There is no subject in the world more stereotypical than slavery of African Americans. This book is about four families: my mother and father’s families and my husband’s mother and father’s families, dating back to the era before slaves were brought out of Africa. Historically, our families evolved on a continuous basis and have proven to have been strong, resilient people, whose hopes and dreams were not easily squelched. We have researched the backgrounds of these relatives who were a part of the Atlantic slave trade because I want my children and grandchildren as well as the world to know who their ancestors were. I want them to know under what circumstances they came to America and finally became citizens with voting rights, educational and financial privileges, marital rights, and freedom. I want to clear up the misrepresentation and confusion of facts about slavery and the black man’s worth. Slaves over the last two thousand years have become a misnomer to our young people’s minds, and there is little knowledge of this period. Many civilizations and nations have been involved in slavery during the course of history. Contemporary records and archival documents were sought in an effort to reach greater heights of authenticity, enhance ancestral reality, and relate the facts to younger generations.

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It seems like yesterday that things that were happening in my life over seventy years ago, demands that I trust in the loving purpose of a Sovereign God. I have learned to trust that He is in control – especially when life seems out of control. I am prospering and am always hopeful because as a blessed African American woman, I accept my responsibility to give back to the people in this country as much as it has given to me. I will always acknowledge my roots, as they are more important than ever. I am an empty vessel but am versed with a spiritual being to complete a mission for God. And I have an angel or angels who have guided me all my days. They are sent from my Sovereign Creator.

OUR CREATOR IS BESIDE US ALWAYS AND WE ARE NEVER ALONE. WE CAN WALK AND BELIEVE IN SOMEONE OTHER THAN MANKIND. IT IS PROMISING TO SEE YOUNG PEOPLE, OUR GRANDCHILDREN, DIRECTING OTHER PEOPLE AND DEVELOPING A SENSE OF HUMILITY AND DISCERNMENT WITH A GIVING SPIRIT. THERE IS SOMETHING INHERENT IN ALL OF US THAT SHOULD NEVER BE EXTINGUISHED. THE GENERATIONS TO COME SHOULD BE GIVEN AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE WHAT THEY CAN BE, AS WE ARE ALL PUT ON EARTH FOR A SPECIFIC PURPOSE. WE LOOK AT WHAT IS HAPPENING AND SEE SIGNS OF CIRCUMSTANCES THAT ARE YET TO COME. THIS IS THE BEST OF TIMES AND THE WORSE OF TIMES, WRITTEN BY CHARLES DICKENS. YET THERE IS A PRESENCE OF LIGHT THAT CAN ONLY BE GIVEN BY THE ONE WHO CREATED ALL THAT WE ARE AND HAVE.

“Makes you want to spend a week—immediately—in New Orleans.” —Jeffrey A. Trachtenberg, Wall Street Journal A cocktail is more than a segue to dinner when it’s a Sazerac, an anise-laced drink of rye whiskey and bitters indigenous to New Orleans. For Wisconsin native Sara Roahen, a Sazerac is also a fine accompaniment to raw oysters, a looking glass into the cocktail culture of her own family—and one more way to gain a foothold in her beloved adopted city. Roahen’s stories of personal discovery introduce readers to New Orleans’ well-known signatures—gumbo, po-boys, red beans and rice—and its lesser-known gems: the pho of its Vietnamese immigrants, the braciolone of its Sicilians, and the ya-ka-mein of its street culture. By eating and cooking her way through a place as unique and unexpected as its infamous turducken, Roahen finds a home. And then Katrina. With humor, poignancy, and hope, she conjures up a city that reveled in its food traditions before the storm—and in many ways has been saved by them since.

“GOD IS BEGINNING TO GIVE ME A NEW SELF-IMAGE,” MEDFORD LEE TOLD ME. “OFTENTIMES, I FELT ISOLATED AND ALONE, ASHAMED OF MYSELF. I TRIED TO NORMALIZE AND FIND USEFUL RESOURCES TO HELP MYSELF AND MY FAMILY.” MEDFORD LEE FREASWATER WAS LIVING WITH FEAR OF HIS IMMEDIATE PAST AND WAS VERY ANXIOUS ABOUT THE FUTURE AS A YOUNG MAN. HE REALLY DIDN’T HAVE ANYONE TO TURN TO ABOUT HIS PROBLEMS. HE WAS A HIGH SCHOOL DROP-OUT BUT LATER, HE RETURNED TO SCHOOL. HE HAD MADE BAD CHOICES IN HIS TEEN YEARS AND NOW HE IS SEEKING DELIVERANCE. MANY SITUATIONS CALL FOR INVOLVEMENT ON DIFFERENT LEVELS: FINANCES, PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT, SIBLING ISSUES, REARING OF CHILDREN AND TEENS AS WELL AS OTHER NECESSITIES OF LIFE THAT CALL FOR HELP BEYOND THE FAMILY OR COMMUNITY LEVEL. MEDFORD LEE HAD TO MAKE A CHOICE AMONG CHOICES FOR HIS CAREER, MISSION AND HIS LIFE OR FACE THE PROPHESY THAT HIS LIFE WAS IN DIRE STRAIGHTS OF DECLINE. HIS CHOICES AND DECISIONS WERE TRIPLY IMPORTANT ESPECIALLY FOR HIMSELF AS WELL AS HIS NEW GENERATIONS. EVERY GENERATION IS A CARE-GIVER FOR THE NEXT. HE ANCSTORS ARE HIS ROCKS IN THE TIME OF TROUBLE AND IN THE GOOD TIMES.

There is something within us that lets us know that there is a God somewhere. I have walked and talked with many people in my lifetime who came from small humble beginnings and made a tremendous life change for themselves and their families. Some of us were born in a shack. There were no zip codes and no area codes in those days. Yet where we were born and where we lived mattered then and matters now. Sometimes life presents us with difficulties and hardships. From time to time, an individual has to look back and ponder from whence he or she has come. More importantly, no matter what happens in our lives, individually or collectively, God will be there with us always. All we have to do is heed his call and follow him.