Whoever You Choose, Just Choose Wisely
Say it with us:
“I always choose love over fear.”
Copyright ©2018 The Swirl World™ LLC. All rights reserved.
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Here’s To Equality, Respectability and Romance
Charmaine and her husband Mark have 7 children ranging in age from 9 to 23 years old.
Equality, respectability and romance.
What Black woman doesn’t want that?
Interracially married since 1992, Charmaine seeks to promote the virtues of equality, respectability and romance in marriages between Black women and men of other ethnic groups.
And for us, that’s a win-win.
In our current podcast episode, co-host Adrienne London Leach chats with interracial romance author Charmaine T. Davis.
Enjoy!
If you cannot see the podcast player, click here or here.
The episode can also be heard on Sound Cloud.
Connect with Charmaine
Charmaine T. Davis writes Black women/White men romance, middle-grade fiction, family comedy, Christian fiction and devotionals.
Charmaine’s most recent books are Law of the Heart and Christmas Boss.
Her stories have been praised as “refreshing!” “uplifting,” “thought-provoking,” and “laugh out loud!”
Click HERE to sign up for new book release information. Want to contact Charmaine personally? Send her an email at charmainetdavis@gmail.com.
Here’s A List of Charmaine Davis’s Published Books:
Getting Riley
Falling
A Good Christmas
Breaking Wedlock
Law of the Heart
Christmas Boss
She Just Had to Meet Him When…series:
Stuck on Love
Exposed to Love
Sweetened by Love
The Red House: Almost a Memoir
Worshipful Witness
Sent
Charmaine’s books are available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Kobo.
Shout Out!
The Shout Out! for this episode goes to cousins Lavinia Shebeshonuf and Boughetto Rising of the Just Thinkin’ Out Loud Podcast.
To check out the Just Thinkin’ Out Loud website, click here. The Nerdy Black Chicks Talk Radio Show’s Facebook page is FIRE! To visit, click here.
The Just Thinkin’ Out Loud Facebook page is equally FIRE. To get your social consciousness stirred, click here.
To listen to their podcast on Stitcher, click here, and on Spreaker, click here. You can also listen to the show on PodBean and Podomatic.
Want to be a guest on The Swirl World Podcast, or know someone who should?
Send an email to Podcast@TheSwirlWorld.com.
Be sure to “Like” The Swirl World on Facebook and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes.
You can also follow us on Sound Cloud and listen to the show on Stitcher Radio. You can also hear us on PlayerFM, on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher Radio, or PlayerFM – and now on iHeart Radio!
Copyright © 2017 Michelle Matthews Calloway, ASwirlGirl™, The Swirl World™ LLC, The Swirl World Podcast™, Swirl Nation™, All rights reserved. Photo © PORTRAIT INNOVATIONS | Professional Studios. Used with permission of Charmaine T. Davis.
Interview with Loving Movie Co-Star Will Dalton!
We can’t get enough of Mildred and Richard Loving.
We’ve written about them before. This year, we even featured a podcast first – a slide show by our good friend, former podcast guest and fellow Swirler Williesha Morris.
The slide show commemorated her crowd funding campaign for Loving Day 2016 in Birmingham, Alabama.
We also added a Loving Day tab to our header!
Interview with Loving Co-Star Will Dalton
Our podcast co-host Adrienne London Leach had a phone conversation with actor Will Dalton, co-star in the Loving movie.
Today, we’re pleased as punch to feature her interview with Will.
Will plays the role of Virgil, Richard Loving’s best friend.
The movie is up for some Critics’ Choice Awards.
Instagram post courtesy of Will Dalton
The Critics’ Choice Awards Show airs tonight, December 11 at 8 pm Eastern/5 pm Pacific.
Be sure to tune in and send Will and the other members of the Loving cast some good vibes and well wishes!
In the meantime, listen in as Will discusses how he landed the coveted role.
Will also shares some priceless advice from movie legend Sidney Poitier, and provides his own philosophy and approach to life.
If you cannot see the podcast player, click here or here.
