A Little Human Conversation with Lakeshia Poole
Lakeshia Poole is a storyteller who likes to feel something. And you can tell that from her writing: it’s personal, genuine, and upbeat — very much like she is.
Lakeshia has been a writer for ten years creating a college fiction series inspired by her time at the University of Georgia and a daily devotional of inspirational fiction stories, scripture, and journaling pages called Faith Beats Fear. She recently published a companion book called Faith at Work.
We asked her a bunch of questions as part of our ALHC project. Read on to see what she had to say…
“What matters to you?
Leaving the world better than I found it. It sounds intangible, but I am intentional about it. ”
Have you ever assembled a piece of furniture with a loved one? How did that go?
I have. It was a high table with four seats for one of my first apartments. I assembled it with my mom. It was cool because while we are very similar, we don’t typically work well together. But we did work well together here. And when we got stuck, we were able to call a friend for help. The table and chairs have moved with me consistently, even when I moved home.
Coffee or tea?
Coffee.
What excites you creatively, spiritually or emotionally?
A new story idea. They come from random moments where I’ll hear a phrase or part of a conversation, or see something on TV. I always keep a notepad with me to scribble down the idea.
What is your image of pure joy?
Babies and children discovering the world. It is fascinating that they are fascinated by simple things. They are as pure as you can get with no fear or worry — they go with joy.
What will you do when you retire?
I don’t believe in retirement. I’ll write until I’m done. I’ll do this for the rest of my life.
What matters to you?
Leaving the world better than I found it. It sounds intangible, but I am intentional about it. I have created templates and processes so the next person to do my job can just cut and paste. It’s important to me to always be adding to people rather than taking away from them. And I try to never take those small moments for granted.
If you bought a $10 million winning lottery ticket after we finished this, what would you do?
Go and get a hotel room or cabin by myself to process it. I want to say that I would celebrate or tell people, but my natural response to even good news is to retreat — I’d have to process the new life ahead.
Where do you retreat to?
Ellijay, Georgia is a favorite. Anywhere near water — or mountains near water or the beach.
Top sheet or comforter only?
I thought everyone was like me and used both. When it’s hot I kick the comforter to the side, but I always have a sheet too. I was just raised with the expectation that that's how everyone does it. I realized when I stayed with a friend, searching for the top sheet desperately, that not everyone is the same.
How would you like to die?
Like my dad and my aunt — without regret or bitterness. Death is something I am proud to have faced. It was a fear of mine — I didn’t want to die without finishing things. But the people in my life taught me how to die; to be peaceful or even funny in death. They were humble and accepting.
Would you like to have A Little Human Conversation with Erin? Email hello@conversationalhq.com, and we might convo with you next!
