Welcome, loves, to the Pâosies Cafe Series, a new gathering for lovers of language and narrative. Our name, a playful blend of âPoetryâ and âStories,â perfectly captures the essence of what weâre about. In this series, my best friend and fellow writer will join me at our writersâ cafe with our laptops, pens and paper, and a couple of iced mochas or chai lattes. Weâll be sharing our own workâfrom whispered verse to sprawling talesâand we invite you to listen, reflect, and get lost in the power of storytelling.
Have you ever felt supernaturally protected, as if invisible forces were clearing your way? In this story, unseen spirits whisper, shield, and move the world for those who believe. Trust the path that unfolds.
Today at the P’osies Cafe, we have pt 4 of A New Hope, written by Saneatra Polk. So grab a cup of your favorite cup of coffee or tea and join us!!!!
If youâve been enjoying A New Hope, be sure to visit her channel for more of her incredible stories! Saneatra is an excellent fiction writer who captures the heart of storytelling through her sci-fi, urban fiction, and more.
Welcome, loves, to the Pâosies Cafe Series, a new gathering for lovers of language and narrative. Our name, a playful blend of âPoetryâ and âStories,â perfectly captures the essence of what weâre about. In this series, my best friend and fellow writer will join me at our writersâ cafe with our laptops, pens and paper, and a couple of iced mochas or chai lattes. Weâll be sharing our own workâfrom whispered verse to sprawling talesâand we invite you to listen, reflect, and get lost in the power of storytelling.
Mr. Daniels and His Cup of Coffee pt 1
(c) 2025
Written by Tannika Nikeya
An hour after the sun rose to announce the morning, âHere Comes the Sunâ by The Beatles serenaded the small cafĂŠ on the corner of a quiet street. As the song played, the sun smiled on the cafĂŠ, beaming its light through the big front window with its sign: Pâosies CafĂŠ.
It wasnât a major coffee spot, but it was a quaint and cozy âmom and popâ shop in the neighborhoodâa true staple.
Warm colors, potted Pothos and Fiddle Leaf Fig plants, and dim lantern-style light fixtures hung over some of the tables. Unique abstract artwork adorned the walls. The wood tables and chairs added to the cozy charm, complemented by faux fur throw pillows in autumn hues of yellow, orange, and red.
One by one, customers walked into the cafĂŠ, the door chimes eagerly announcing each entrance. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee filled the air. A new spiceâpumpkinâhinted at the arrival of a new season.
Some customers came in with smiles and cheerful greetings; others offered polite nods, still adjusting to the morning and mentally preparing for the day ahead.
As each customer entered, the daytime crew greeted them with warm smiles and hearty good mornings. Some even had custom greetings for their favorite regulars. But when Mr. Daniels walked through the door with a slight limp and a soft nodâjust as he did every morning at 7:45 a.m. sharpâthe entire morning crew chimed in together:
âHello, Mr. Daniels.â
And Kimberly, as always, asked,
âHow are you this morning?â
Kimberly was one of the managers and the supervisor of the daytime crew. She had long locs and a beautiful smileâone that included both her eyes and her mouth and illuminated her rich, dark skin. Mr. Daniels often reminded her that she was beautiful and that she had the loveliest smile.
âIn life,â he would say, âa smile from the heart and a joyful laugh are just as potent as medicine.â
Kimberly loved when Mr. Daniels shared his wisdom or stories from his younger daysâsometimes about life, sometimes about the war. He was a sweet old man, kind and gentle, who looked fragile and poor. She would often tell the baristas to give him his change back, but he always refused. He would not take his drink if they didnât accept his payment.
Every time he visited the cafĂŠ, he sat at the same table. He wore the same old brown jacket with patches, the same brown slacks, and the same white shirt. His black shoes were worn and crackedâjust as weary as his jacket. And he always ordered the same coffee: almond milk, no sugar.
Most of the daytime crew thought he might be homeless because of his worn clothing and how he stayed for hours, sometimes until the crew clocked out.
Gregoryâthe one who kept everyone laughingâwould always joke,
âThat man ainât homeless. He probably got a one-bedroom with a closet full of money. Heâs rich, how much you want to bet?â
Welcome to the final post of my Persevere Series. God has been teaching me that perseverance is less about how strong I am and more about how faithful He is. Through these posts, I want to encourage you to keep going, trust His timing, and remember that even small steps count. Perseverance isnât about perfection â itâs about leaning on Godâs strength in every season, whether youâre walking, crawling, or getting back up after a fall.