If you cannot see the Sound Cloud player, click here. You can also head over and listen to the show on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher Radio, or PlayerFM – and now on iHeart Radio!
Shout Out!
Our Shout Out! goes to Stepha LaFond, creator of the Modern Thriving Mama Program. When speaking of her mission, Stepha says,
“My mission is to empower women to boldly step out into the world and create the life they have always dreamed of.”
Stepha helps ambitious women who feel like they are overwhelmed juggling the demands of life, career, and family. They desire more balance and for now but fear that it will never be their reality. Together with her clients, Stepha addresses the stories that have kept them in their current patterns and works diligently to break these patterns through delegation, boundary setting and ritual development. As a result they feel more empowered and in control and are able to approach life with more ease.
To learn more about Stepha, click here. To connect with Stepha on Twitter @StephaLaFond, click here.
Want to be a guest on The Swirl World Podcast, or know someone who should?
Send an email to Podcast@TheSwirlWorld.com.
Be sure to “Like” The Swirl World on Facebook and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes.
You can also follow us on Sound Cloud and listen to the show on Stitcher Radio. You can also hear us on PlayerFM!
Copyright © 2016 Michelle Matthews Calloway, ASwirlGirl™, The Swirl World™ LLC, The Swirl World Podcast™, Swirl Nation™, All rights reserved.
Love Connection, French & Jamaican – On Facebook!
Two people made a love connection – on Facebook? Facebook? It can be a wonderful place – and it can also be a pit.
Let’s be real: Facebook – heck, the internet – is unique in that on the one hand, it’s an online space where you can connect with people who are witty, charming, funny, and just plain ole fun.
On the other hand, Facebook is sometimes a very scary place filled with trolls spewing hateful, racist rhetoric, and just plain ole idiocy.
Yet, like anything else in life, it’s all in how you use and approach it.
Thankfully, in the face of all the negativity that seems to run rampant on Facebook and other internet spaces, you can still find wonder. And delight.
And love.
Sometimes, you can make a love connection.
They Made A Love Connection – On Facebook!
I’m happy to report that today’s featured couple, Ludovic Delaveau and his gorgeous wife Melissa Wallace-Delaveau, didn’t allow the less-than-stellar aspect of Facebook to derail them.
Instead, they found each other – and found love as a result!
Melissa tells their story in her own words:
“Hello everyone! I will try and make this as short as I possibly can because this has been a wonderful and blessed journey for me since 2011.
My husband and I met on Facebook in late June 2011. He is French and I am Jamaican.
He came to see me in my country in August of that same year and the rest is history. We got married in Jamaica in 2013.
In 2014 I moved from Jamaica to France (away from my family) to join my husband.
We now have a wonderful sweet, loving son named Tyler who is 10 months old. It wasn’t an easy journey for me but thank God we made it out safely.
I give thanks for being a Mom to a biracial child. Motherhood gets better with each passing day.
For me it’s not so much that our son is biracial, but rather I get to watch him grow up in two different cultures, two totally different worlds. He is getting the best of both sides.
My husband is the sweetest, loving, shy, humble, and all the other good words I can find. Lol! With all his flaws we love each other more than anything in this world.
One thing that keeps our marriage fresh and healthy is that we remind each other constantly how much love we have for each other.
And don’t get me wrong – we are not perfect by any means. Like every couple we have our flaws but we don’t argue or shout. We have calm discussions to solve our concerns.
We enjoy being married we love spending time with each other; travelling and exploring the world.
I’ll just leave it here for now because I could go on and on. God favors me. Blessing and lots of love to you all!”
Melissa’s parting advice?
“Love as if it’s your last time. Be patient – your Love will find you!”
Keep Up With The Delaveaus
Melissa and Ludovic have their own YouTube channel. To learn more about them (and listen to their delightful accents!) click here.
To learn more about Jamaican cooking, with step-by-step demonstrations and great recipes, watch Mel’s Kitchen episode on YouTube by clicking here.
