This episode of Nurah Speaks is a deeply personal reflection on love, loss and what I've learned from grief.

In Episode 260, “Losing Ellen,” I chronicle the story of losing my grandmother, Ellen, and walk listeners through my experience before and after her passing along with what grief has revealed to me along the way.

Losing my grandmother was an excruciating loss—filled with agony and heartbreak—but also with moments of profound love and deep gratitude. Those who have accompanied a loved one through their final days understand this painful irony: the trauma of loss co-occurring with all the beautiful, tender and loving moments just before.

On Nurah Speaks, we do not shy away from life's hard but important truths. Death can arrive in a single moment or it can unfold slowly through a series of moments of months or even years.

How we manage death— the acceptance of it as a normal part of life—can help us survive the very, very lows while honoring the love that remains.

This episode is for anyone navigating grief, learning how to carry the love that remains and discovering who they are now, after loss.

If you watch the live recording of this episode on the Nurah Speaks Youtube channel, I include some of my favorite photos of my grandmother with friends and family.

WHEN GREAT TREES FALL

Maya Angelou

When great trees fall,

rocks on distant hills shudder,

lions hunker down

in tall grasses,

and even elephants

lumber after safety.

When great trees fall

in forests,

small things recoil into silence,

their senses

eroded beyond fear.

When great souls die,

the air around us becomes

light, rare, sterile.

We breathe, briefly.

Our eyes, briefly,

see with

a hurtful clarity.

Our memory, suddenly sharpened,

examines,

gnaws on kind words

unsaid,

promised walks

never taken.

Great souls die and

our reality, bound to

them, takes leave of us.

Our souls,

dependent upon their

nurture,

now shrink, wizened.

Our minds, formed

and informed by their

radiance,

fall away.

We are not so much maddened

as reduced to the unutterable ignorance

of dark, cold

caves.

And when great souls die,

after a period peace blooms,

slowly and always

irregularly. Spaces fill

with a kind of

soothing electric vibration.

Our senses, restored, never

to be the same, whisper to us.

They existed. They existed.

We can be. Be and be

better. For they existed.

For more information on grief, I included two helpful links below:

•https://grief.com/the-five-stages-of-grief/•https://grief.com/10-best-worst-things-to-say-to-someone-in-grief/

If you would like to engage with the podcast, submit your listener questions to info@NurahSpeaks.com. Listeners can also learn more by visiting NurahSpeaks.com.

You can follow Nurah Speaks on X, Instagram and Facebook @NurahSpeaks and subscribe to the channel on YouTube.

Remember, don’t just Join the Movement, Be the Movement!

In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Episode 259 features an excerpt of Dr. King’s Sermon ‘Unfulfilled Dreams’.

While Dr. King is most commonly known as a leader within the Civil Rights Movement, it is important to remember that Dr. King was a pastor and concerned with the moral fiber of his people.

In ‘Unfulfilled Dreams’ King speaks on the substance of our hearts, our character and inclination to good, though our goals are unattained. And while we are often judged and unjustly criticized in our effort to establish truth and justice, the desire for good in our heart is a virtue and blessing.

If you would like to engage with the podcast, submit your listener questions to info@NurahSpeaks.com. Listeners can also learn more by visiting NurahSpeaks.com.

You can follow Nurah Speaks on X, Instagram and Facebook @NurahSpeaks and subscribe to the channel on YouTube.

Remember, don’t just Join the Movement, Be the Movement!

In this episode, I reflect on my experience running for elected office and share key lessons learned from the journey. While the outcome wasn’t a win at the ballot box, the experience reinforced that the work of service never stops.

Before running for office, there are important questions that must be clearly defined and questions I confronted prior to running:

Why – Why are you running, and what qualifies you to serve?

I was already serving my community, and elected office offered a way to broaden my impact. I ran to serve—not for a title or personal gain.

Who – Who will support you, challenge you and vote for you?

I was supported by a small, committed team that stayed focused on purpose rather than political negativity. Strategic relationships built during the campaign strengthened both the effort and our community.

How – How will you run and represent yourself?

Introducing myself to voters required sharing my story—beginning with my grandmother, whose example of service shaped my foundation. I chose to run a positive campaign rooted in integrity, regardless of oppositional, misleading or ugly tactics. I believe the people deserve more- and I do too.

What – What are you truly running for?

Understanding the office and examining whether you are running to give or to achieve personal gain is essential.

When – Is the timing right for you, your family and the people you seek to serve? Running for office requires careful consideration of time and readiness.

This episode is shared for anyone who may one day consider running for office. Public service is about sincerity, integrity, and service to others. And for me, despite the outcome, The Work Continues!

If you would like to engage with the podcast, submit your listener questions to info@NurahSpeaks.com. Listeners can also learn more by visiting NurahSpeaks.com.

