#ThePOWERofFORGIVENESS On November 15, 1999 my Pops made his transition. On November 15, 2013 I was offered a book deal to write a book about my father. On the night of January 27, 1999 I met this find young lady, who had quit her job earlier that day and made her way to a club called Rituals to pursue a professional singing career. Later this young lady became my girl, my woman, my wife and one day told me I Needed to Break the Cycle. And today January 27, 2015 I have the honor of announcing the release of my new book "Dear Father: Breaking the Cycle of Pain." I can't tell you how filled up with gratitude for this moment to finally be here. I've been looking forward to telling this story on a larger scale for a long time and God has opened the doors to allow me to tell it. There were times when I didn't have the courage to write about it, when I didn't have the energy to write about it, and when I didn't have the experience or wisdom to completely tell this story. But thankfully, life went on and the words made their way to the page. The stories revealed themselves. The healing was found. The joy was remembered. I'm telling this story because I want to share these tools of healing with others. I PRAY and I KNOW it will and can help others so I went to work, spent hour after hour in countless cafés, hotels, and restaurants from Chicago to Harlem to Brooklyn to Boston to DC to Los Angeles. I let that stream of consciousness flow and attempted to catch every thought and feeling that came my way. I'm proud because after combing thru edit after edit, chapter after chapter, story after story, poem after poem, thought after thought, idea after idea, I know I accomplished that goal. I want, we want to start this dialogue of healing. So today I ask that you go out and pick up your copy of the book. To my folks out east, stay warm, be safe, and order it online or pick it up later this week. I thank you all for your support. I'm looking forward to seeing you all soon. I'm looking forward to us healing together.
Your Friendly Neighborhood Poet,
J. Ivy
Published by: Beyond Words Publishing/Atria Books/Simon and Schuster