Grief - Martone

What Grief Revealed About Family, Boundaries, and Emotional Survival

Alignment, Advice, Black LGBT Authors, Books, Grief, Love, Martone, Story Telling In Music / Martone

Grief revealed about family is something few people prepare you for, especially when loss exposes emotional patterns that were always there beneath the surface. There is something deeply unsettling about realizing you are grieving while simultaneously being forced to monitor the emotional behavior of everyone around you. Most people assume grief looks the same for […]

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3 Ways I Stopped Pouring From an Empty Cup

Alignment, Advice, Grief, Lessons Learned, Love / Martone

Pouring from an empty cup is something many people talk about casually, but grief taught me what it actually feels like in real life. There are moments when everything feels like it is happening at once—loss, responsibility, emotional exhaustion, and the quiet realization that the world around you still expects you to function as if

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5 Moments That Reminded Me I Was Seen—Even in Grief

Black LGBT Authors, Black Americans, Books, Grief, Love, Martone / Martone

From a quiet gaze in the woods to a simple act of kindness, these moments reminded me that even in loss, I am still here—and somehow, still seen. Bloomfield Hills, MI You don’t always realize when you’re being seen. Sometimes it’s not by people at all. Sometimes it’s a deer staring directly at you from

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Rediscovering Myself: Reflections on Club Paradise and Evolving Friendships

Friendships, Grief, Lessons Learned, Love, Martone / Martone

There are places that live within us long after we’ve walked away. For me, that place is Club Paradise in Lansing, Michigan. It wasn’t just a club—it was a sanctuary, a beating heart of music, sweat, and liberation. It was where I found freedom, where I redefined myself outside of the world’s expectations, and where

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A Love’s Reflection

Friendships, Grief, Love, Story Telling In Music / Martone

A Journey of Love, Self-Discovery, and the Power of Letting Go There are songs that seize your soul, refusing to let go. One of those is Pat Benatar’s We Belong. I was driving one evening when it came on the radio, and the magnetic pull of the song hit me. “Don’t want to leave you

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5 Ways Black Entrepreneurs Can Fight the DEI Rollback

Advice, Grief / Martone

5 Ways Black Entrepreneurs Can Fight the DEI Rollback We all know that Donald Trump is a racist, and his policies are racist, but 49.80% voted for him and without a mandate we are all starting to pay the price. In recent years, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives have been instrumental in creating opportunities

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NO EXCUSE FOR PAIN: A SNAPSHOT IN TIME

Grief, Martone, Story Telling In Music / Martone

A Very Painful Childhood Literally and Figuratively. No Excuse for Pain: A Snapshot in Time A bill. That’s all it took to ignite hellfire. The kind that bruises more than flesh, that swells an eye shut and shatters the fragile trust a child clings to. A phone bill over $300. A mistake that would become

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Echoes of the Past: A Story of Connection and Heartache

Uncategorized, Friendships, Grief, Lessons Learned, Love, Martone / Martone

A depiction of Lind and Martone’s Last Meeting A Snapshot in Time: Lind’s Story Black gay mental health stories often remain untold, but this moment from my past deserves to be shared. By reflecting on this deeply personal experience, I hope to shed light on the challenges surrounding Black gay mental health and the need

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The Lasting Impact of Not Hearing “I Love You” from Your Parents

Grief, Advice, Friendships, Lessons Learned, Love, Martone / Martone

This article is part of a larger project that will eventually be released as a memoir. I am acutely aware that books are being banned across the country. If this were a book, and if I wrote honestly about love, relationships, and my life’s journey, it would likely face the same fate. The Lasting Impact

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The Silent Weight of Abandonment

Lessons Learned, Grief, Martone / Martone

While I was out working, a vivid memory of my first near-death experience came flooding back to me—the events surrounding it, who showed up at the hospital, and, more importantly, who didn’t. Writing has always been therapeutic for me, and as I pen these stories, I’m searching for the moments that shaped who I am

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