Slap me, Jesus. I'm Ungrateful and Ignorant.

"A 7-year-old Trenton girl was sold like a prostitute to a pack of perverts and gang raped by up to seven men and boys. And the person who pimped out the grade-schooler was her 15-year-old stepsister, cops said." Horrific, right? -WEEN

There are days when, like a child wading in a kiddie pool, I sit in shallow water convinced that I'm deep sea diving. I wake up each day at the same time, climb into the same shower, enjoy piping hot water from a Moen-designer spout, and sing to whatever hums from Pandora on my BlackBerry. I apply MAC shadow to sleepy lids, pick out the pumps of the day, and straighten my highlighted tresses with a zebra- patterned flat iron. And I sigh.

I groan because its only 7:30am. I moan because I have to drive 25 minutes to my office. I mumble expletives because I can't decide what I should have for breakfast. And I curse my life. Because I am ungrateful and ignorant.

In Trenton, a young girl was distributed for sex...stripped of her innocence and her womanhood before life had an opportunity to offer her anything at all. A baby, in a sense, sold by her own family member. She'll never sleep soundly at night again. She'll never trust a hug. She'll never believe that the dark can be therapeutic and serene. She'll never know what shallow is like...because the deepest corners of her soul burn from invasion.

I woke up today, convinced that my problems were monstrous. I was annoyed with my commute, agitated with my current beau, and afraid of an upcoming presentation this week. I was wrapped up (like I often am) in the land of NNL.

I never stopped to realize that I could've been raped in my home, robbed, beaten, or even killed last night. I never paused to thank God for waking up every member of my family and (as far as I know) everyone I love. I concentrated on my miniscule troubles instead of embracing the reality that nothing (not safety,not food, not shelter) is promised.

I've lived for 23-years, without ever being sexually harmed or threatened. I've never been brutally beaten or robbed. I've never even known the true existence of hunger. I am, and always will be, severely blessed. And I refuse to pout for one more minute! I had the most serious Aha! moment of my life, when I read about that 7-year old girl. I realized that I need a swift kick in the ass. I need for someone in heaven to come down here and slap me. Twice. I'm guilty of being an idiot. Blessed and bratty. But all that stops here.

And that's real.