Reflection
Perseverance isnât about pretending everything is fine or ignoring the weight of our struggles. Hard times are real. Pain is real. Sometimes, just making it through the day feels impossible.
But perseverance means choosing, moment by moment, to keep moving forward, even when the road is rough. Itâs leaning on Godâs strength when our own runs out. And sometimes, itâs allowing ourselves to be stillâto rest and rechargeâso we can rise and move forward again. We must learn when to be still and when to move, but in both to trust God.
I, too, need encouragement on long days and during hard seasons to persevereâalong with practical reminders to keep pushing. Because even in the toughest moments, Godâs strength is made perfect in our weakness and it is the fuel to keep us going.
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Here are a few practical ways we can persevere in the middle of real life:
1. Anchor in Godâs Word â Keep a verse close (on your phone, mirror, or journal) that reminds you of His promises. When your strength wavers, His Word steadies you.
2. Pray Honest Prayers â Perseverance doesnât mean polished prayers. Tell God when youâre weary, broken, or unsure. He hears the raw and real.
3. Take One Step at a Time â Donât focus on finishing the race all at once. Just take the next step today. Small faith steps still move you forward.
4. Lean on Community â We werenât meant to endure trials alone. Share with a trusted friend, mentor, or prayer partner who can remind you that youâre not carrying the weight by yourself.
5. Rest Without Guilt â Rest is not giving up; itâs a way of refueling so you can keep going. Rest is actually trusting Godâs leadâacknowledging that His strength sustains you more than your striving. It allows you to be more focused and fruitful. Rest says you care about yourself, and about others, and about honoring God. You cannot pour from an empty cup. Rest allows you to refuel, recenter, and return renewed.
6. Break Tasks Down â When life feels overwhelming, simplify your to-do list. Focus on one thing at a time. Progress in pieces still moves you forward.
7. Celebrate Small Wins â Every bit of progress counts. Take time to acknowledge what God is helping you accomplishâeven the little things. Gratitude builds endurance.
8. Learn from Setbacks â Donât let mistakes, setbacks, or delays define you. Let them refine you. God often uses challenges to teach, strengthen, and redirect us toward His best.
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Perseverance is not about denying pain, but about trusting that God is still at work in the middle of it.
Scripture
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.â â Galatians 6:9 (NIV)
Prayer
Father God, Thank You for being our strength when we are weak. Help us to persevereânot with fake smiles, or empty words, or in our own strength, nor for the sake of a pat on the back for how much we can endureâbut with genuine faith rooted in Your promises. And with Your wisdom and humility, Lord. Grant us wisdom to rest when we need to, courage to take the next step, and grace to trust that You are with us through it all. In Jesusâ name, Amen.
Accompanying Video:
I hope you enjoyed this series! What is one take away from this series you will apply to your everyday journey?
Welcome, loves, to the Pâosies Cafe Series, a new gathering for lovers of language and narrative. Our name, a playful blend of âPoetryâ and âStories,â perfectly captures the essence of what weâre about. In this series, my best friend and fellow writer will join me at our writersâ cafe with our laptops, pens and paper, and a couple of iced mochas or chai lattes. Weâll be sharing our own workâfrom whispered verse to sprawling talesâand we invite you to listen, reflect, and get lost in the power of storytelling.
Sometimes the hardest part of the journey is remembering who you are. Even when doubt calls your name, trust the path that keeps pulling you forward.
Please join us today for part 3 of A New Hope within the P’osies Cafe Series!!!!
A New Hope pt 3 (c) 2025
Written by Saneatra Polk
Please click above if the video does not automatically display.
Sometimes what people say sparks judgment⌠or it sparks reflection. Hereâs what Ayesha Curry reminded me about fulfillment, identity, and walking with God through it all.
Ayesha Curry is being dragged online for saying she never wanted to be married or have children â that she wanted to be a âcareer girl.â
It made me think of these statements I heard before: that a curly-haired person often wants straight hair, and the one with straight hair often wants curls. The single woman may envy the married one, and the married woman may envy the single one. You get the point â so many of us wrestle with some kind of discontentment, and we never really know deep down what is going on with someone or what is happening behind the closed doors of their homes.
So, instead of joining the dragging, I felt led to turn this into a moment of reflection â and encouragement.
