and maintain it's presence right here on Blogger. 

Being a monetized site has never been this blog's identity. MBEV has always been social justice orientated. That is going to continue because the need to resolve issues is still very much a reality. The type of content that is posted here is meant to provide information that can be shared or even applied to your life and decision-making actions.

I hope that you will continue to visit my site as it moves towards a different level.