While at the beach with my family girls trip, we were having a deep discussion and out of my mouth the words spattered from of my lips. “I’m Not Fussing, I’m Discussing. “Then years later, I never knew I would live a real catastrophic event that would change my life forever. I was forced to evacuate immediately from my home with my daughter, my dog , some cherished family pictures, and little to none belongings . For one week I lived in a hotel. No clue whether I would have a family, home, or loving community (60 years) to return to. Also, the fear of breathing toxic smoke, quality of air, drinking contaminated water, and long term health problems. “How in the world was six hundred tons of ammonia nitrate in my backyard, and I didn’t know anything about it?” This question still haunts me two years later after the  Fertilizer Plant caught on fire less than a mile from my home in the historically Black community. The Fertilizer Plant which caught on fire housed 600 tons ammonium nitrate. Luckily, the ammonium nitrate did not explode. The Lord showed his grace and mercy on my beloved neighborhood. He protected us from being wiped away from this earth because it very well could have happened. The danger of ammonium nitrate is well known. In 1995, Timothy McVeigh used ammonium nitrate and other chemicals to blow up the  Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people. Eighteen years later, between 40 and 60 tons ammonium nitrate at the West Fertilizer Company near Waco, Texas, exploded. An amount less than what was stored in Winston-Salem, fifteen people died, 300 were injured. Why was this hazardous fertilizer plant built in my community and remained opened without following the policies and regulations? It’s because mostly black and brown people lived there. No concern to the city or state to protect my family, neighborhood and friends. CleanAIRE NC (https://cleanairenc.org/) a nonprofit that focuses on air pollution and climate change, told NC Health News that redlining played a role in why the Fertilizer facility was built in my community. That’s why my brand “I’m Not Fussing, I’m Discussing” … is so important to me. I’m an advocate and passionate about Environmental Justice, Mother Nature, Mental Health, Purpose of Life, Peace and Love.