Ayesha isnât the first woman to express this kind of longing or unfulfillment. But she must be careful about oversharing and processing deeply personal pain in public spaces. Sheâs mentioned going to therapy, which is good â but I hope sheâs also doing the heart work with God. Because therapy is helpful, but true healing happens when we let Jesus into the process.
When Iâve had to face my own pain, Iâve asked God to show me the root causes â the âwhyâ behind the hurt â and to lead me forward. Healing with Him hits differently.
Here are a few lessons Iâve learned that I think we as women â especially Christian women â can remember when we feel unfulfilled or lost:
1. Only God can fulfill you. No person, title, or situation can do what only the Creator can.
2. Nobody can keep you happy forever. Happiness is fleeting. True joy is rooted in God, not in circumstances.
3. Know who you are outside of your roles. You are more than your job, your family, or your church position.
4. Rediscover what lights you up. Donât get lost in othersâ expectations. Find your God-given passions and purpose.
5. Donât make âthe good girl,â âchurch girl,â or âcareer womanâ your identity. Those are titles, not your essence.
Note: this is not saying go out and sin. It is not saying go out and be wordly. It is not saying that “good girl,” “church girl,” or “career woman,” are bad. But what it is saying is your identity should not be wrapped up in these titles, positions, etc. Your true identity is found in Christ. And if we fail to maintain perfection, some of us will be crushed under a false standard of perfection that can never be obtained. Instead aim to make right decisions, not forsake the assembling of ourselves with other believers, live life on purpose and in purpose. Aim to please God and not man. Aim to live a life that is full and enriched.
6. Embrace all of lifeâs seasons. The dull and hard ones often teach us the most about ourselves and about God.
7. Evolve and grow. You wonât be the same ten years from now as you are today. Let God continue shaping your heart to reflect His Son.
8. Reinvent yourself if you need to. If you know you want a simpler lifestyle or to grow more confident, take steps toward creating the life you need â one that also honors God. Maybe you want to freshen up your wardrobe, travel more, or step into your ârich auntieâ era â do it! Just check your motives.
Are you doing it to seek validation only, prove something, or outshine someone? If so, pause and reflect. But if youâre doing it because youâre healing, growing, and wanting to live more fully, go for it.
And donât allow people to box you in. You donât have to stay stuck in who you used to be or in the image others have of you. Grow, evolve, and glow up â with God leading the way.
9. Develop a heart of gratitude. But donât neglect the room for grieving the life you thought you should have had, or wanted, or have yet to experience within your healing journey. Sometimes we donât know what we truly want when weâre younger. Grieving is natural and necessary, but there are things, some so small yet so monumental, to be grateful for.
10. Be quick to listen and slow to speak. And get back to living. Sometimes we need to hear our own pain. And sometimes we need to refrain from constantly rehearsing our pain and get back up and live â living the life that allows us to breathe again. Not perform. Not live in someone elseâs image of us. Not constantly going and never stopping to rest and enjoy that which or who is around us.
So be encouraged, Ayesha â and to the rest of the ladies who may also feel lost, unfulfilled, or just need to get off the spinning wheel or out of the box of the world or othersâ expectations.
Welcome, loves, to the Pâosies Cafe Series, a new gathering for lovers of language and narrative. Our name, a playful blend of âPoetryâ and âStories,â perfectly captures the essence of what weâre about. In this series, my best friend and fellow writer will join me at our writersâ cafe with our laptops, pens and paper, and a couple of iced mochas or chai lattes. Weâll be sharing our own workâfrom whispered verse to sprawling talesâand we invite you to listen, reflect, and get lost in the power of storytelling.
Today, we have a fresh new poem being served. Grab your tea or coffee, come on in and enjoy!
Smile & Grace (c) 2025
Written By Tannika Nikeya
Love how you walk by people, acknowledging them with a warm smileâlike chai tea’s warm embrace, silently sharing with them Godâs amazing grace.
But I notice there is one person who doesnât receive as many of those smiles, treated as though she were a forgotten child. Can she, too, have that same patience and mercy?
Can you give her that same smileâ not just with your mouth, but with your eyes?
Or will the little girl in her continue to feel despised, less than, unseen, unheard, unworthy of love?
Give her your attention Receive His grace His mercy that His unfailing love will trace.
Let her know you see her. Donât allow her to shrink or hide. Stop, embrace her, and let her smile shine on the inside.
