My Eyes Still Close When I Hear Your Voice...Gods Gift To You...Your Gift To Us...Bless You Friend...

Ms Houston...

My eyes still close when I hear you sing. You are blessing all of us with your beautiful gift from God, your voice. I love your voice, now especially. It's you. It's is Whitney Houston. Sissy's beautiful daughter. One of my sisters in Jesus. Thank you for your courage to come back to those that love you. Those that pray for you. I love the gravity in your voice. You sound like a woman mature with wisdom and young with life. May God Bless You now and Always
Much love,
Jim

PS This is what I wrote in response to your beautiful new song.

Whitney, I've been where you were...and I'm now where you are. I'm at the top of the world.
Yes, I did have a Showbiz career and walked away from a TV series that I was written into on the 1st episode. I had to completly turn my back on Hollywood to find Jim Hillis again. I got a lot of help from my best friend, Lydia Cornell. She is my best friend. She got clean first. She loved me without condition...loved me enough to reach into my own self induced hell...grab me from my demons and run like hell with me to God.
I returned to love. I came back home to Boston. Home is where I was able to give back to what was given to me. The gifts of unconditonal love, support and family and friends.
I was raised by my grandmother, Nana Mac. I lost her about a year ago in my arms. Sad as it may sound...she left the planet like she lived her life...right smack in the middle of family chaos...beautifully, the way she would have wanted. She was a single mom in the early 40s when her wife beating husband, my grandfather walked out on her. Did she give up? Did she try to stop the world becasue things were too much. Hell, no. She worked as a maid. She was a housekeeper. She worked in a fine Japanese Art Shop 9-5. In the early afternoon she would work in a cafeteria or cater a party as a waitress...In the evening she would stay up until the candle burned down stringing beads from the local Jewelers. She would get 5 cents to 25 cents per necklace depending on the knotting or threading. She tried to show me as a little boy and I just couldn't get it. It was an art. She worked through the depression alone. Paying rent, bills and providing for her children. They came first...and often she went without. All her kids went on to do great things.
Due to family politics...when I was born...I was given to my grandmother to raise. This benefited us both as I got to learn so much from her...as she was fiercely devoted to me. My Uncle was in Vietnam...and she used to tell the story that she would pace the floors while carrying me around. She didn't have a crib so I was old fashioned harnessed in the bed with her, lying next to her. In the day of cloth diapers she said when she was dozing and her back all of a sudden felt warm she new I needed a changing.
As a child we walked everywhere. We vistited some new widow, or a mom who lost her son, or a lady that never married, the dying...etc...Just becasue it was "the right thing to do" In her small little world...my grandmother touched all she could reach so deeply that I never forgot her simple rules.
If you love your family and everone else you love God.
Don't let anyone hurt you or, make you feel you don't belong in a place where you belong, don't let anyone make you feel ashamed of who you are...and don't do the same to others.
You, like everone else, are a masterpiece of God...and nobody should destroy God's beautiful work.
The more you give with love the richer you become...and maybe it's not money because you can have a million bucks or 5 cents...it's up to you to be happy.
Don't take anything for granted.
God just wants you to enjoy his gifts...
His demands are not heavy.
Do the best you can...
Love one another...
And in the end...you receive his promise...
That, no, God never, ever leaves you...
And when you are done with his work here...
He'll bring you back to Him...
Way up there in Heaven.
Another rule I'll never forget is one that have help me save myself and others from those that do their best to take, rob, steal and hurt you.
"Jimmy, in life a lot of people will slam the door in your face. If you can't open another door...and you know in your heart that you are absolutely right...turn around and kick the damn door down.
I've kicked doors down for me...and those that weren't strong enough.

Whitney...thank you for having the courage to face firey, scary demons. God has plans for everyone. Although we don't have all the answers until we are in "thy kingdom come"...we have to realize that there are no mistakes...just lessons learned. We are all sent here on one of his missions. To affect people for the best.

Maybe, God's plan for you is just what you are doing. Making the public aware of how painful, lonley, sad and difficult drugs are. That's my mission...though I didn't get as famous as you, I have a website...and write with some of my celebrity friends trying to pass along to people what we've learned...how we overcame the devil with love and God...and how we can help.

You are setting a great example, Ms Houston...and that takes courage. Fear would still have you in a place of fear doing what you were doing...as painful as it was...at least you knew what to expect.
You are opening so many of God's doors for yourself...and all of us that love you...
Ms Houston, I think if you truly know how loved you are...you'd probably be overwhelmed...but, there can never be too much love.
Thank you, one of my bravest heroes.
One of God's choir.
...and I will always love you,
James Hillis Ford

http://www.JamesHillisFord.com
JamesHillisFord@aol.com