A Look Inside My Heart presents a collection of poetry offering a glimpse into one woman's perspective on many of life's vital experiences. It is a powerful and joyous volume of poetry inspired by everyday struggles regarding relationships, sex, family, and self-worth. Author Essence Hunter has been writing poetry since her teen years. Each poem in this collection is preceded by a quote that sets the tone for the poem to come. Every person has a voice, everyone has something to say, and there are many ways in which to express those emotions. With A Look Inside My Heart, Hunter offers others a glimpse of herself to enjoy, to empathize with, and to help them find their true voices the voices of honesty and raw emotion. -- Forever we will be he said Forever till the end of time Who have thought he start pulling away from me Who have thought we start to lose our bind Sitting in silence every night As if we were running out of things to say Knowing it was time to let go Knowing he was slowly slipping away No more I love you's I guess he ran out Maybe I should have left a long time ago I guess I really didn't know how

This book was birthed out of nature walks where I longed to be alone with God and where I sought to hear his voice in the Echoes of the Refreshing Springs. I yearned to seek God's face and escape the norm, the noisy crowds and the masses of people I pass on this journey called life. As a mother of five, my life revolves around them, and as much as I love my children, I do need a break from them at times. These nature walks became my pavilion, my hiding place where just God and I could spend time together. LaShawn Ferguson, a.k.a. Desmonia Adedayo, is a minister at New Home Baptist Church under the leadership of Pastor Bobby Hicks. She is the author of Nuggets of Wisdom: Reflections of a Journey. She graduated from Evangel School of the Bible with a major in Biblical studies. She is the founder of the Poetic Voices Ministry at New Home Baptist Church and is also the founder of the Poets Corner, located in Brookland Manor Apartments, NE, Washington, D.C., serving the DC inner city gifted youths. She has been blessed to travel to the Motherland, Kenya, Africa, to preach the Gospel. She has a passion for people and believes that when the Saints of truly come together then we can evangelize the nations. Her desire is to one day have a home for women that have suffered abuse and are unsure of what their purpose is in life. She is a woman that can relate to pain and adversity in life, feeling forsaken by all and loved by none and would love for all humanity to taste of the goodness of God's everlasting love.

UNWANTED is a story that brings to the fore discrimination and stigmatization towards people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). Set in the bustling city of Port Harcourt, it narrates the story of three youthful girls and a young man whose paths are more intertwined than they can imagine...made stronger and weaker by their experiences of stigmatization. It is a tale of struggles, successes and human frailties.

When Chloe Kaufman meets Lyndon she has no time for love. Her father's illness drives her to strive for success in an attempt to make life easier for her mother. That drive leaves very little space for falling in love. But when love is staring her in the face refusing to walk away she is tempted to jump in head first, caution to the wind. She soon finds that love is exactly what she was expecting it to be. Time consuming, draining and downright hard. Love isn't supposed to hurt. But for Chloe and Lyndon it seems to be one thing after another. The secrets that he hides from her threaten to tear apart their relationship. When ex-wives and babies jump from Lyndon's closet, Chloe is faced with decisions that could place her family in a difficult financial situation. When Chloe receives news from her doctor, it only makes loving Lyndon even harder. Dealing with a life threatening illness turns Chloe's life upside down, making her want to give up not only on Lyndon but life as well.