A Black Love, Love Story

Dec. 30th 2022 - A tipsy Jorden waiting for the train after having a ball in Harlem at a Carla Gibson show! What a time.

God definitely picked up the pen and wrote a story I couldn’t imagine for myself.

I met my now boyfriend the first week I moved back to Texas in 2025. I’m talking I moved back on February 3rd and met him that Sunday the 9th while grocery shopping at our local HEB.

This was after a 4 mile walk with my mother, tired and beat down honey, but needed to get groceries for the week. I never crave or want biscuits. Like ever, maybe for brunch, but not for me to actively keep in my home, yet the biscuit aisle was on my to-do list that day.

I noticed a man a few steps behind me, but I was more focused on seeing which brands of biscuits were GMO. Damn near all of them girl, so I put both cans back. Funny, but not funny, because why are they trying to kill us?

Anyway, as a mid-thirty something teenager I was bopping along to the jams coming thru the HEB speakers, looking for my mom while I was in my own little world. Then fate collided.

His handsome self, stopped me mid search, as my mom came around the corner, to tell me how pretty my eyes were and as I looked in his, something inside said, “You’re safe here.” The rest was truly history.

We exchanged numbers and texted throughout the week and our first phone call we were on the phone for 6 hours. Like I was a high-school sophomore giddy with excitement.

Be for real, what men these days are doing that? My track record of boys (not men) could barely text let alone hold conversation for 6 hours. 6! 6 big ones.

Our first date was the day after Valentine’s due to our work schedules, and we stayed together from brunch to dinner. Going to multiple places around Houston, not wanting the day to end.

We’ve been together since and when I post this, we have already made a year and, on our way back from our first international trip together in Tokyo, Japan.

Won’t God do it!

Now, I share this to provide hope for the single girlies, because I was surely in them streets too. Believe me! Accepting what felt was even less than the bare minimum. Going after the dudes that were familiar, not necessarily a good fit. Commuting when they were the ones with a car! HELLO! The ghetto girl.

I truly wasn’t valuing myself or my time, caught in this hamster wheel of trying to prove myself to men who never should’ve had the chance to touch me let alone a look in their direction.

I had to really take a step back and look at myself! Look at my patterns. What would my life be like if I stopped focusing on romantic love and partnerships and really poured that love into myself? That’s what I needed! I needed to be able to look in the mirror and tell that little girl I see that she is loved, just as she is.

I made the decision to move back to Texas. Packed up my apartment and hit the road. Usually when I make big moves, I have my mom drive a U-haul with me, but this drive I wanted to do by myself.

To face me. To cry with me. To really focus in on the Jorden that deserves love, love for myself, and the real romantic love that she yearned for. To face a fear. To know that I could make the journey alone and I would be alright. I accepted myself as I was for the first time.

To meet the man, I’m with today the first week was confirmation that when you choose yourself everything else follows. When you show up as yourself you allow others to really see you. We met at the grocery store while I was sweaty and run down after such a long walk! He saw me, not the glammed-up version of me, but the everyday.

As much as I look back in disgust at my past relationship and situationship choices I can only give that Jorden grace. Grace and forgiveness, because she was only doing what she knew best at the time. She was trying to give so much love to people who weren’t ready for it. That’s okay.

I needed to grow thru that to be the Jorden that I am today. Through it all I still have so much love to give.

And now it’s reciprocated.

Now, it’s safe and warm.

Now, it’s a love I am so grateful to experience in this lifetime.

Chin up buttercups!!!

Because if you have all this love to give to the wrong people, imagine how much love you’ll give to the right one!

Love,

Jorden.