You can also follow Melissa, Ludovic and their sweet baby, Tyler on Instagram @the_delaveaus.
We love to feature singles (and couples!) in our posts. If you’d like to be featured, please email a nice, high-resolution photo to InspirationDaily@TheSwirlWorld.com. Selfies are ok – just make sure they’re not blurry.
Copyright ©2016 Michelle Matthews Calloway, The Swirl World™ LLC, ASwirlGirl™, The Swirl World™, The Swirl World Podcast™, The Swirl World Inspiration Daily™, Swirl Nation™, All rights reserved. Photos used with permission.
Be sure to “Like” The Swirl World on Facebook and apply to join our private Facebook Group!
To catch the latest installment of “50 Days of Dating” click here. Will Rachel make a love connection? Sign up for email updates to ensure you don’t miss a single episode!
Just Like Fingerprints
Marriages are like fingerprints; each one is different and each one is beautiful.
Today’s featured couple is Lewis and Traci Lowe.
(Side note: Traci was once featured as our “Swirling Single of the Week.” She & Lewis met and married within the next 18 months. IJS!)
We love to feature couples (and singles!) in our Inspiration Daily posts. If you’d like to be featured, please email a nice, high-resolution photo to InspirationDaily@TheSwirlWorld.com. Selfies are ok – just make sure they’re not blurry!
Copyright ©2016 Michelle Matthews Calloway, The Swirl World™ LLC, ASwirlGirl™, The Swirl World™, The Swirl World Podcast™, The Swirl World Inspiration Daily™, Swirl Nation™, All rights reserved. Photo used with permission.
Be sure to “Like” The Swirl World on Facebook!
Your Relationship Will Last If You Do This
Want a relationship that will last?
Do this!
We love to feature couples in our Inspiration Daily posts! If you’d like to be featured, please email a nice, high-resolution photo to InspirationDaily@TheSwirlWorld.com. Selfies are ok – just make sure they’re not blurry!
Copyright ©2016 Michelle Matthews Calloway, The Swirl World™ LLC, ASwirlGirl™, The Swirl World™, The Swirl World Podcast™, The Swirl World Inspiration Daily™, Swirl Nation™, All rights reserved. Photo property of The Swirl World™ LLC.
We’ve Got The Red Hot Love!
Red Hot Love – we’ve got it!
Ginger love, that is.
(You know, red heads.)
If you’re a fan in our thriving Facebook community of over 33K Swirlers hailing from literally all over the world, then you already know what I’m talking about.
You see, we’ve been enjoying some red hot ginger love over there, with beautiful couples like our featured couple, Levi and Corea Gottschall, and Breeana and Cody Howard:
See what I mean??
So, you wanna share some red hot ginger love (and any other kind)?
Send a photo to InspirationDaily@TheSwirlWorld.com.
In the meantime, we’ll keep scrolling down our Facebook page and enjoying the red hot love . . .
Today’s featured couple is Levi and Corea Gottschall.
We love to feature couples in our Inspiration Daily posts! If you’d like to be featured, please email a nice, high-resolution photo to InspirationDaily@TheSwirlWorld.com. Selfies are ok – just make sure they’re not blurry!
Copyright ©2016 Michelle Matthews Calloway, The Swirl World™ LLC, ASwirlGirl™, The Swirl World™, The Swirl World Podcast™, The Swirl World Inspiration Daily™, Swirl Nation™, All rights reserved. Photo used with permission.
Loving Day Is Today!
Today Is Loving Day!
I never tire of reading about the wonderfully compelling love story of Mildred Jeter and Richard Loving.
In June 1958 they decided to buck the tide of ignorance and racism and pursue their American dream: to spend their lives living and loving each other in holy (and legal) matrimony.
The “Crime” Of Interracial Marriage
They had to go to Washington, DC for the ceremony. Even so, they were arrested in their own bedroom in the middle of the night by sheriff’s deputies for the “crime” of interracial marriage.
Richard and Mildred were prosecuted by the state. They were sentenced to a year in prison for their “crime,” but allowed to leave Virginia.
