Glory

Jona Bryant Was Born Jonathan Bryant In February Of 1988. I Knew He Would Be A King Before He Made His Appearance. He Started His Ascent During A Blizzard And Took 24 ½ Hours To Make His Entry Into A Cold World Laced With Warm Love Just For Him. . Despite Other Brushes With Death And Serious Health Conditions Jona Defied All Odds And Grew To Be A Tender-Hearted Boy Who Felt Deeply. He Is A Born Nurturer. His Devotion To His Family Especially His Younger Sisters Has Not Wavered. Unlike Many Only Children He Exhibited No Jealousy Or Animosity Towards His Baby Sisters. Although He Had No Problems Wielding The Sledge Hammer Of Big Brother Love Woe To Any Others Who Overstep Their Boundaries. . A Man Child Growing Up With Only A Mother Is Challenging. When The Home Includes Two Sisters And A Female Dog It Surpasses Challenging And Enters Arduous. This Life Belonged To Jona. He Handled It Well But As Time Passed The Significance Of His Missing Father Became More Evident. By Age Eight He Changed Noticeably And Began Showing Signs Of Suppressed Anger. I Encouraged Him To Keep A Journal A Practice He'S Continued. . Jona'S Writing Has Always Been Awe Inspiring. In The Fifth Grade His Teacher Assigned The Task Of Keeping A Journal To The Entire Class. She Told Them That Anything Could Be Included. Jona Has Always Been A Literal Person. Telling Him To Say It Again! In The Stern Mommy Voice Was An Invitation That He Did Not Normally Ignore. I Received A Request For A Conference From The Teacher. She Wanted To Tell Me That Jona Had Included Personal Information Signaling Puberty'S Arrival. His Writing Has Not Changed. There Is Nothing Off Limits. If He Feels It Or Thinks It Writing About It Follows. His Descriptive Method Leaves The Taste Of Sweet Nectar On Your Tongue And The Sun'S Glow Blinding Your Eyes. . He Barely Passed The Sixth Through Eighth Grades. After Pleading For Help And Receiving None I Began Homeschooling Him. He Did Well His Freshman Year But Failed The Next When We Switched To An Online Program. He Failed. He Went To A Charter School His Junior Year. Doing Well Jona Was Placed In Honors Classes And Was Back On Target To Graduate On Time. But A Steady Decline Occurred In His Behavior And Mental Health. His Senior Year Was Full Of Turmoil Both Within And Without. Suspecting Depression I Took Him To A Psychologist. He Fooled The First Therapist But Not The Second. Finally He Was Tested For Depression And The Score Came Back Two Points Below The Highest Possible. He Could Not Be Hospitalized Because He Had Not Harmed Himself Or Others. Two Weeks Before The End Of His Senior Year The School Informed Me That He Would Not Graduate Because He Had Missed The Last Two Months Of School And Had Not Turned In A Portfolio. I Dropped Him Off. He Dropped Out. . Two Years Later Jona Made The Decision To Finish High School. All He Needed Was The Portfolio. He Had Ten Days To Complete It. He Met The Deadline With A Few Days To Spare. But That Was Not The End. It Had To Be Presented To A Review Board. Their Yea Or Nay Would Determine If He Finally Received His Diploma. He Asked Me To Go With Him. I Was Confident It Would Be Okay - Until We Walked Into The Room Sat Down And Heard The First Question. . It Wasn'T The Question But The Accusatory Venomous Tone Behind It. He Was Grilled About His Actions During The Two Years He Had Been Gone And What He Planned To Do If He Graduated. My Heart Pounded As I Saw The Silent Fear In His Eyes. He Told Her He Wanted To Write And Attend The New School In New York. She Inferred That She Doubted He Was Good Enough. Then She Read The First Poem In His Portfolio. Ten Days. As She Read I Saw The Transformation. Her Steely Gaze Softened. That'S All I Have... Her Shoulders Settled In The Lax State Of The Enthralled. ...I Will Commit Suicide... The Sharp Intake Of Air. The Protruding Eyes. The Look Of Utter Shock. I Almost Felt Sorry For Her. Almost... After Her Colleagues Urged Her Several Times To Keep Reading She Finally Continued. She Was Won. With Tears In Her Eyes She Read The Other Poems. The Inquisition Was Over. I Don'T Know If She Ever Realized She Didn'T Review The Rest Of His Portfolio When She Agreed That He Earned His Diploma. He Also Took Another Step Toward His Destiny. . Jona'S Writing Style Is Influenced By Floetry Who Put Poetry To Music And The Writings Of David And Solomon In The King James Version Of The Bible. Despite These Influences Jona'S Style Is Uniquely His Own. The Flow Of His Poetry May Cause Gentle Waves Or Giant Swells Of Emotion. Whether A Friendly Push Or A Vehement Shove You Will Be Moved. . How Did Jonathan Become Jonah? At The End Of His Last Visit With His Late Aunt Tillie She Called Him Into Her Room To Talk Alone. She Talked To Him About Jonah In The Bible Who Tried To Avoid His Destiny By Running The Other Way. She Encouraged Him To Stop Running And Face His Destiny. She Departed This Earth On July 7 2007 After Encouraging Our Entire Family To Do The Same. The Name Jona Resulted From That Conversation As A Tribute To Her Love And An Acknowledgement Of Her Words. With This Book Jona Is Again Moving Toward His Throne.