Kids , Motherhood. In: Kids. Rough as in how the ocean behaves on the rocky side of an island. Thrashing and unpredictable and chaotic. And just when the waves seem to calm, a swell comes out of nowhere and sweeps across the cliff. And who is standing on that cliff? The parents.

If the world seems dark these days, if you're anxious or angry, adrift or uncertain, if you need something encouraging to lean on, then take the story of Jordan Ruffin-El to be your pillar. I met Jordan a few years ago when he was a year-old boy attending one of those church basement circles that tries to help young Black men cope with coming of age in one of America's roughest cities. Jordan told me then he had moved out of his mother's house on Detroit's west side because she not have enough room. He moved in with another teenager on the city's east side, where houses sag and broken glass glitters on the pavement. He was committed to finishing high school, making something of himself, so he could help his family when he came of age.

From the mine to the market, diamonds go through an extensive process to become the blinging girl's best friend that we know it to be. Before being sold, it is judged in terms of its carat, cut, color, and clarity. Similar to this gemological process is our own journey toward becoming the divine diamonds that we were born to be. Diamond in the Rough Teen Edition is a handbook designed to help you discover your light and shine for all the world to see. Regardless of what you've been through, God has a purpose for you.