The Holy City
The
Holy City
The Holy City by Micheal F. Blake
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PUBLISHED BY: Delphine Publications on ebooks
Copyright © 2013 by Michael F. Blake
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return to DelphinePublications.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author's work
Dedication
This book is dedicated to the loving memory of Emma Brown, my grandmother. When she left, so did a piece of my heart. I love you, Bay!
Acknowledgements
First and foremost I would like to praise GOD for watching over me and showing me the way. I never thought I would become a writer and to be honest, at times I was ready to give up. But I stayed prayed up an every time; the LORD gave me the strength to keep going forward. GOD always sent signs my way to assure me that I was definitely in the “blessing line”. Thank You GOD for exposing such a great hidden talent within me: I’m nothing without YOU!
I want to thank my mother, Kelly Blake, for loving me and installing entrepreneurship inside of me at an early age. She always drilled in my head to create work for myself. She never allowed me to believe that there was a future in working a job. To this day having a nine-to-five job has never been in my repertoire!
I would like to thank my pops, Michael “Pee Wee” Brown for being there for me as a child and for being understanding and supportive on most decisions that I made throughout my life, good or bad. My father set an example early on in my life on how to always conduct myself with class in anything that I do. I can always count on his advice when it came to the women and the streets.
I would like to give special thanks to Bonnie Blake, my grandmother, for helping raise me to become the man that I am today; I love you for that!
Last but surely not least, I would like to give a heartfelt thank-you to the two loves of my life, Michael “Mikey” Blake Jr. and his beautiful mother (my future wife) Marqueta Williams, for their love and support throughout my entire bid behind these walls. Second to god, they gave me the strength I needed to thrive on upon completing this project; I appreciate y’all from the bottom of my heart.
With much Honor and Respect
I want to give special thanks to the past and present community leaders of the “Holy City”. Without y’all this story would not have been possible to recite.
To my uncle, you know who you is, for sacrificing most of your life to the struggle, making it possible for me to have something worth remembering and talking about; I luv you for that. Unc, I hope I make you proud with this one.
To my oldest cousin Tim for exposing the harsh reality of the street life, live and direct! Coming up in the same household and being around you all my life allowed me to pick up on some valuable lessons in the game that helped me become the stand up guy that I am today.
To my cousin Donald a.k.a Don-Don for never keeping secrets and always keeping it real with me, Keep doing you cuz, luv you boy!
To my cousin Zayboo for being with me throughout our entire upbringing; All the shit we’ve seemed coming up, I’m sure you got plenty of movies in your head to write about ya’ dam self! Even though we grew apart and had our differences, you still my brother for life.
To my cousin Akili a.k.a Ke-Ke for being the brother I never had; for always understanding the bullshit that was going on in my life when nobody else did. I know you’re out there in that wicked world and can’t focus like you need to but you got to fight through it and get your mind right.
To my lil sister Kelisha a.k.a Keli B for being the first person in our immediate family to showcase raw talent, Thanks for allowing me to help jump start your musical career. Our journey is yet to be over. Sometimes we fall down only to get back up stronger and better.
To Big Mike you made my life fun, thanks for always being around, good looking out.
Everyone I just named personally influenced me in some shape, form or fashion. I will never forget all the fine memories we gave one another over the years. Much, much luv!
Shout outs’
I want to give shout outs’ to my entire Blake Family. Uncle Truel Sr. Rest in Peace, your name will forever live on. Aunt-tee Re-Re, Selena and Charlene luv you ladies. Uncle August a.k.a Road Dawg, keep ya’ head up I hope and pray that you see the street soon, I understand ya’ pain; Uncle Steve, Chris and Ralph keep doing you. Chris Jr. and Janelle luv ya’. Deon, I appreciate you cuz for having my back and helping me out through some pretty tough times, you was there when a nigga hit rock bottom in them streets. Mrs. Betty McKnight a.k.a Grandma, no matter what, I will never forget you taking the time to come visit me when you didn’t have to, I love you much! All my little cousin I didn’t mention, I love y’all too! To the entire Spivey Family, there’s no way I could name everyone but please know that you all have a place in my heart.
I want to give a holla to my entire Brown Family, Uncle Junior! Uncle Doll, I will never forget the trips to the Dells and the wrestling matches you took us to when we were younger, I appreciate you reaching out to me during my darkest times. Mr. Dee, Whudd up Kidd! I can always count on you to be ya’self at all time. To all the Brown family I didn’t mention, I love y’all too . . . To my two brothers Detron and Miguel stay focus.
To all my comrades that held me down in my day to day struggle in the joint, Big Gee, I see you boy, Kwame Boyd, Lord Dre from the wild hunits, wassup hometown! My nigga Cee P, we’ll definitely hook up, War-town, keep spitting that hot shit, Shamel Jackson a.k.a Gipp, I see you blood, my lil nigga Rico a.k.a Mac-town, being the first person to read the rough draft and push me hard to complete this project and that meant a lot to me. Devon, straight out of Macon GA a.k.a Mac, Randy Leonard, Nubs a.k.a Mo, Big Lew.
The
Holy City