For 5 years they lived in exile, separated from their families and banished from the home state they loved.
Mildred and Richard finally grew tired of the fact that they couldn’t live as a married couple in any state they wanted to live.
Fighting Back
They decided to fight back. In June of 1967, nine years to the month they were married, a decision was rendered in a landmark Supreme Court case.
They had won. At long last, Richard and Mildred had the right to live and live in marital bliss anywhere in the United States.
Their decision to fight back changed the legal landscape for interracially married couples.
Sadly, the Supreme Court decision didn’t end racism, hatred, ignorance or intolerance. These days, turning on the evening news is almost a sure-fire way to remain painfully aware of the fact that racism – whether inherent, overt or covert, real or imagined, never seems to be far from the surface.
I’m grateful for the advances that have been made, yet I’m mindful of the fact that 1967 was merely 49 years ago.
Nevertheless, interracial couples (we’re especially partial to those featuring Black women!) flourish and thrive because the actions of this brave couple paved the way.
A Bittersweet Ending
The Loving’s story had a bittersweet ending. In 1975, 17 years after their marriage, Mildred Loving lost her husband Richard in a tragic car accident. Mildred died in 2008 but she never remarried.
In a statement issued on the 4oth anniversary of the historic Supreme Court decision (June 12, 2007 – the year before she died) Mildred declared:
“ . . . not a day goes by that I don’t think of Richard and our love, our right to marry, and how much it meant to me to have that freedom to marry the person precious to me, even if others thought he was the ‘wrong kind of person’ for me to marry.”
So Grateful!
I thank God for Richard and Mildred Loving, and for them having a love for one another that transcended the climate and laws of their day.
Richard and Mildred, today we celebrate you – and we celebrate love.
Happy Loving Day!
Today’s featured couple is Karla and Don, both retired Navy veterans.
They have been married for 22 years.
Karla and Don were first featured on the blog in 2014. To read that post, click here.
Karla and Don also were featured on a series of podcast episodes:
Podcast Episode 032 – Life, Love and Marriage – In the Navy!
Podcast Episode 033 – How To Manage a Long Distance Marriage
Podcast Episode 034 – The 3 Key Ingredients Necessary for Attracting a Quality Mate
Podcast Episode 035 – “My Parents Tried To Diss The Woman I Love!”
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To learn more about Loving Day and support a crowd funding project launched by Williesha Morris, click here.
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We’d love to feature YOU in one of our posts! If you’d like to be featured, please email a nice, high-resolution photo to InspirationDaily@TheSwirlWorld.com. Selfies are ok – just make sure they’re not blurry!
Copyright ©2016 Michelle Matthews Calloway, The Swirl World™ LLC, ASwirlGirl™, The Swirl World™, The Swirl World Podcast™, The Swirl World Inspiration Daily™, Swirl Nation™, All rights reserved. Photo used with permission.
Be sure to “Like” The Swirl World on Facebook and request to join our private Facebook Group!
Loving Day Celebration – And A Podcast First!
Loving Day is for Swirlers!
If you’re a Swirler – someone who dates/marries interracially – then you’ve probably heard of Loving Day.Richard and Mildred Loving.
Loving Day was created in honor of Mildred Jeter and Richard Loving. In June of 1958, Richard and Mildred decided to buck the tide of ignorance and racism and pursue their American dream.
They simply wanted to spend their lives living and loving each other in holy (and legal) matrimony. They went to Washington, DC for the ceremony but were arrested in their own bedroom in the middle of the night by sheriff’s deputies for the “crime” of interracial marriage.
Right.
The “crime” of interracial marriage.
They fought back and in June of 1967, nine years to the month that they were married, in a landmark Supreme Court case they eventually won the right to live and love in marital bliss anywhere in the United States.
That’s right.
ANYWHERE.
Another Landmark “First”
In Podcast Episode 105, The Swirl World Podcast enjoys another first: A video to accompany the audio!