What small act of kindness could you offer today to someoneâs unseen heart⌠and even your own? đ
Welcome, loves, to the Pâosies Cafe Series, a new gathering for lovers of language and narrative. Our name, a playful blend of âPoetryâ and âStories,â perfectly captures the essence of what weâre about. In this series, my best friend and fellow writer will join me at our writersâ cafe with our laptops, pens and paper, and a couple of iced mochas or chai lattes. Weâll be sharing our own workâfrom whispered verse to sprawling talesâand we invite you to listen, reflect, and get lost in the power of storytelling.
Today at the cafe, we have part two of A New Hope, written by Saneatra Polk. So, come on in and enjoy. Without further ado:
A New Hope Pt. 2 (c) 2025
Have you ever wanted to give up simply because you couldnât see the bigger picture? Thatâs how I felt the further I walked east. There are fewer camps. The world around me turned into nothing but dust and the occasional flicker of sun or moon through the haze.
The voices were still with me, but quieter nowâlike they were watching to make sure I kept going. I still didnât know why I was being sent so far, just that I was obeying.
Traveling east felt like climbing a mountain made of ruins. Old skyscrapers had collapsed into jagged hills of metal, glass, and concrete. Even with the abilities I got from the bioweapon attackâspeed, heightened sensesâthe journey wore me down. No water. No posies. I wasnât sure Iâd make it much longer.
Then I saw itâa beam of light shooting from the ground into the sky.
One of them approached me and said someone was waiting to see me. A girl from the orphanage. Like me, she survived the biochemical blast. But instead of speed and voices, she came out of it blind⌠and able to see the future.
She couldnât see me with her eyes, but she recognized me immediately in the spirit. She told me I had to keep going, no matter how hard it became. She said a message was waiting inside the box Iâd been sent to find, and that I was the one who had to deliver it to the people.
The weight of it hit me: Why me? What made me worthy of carrying something meant for the world?
The Sky People gave me water and posies. Before I left, they told me that if I continued in the same direction, I would reach the Green Peopleâand they would strengthen me for what comes next.
When I walked away from their camp, I carried something I didnât have when I arrived: a sense of purpose. For the first time, I started to believe⌠maybe I really was chosen.
Have you ever felt like giving upâonly to find unexpected strength or help right when you needed it most?
Welcome to my Persevere Series. God has been teaching me that perseverance is less about how strong I am and more about how faithful He is. Through these posts, I want to encourage you to keep going, trust His timing, and remember that even small steps count. Perseverance isnât about perfection â itâs about leaning on Godâs strength in every season, whether youâre walking, crawling, or getting back up after a fall.
Reflection:
Have you ever tried to run for a bus with your hands full, hoping nothing spills or falls out of your bag? I have, and sometimes I would miss the bus altogether. Sometimes it was because I didnât leave on time, and other times because the bus arrived earlier than expected. But one thing Iâve noticed: the run is always easier when Iâm carrying less.
Thatâs how it is in life and in our faith. When weâre weighed down by stress, fear, distractions, worriesâor even sinâthose weights slow us down. They drain our motivation. They cloud our focus. They make it hard to obey God, to see clearly, and to walk unashamed.
But thank God for Jesus! When we pause and place our burdens in the hands of the loving Savior, the One who both initiates and perfects our faith, He gives us the strength to persevere. He doesnât just help us carry the load, He offers us an exchange: His yoke for ours. And His is easy, His burden is light.
If you havenât yet made Jesus Christ your Lord and Savior, I encourage you to do so today. I can testify that even in lifeâs storms, He has never left me nor forsaken me. He is always near, ready to help and comfort us.
Scripture:
Hebrews 12:1â2 (NLT)
âTherefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting Him, He endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now, He is seated in the place of honor beside Godâs throne.â
Prayer:
Father God, Forgive us for holding onto what Youâve asked us to release. Forgive us for the sin that so easily entangles us. Thank You for Your mercy, for Your forgiveness, and for Your unfailing love. Thank You for the grace that enables us to run with endurance the race Youâve set before us. Help us fix our eyes on Jesus, never ashamed to bring Him every concern of our hearts. In Jesusâ name, Amen.
Happy Fall Season!!!!! Did you grab your favorite coffee, iced coffee, or chai tea this morning? Well, if you did, make sure you also check out writers, Saneatra Polk and Tannika Nikeya. They’re serving up poems and stories, creativity, encouragement, and inspiration.
đâď¸ So come On In! Dive into the Posies Cafe Series on YouTube as well as our other platforms for captivating short stories & poems. And stay tuned for this Friday’s new post. You don’t want to miss it!
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