You can follow Nurah Speaks on X, Instagram and Facebook @NurahSpeaks and subscribe to the channel on YouTube.

Remember, don’t just Join the Movement, Be the Movement!

Well, I am elated to be back at the microphone hosting Nurah Speaks. I know it has been a while so I take this episode ‘Back From Loss’ to catch everyone up with the events of the past several months and what is new with the podcast.

I want to thank everyone who has continued to support me and this project.

Welcome to Episode 257!

If you would like to engage with the podcast, submit your listener questions to info@NurahSpeaks.com. Listeners can also learn more by visiting NurahSpeaks.com.

You can follow Nurah Speaks on X, Instagram and Facebook @NurahSpeaks and subscribe to the channel on YouTube.

Remember, don’t just Join the Movement, Be the Movement!

I am elated to be back at the microphone hosting Nurah Speaks. I know it has been a while so I take this episode ‘Back From Loss’ to catch everyone up with the events of the past several months and what is new with the podcast.

I want to thank everyone who has continued to support me and this project. Welcome to Episode 257!

If you would like to engage with the podcast, submit your listener questions to info@NurahSpeaks.com. Listeners can also learn more by visiting NurahSpeaks.com.

You can follow Nurah Speaks on X, Instagram and Facebook @NurahSpeaks and subscribe to the channel on YouTube.

Remember, don’t just Join the Movement, Be the Movement!

Black History Month 2025 comes at a time in this nation wherein we need love amongst ourselves more now than ever. But we must advance the notion of Black Love beyond affection and recognize that love is a verb.

Love is doing good and bringing no harm. Love is elevating each other, teaching and encouraging and even correcting each other.

Black Love is more than a slogan or rhetoric on tees and hoodies. It is more than hashtags and raised fists. It is the activity we do in service of our people that promotes a future with promise.

If you would like to engage with the Nurah Speaks podcast, submit your listener questions or topic suggestions to info@NurahSpeaks.com. Listeners can also learn more about Nurah by visiting her website: NurahSpeaks.com.

Follow Nurah Speaks @NurahSpeaksPodcast on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

To bring Nurah as a speaker at your next event, email info@NurahSpeaks.com.

Remember, don’t just Join the Movement, Be the Movement!

This episode revisits a discussion about neutrality and our tendency to be noncommittal despite real challenges impacting our communities.

We cannot be on the fence forever being neither this nor that, never having made a commitment or obligating ourselves to one direction or another. Indecisiveness is obstructive to our personal development.

It is time now to be accountable and this comes with settling down to a good choice and solidifying ourselves with other like minded individuals engaged in the good work of creating change.

If you would like to engage with the Nurah Speaks podcast, submit your listener questions to info@NurahSpeaks.com. Listeners can also learn more about Nurah by visiting her website: NurahSpeaks.com or reading her blog by clicking this link.

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Twitter and Instagram.

To bring Nurah as a speaker at your next event, email info@NurahSpeaks.com

Remember, don’t just Join the Movement, Be the Movement!

After the inauguration of the 47th President of the United States, it seems that every liberal leaning media outlet is sounding an alarm of fear and terror with what has occurred and what is to come in the current presidential administration.

However I propose that the panic, fear and terror for what is to come for us is long overdue. We have already been existing with certain vulnerabilities in ways that other groups have not.

And what this podcast and other media sources like CROE TV and Muhammad Speaks Radio has been doing for years is helping us understand what these vulnerabilities are that the black community face and what we can and should be doing about them.

It is not necessary that we wait for the government to secure a future for us-because as we see, depending upon whose ideology is in power, we are simply in an insecure, unstable and frankly unsure condition.

And while our eyes and ears are summoned to the White House, we can overlook what is in front of our faces locally, whether that is public safety concerns, social concerns, concerns with substance abuse, concerns of health disparities, concerns in education, etc.

Let’s calm down! And let’s survey our own people to mine the skills, knowledge, talents and resources to lift our people our of the dependency on others.

Subscribe to CROE TV on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@croetv2936. Learn more at CROE.ORG

Listen to Muhammad Speaks Radio. Muhammad Speaks Radio airs every Tuesday at 8pm EST on WTMRRADIO.COM. Watch LIVE on Facebook @Muhammad Speaks Radio or stream live on IHEART RADIO and TuneIn Radio. Learn more at Temple20.org.

And be sure to subscribe to Nurah Speaks Podcast!

If you would like to engage with the Nurah Speaks podcast, submit your listener questions or topic suggestions to info@NurahSpeaks.com. Listeners can also learn more about Nurah by visiting her website: NurahSpeaks.com.

Follow Nurah Speaks @NurahSpeaksPodcast on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

To bring Nurah as a speaker at your next event, email info@NurahSpeaks.com.

Remember, don’t just Join the Movement, Be the Movement!