AQ'S Corner

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When I was growing up in the ’80s, “social” meant yelling down the block for your cousin, riding bikes until the streetlights came on, and dodging the ice cream truck unless you had exact change. If you wanted to go viral back then, you had to spin around in circles real fast until you got dizzy.

We knew our neighbors. We played with our neighbors. And we didn’t just share stories, we lived them, together. I could walk into Miss Jackson’s house two doors down, get a grilled cheese, and a talking-to if I acted up. The world wasn’t perfect, but it was real, and it was human.

Fast forward to now: I’m raising a 9-year-old daughter in a world where the new version of the neighborhood is the comment section.

These days, kids aren’t worried about who’s jumping double-dutch on the sidewalk. They’re watching who likes their video, who reacts with a heart, a thumbs up, or, unfortunately, an angry face.

Let me tell you, parenting in this era is a different kind of ride. No helmet can protect your child from the emotional scrapes of the internet. You can be minding your business, just posting a picture of your kid’s new shoes, and boom, someone you’ve never met is offended and typing with their whole chest about it.

That moment hit home for me recently.

We were sitting in the lobby of her dance studio, waiting for class to start, and I saw there was a new comment on my business Facebook page. about our book (Emani and the CyberHero Response Team). It said the book was “disgusting, stupid, and ugly.”

Y’all. I froze.

Because my daughter saw it too, she looked up at me, and I saw her little spirit sink just a bit. That comment wasn’t just attacking a book, it was aiming for something we created together. Something rooted in love, culture, and courage.

Now, I’m a kid from the ’80s, but I’m also a mom in 2025, an author, a founder, and a woman who knows that grace is powerful. So, I didn’t respond. I hit that blessed block button and kept it pushing. 

And I told my daughter, “Not everyone is going to like our book. And that’s okay.”

I reminded her of something my own mother and father used to say: “Everything doesn’t need a response.”

Still, it hurts. Not just the comment, but the realization that my child is growing up in a world where strangers feel bold enough to say things online that they’d never dare say face-to-face. Back in the day, if someone had a problem with you, they said it to your face, usually on the stoop, and usually while eating sunflower seeds.

Now? They hide behind keyboards and usernames.

That’s why I push myself so hard. Public speaking used to terrify me. I’d rather walk on Lego bricks than stand in front of a crowd. But I noticed something: my daughter inherited my nerves. So, when I push past my own fear, whether it’s reading our book aloud at a school or stepping into a business pitch, I see her do it too.

The other day, we watched The Wild Robot while I was doing her hair. There’s this sweet part where the duckling starts mimicking the robot. And it hit me, kids become who we show them we are.

So even in this chaotic, emoji-filled world, I keep showing up. Not perfectly. Not without fear. But with love. With fire. With the same spirit that grew up playing double-dutch and dodging dirty looks from somebody’s grandma for behaving in a manner that they know your parents would not approve of.

If you’re a parent reading this, wondering how to raise a kind, confident child in a world of filtered selfies and filtered emotions, I see you. We’re raising digital kids with analog hearts. And that’s not easy.

That’s why I wrote Emani and the CyberHero Response Team, to give our children tools, stories, and role models that reflect them. It’s more than a book. It’s armor. It’s hope. It’s a love letter to the next generation of CyberHeroes, our kids.

So whether you’re parenting through likes, angry faces, or just trying to make it to bedtime without crying into your hoodie, remember, we’re building the kind of strength our kids will pass down.

Fire hydrants may have been replaced by Wi-Fi signals, but the mission’s the same: keep our kids safe, loved, and ready for whatever comes their way.

Learn more and grab your copy of Emani and the CyberHero Response Team
🌐Available on Amazon and IngramSpark

Because CyberHeroes aren’t born. They’re raised one brave post at a time.