Former podcast guest and fellow Swirler Williesha Morris shares a slide show commemorating her crowd funding campaign for Loving Day 2016 in Birmingham, Alabama.
We’re honored to partner with Williesha in this worthy campaign and “Loving” cause.
Check out Williesha’s slideshow, and then head on over to her site to contribute to her campaign.
Because of Richard and Mildred Loving, we have couples like Williesha and Jason Morris.
We LOVE it! (pun intended)
If you can’t see the podcast player, click here or here.
If you can’t see the Sound Cloud player, click here. You can also head over and listen to the show on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher Radio, Spreaker or PlayerFM.
Want to be a guest on The Swirl World Podcast, or know someone who should?
Send an email to Podcast@TheSwirlWorld.com.
Be sure to “Like” The Swirl World on Facebook and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes.
You can also follow us on Sound Cloud and listen to the show on Stitcher Radio. You can also hear us on PlayerFM!
Copyright ©2015 The Swirl World, LLC, Michelle Matthews Calloway, ASwirlGirl™, The Swirl World™, The Swirl World Podcast™, The Swirl World Inspiration Daily™, Swirl Nation™, All rights reserved. Photo of Williesha and Jason Morris Copyright © Jessica Messer Photography. Used with permission.
Dawn Sanchez: Now I KNOW I’m Beautiful!
Dawn Sanchez KNOWS she’s beautiful!
Do you believe – rather, do you KNOW – you’re beautiful?
Dawn experienced an epiphany concerning beauty and was so inspired she wrote a book to describe it.
In this podcast episode, Co-host Adrienne London Leach chats with return guest, military wife and author Dawn Sanchez concerning Dawn’s new book, Now I KNOW I’m Beautiful.
I’ll ask you again:
Do You KNOW You’re Beautiful?
Enjoy the conversation, and be inspired!
You can also listen to the podcast on Sound Cloud.
If you can’t see the Sound Cloud player, click here. You can also head over and listen to the show on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher Radio, Spreaker or PlayerFM.
Dawn Sanchez was also featured in a previous podcast discussing her previous book, Call To Duty.
She wrote the book to uplift and encourage military spouses. To visit her author page and learn more about the book, click here.
To check out the blog post where Dawn proudly proclaims, “I love traveling with my Spanish Marine!” click here.
Shout Out!
The Shout Out for this episode goes to the lovely and vivacious Christine St.Vil.
Christine is a wife, homeschooling mother of three, speaker, blogger, author and trainer. Through her work with Moms ‘N Charge®, Purpose Driven Media™, LLC (PDM) was created to help entrepreneurs drive traffic, increase registration and grow engagement for their live events. Christine walks you through discovering and defining your digital strategy to make sure your business message aligns with your brand. Christine is an instructor in the Steve Harvey Success Institute, & she has been featured in numerous local and national TV and online media outlets (including VOA, Fox 5 DC, Fox 45, WBAL, WHUR, Huffington Post AllParenting.com, Sirrius XM, amongst others). She received her BS in Biology from Marymount University.
Christine K. St.Vil
Founder/CEO, Moms ‘N Charge®
Phone: 202.630.5596
Contributor for Black & Married with Kids and Happy Wives Club
Stay connected with Christine: Facebook – Twitter – Instagram – Periscope
Did you know? Christine has a new book, co-written with her sister that is available now! Check out www.whoseshoesbook.com for details and Follow them on Twitter and Facebook for exciting updates including their Fox 5 interview & official Whose Shoes Promo Video!
Want to be a guest on The Swirl World Podcast, or know someone who should?
Send an email to Podcast@TheSwirlWorld.com.
Be sure to “Like” The Swirl World on Facebook and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes.
You can also follow us on Sound Cloud and listen to the show on Stitcher Radio. You can also hear us on PlayerFM!
Copyright © 2016 Michelle Matthews Calloway, The Swirl World™ LLC, ASwirlGirl™, The Swirl World Podcast™, Swirl Nation™, All rights reserved. Photos of Dawn Sanchez and Christine St.Vil used with permission. Post contains affiliate links.