Who Am I
Who I am right now, is not who I'll be tomorrow. I am someone who is constantly in the process of becoming. What exactly? Let's find out together.
Beginnings are hard. And like everyone else, mine has been equally disheartening, motivating, & complex.
Growing up in impoverished neighborhoods, raised by a single mother and traumatized sisters, and a house full of girls, communication, emotional intelligence, higher education and other barriers kept us from actualizing our greatest potential. However, being privileged enough to explore different cultures, backgrounds and places, upon returning to my hometown, Chicago, it consistently feels like visiting an out-of-order theme park. Spooky. Eerie. Sad. Yet still nostalgic and hopeful for laughter and shared joy.
1. In Divine Timing
This year, I’ve been told, is my saturn return. While I have a basic understanding of this, the gems I’ve gathered from this concept is that I’m seeking to say enthusiastically, YES! to my craft as a poet, an artist, a cultural critic, speculative writer, devotee to Iya Aiye, and a spiritually centered entity. Being adventurous by exploring career opportunities outside of my comfort zone, using my academic background, while also taking advantage of the gift of the internet, are all ways that I’ve been building my tolerance of being receptive of my destiny. This platform seems like a great opportunity to have more autonomy over my life and do what I need to in order to fulfill the needs of my soul.
2. The Art and Need for Sistering
I’m seeking to be a part of a space where the ideas, thoughts and streams of consciousness are leaning more towards the unorthodoxed, the indigenous and the vividly colorful. Where we can be wild and modern simultaneously. A place where no matter where I live or migrate to, I will have a steady foundation, a supportive team to help guide me, encourage me and show me some love. Something that is in scarcity at this stage of my life. Ultimately, I’d love to be a part of a sisterhood of creatives who are marginalized and just want to express the full range of our emotions, thoughts, and practices without shame or shrinking.
3. “the process of reinforcing or adding extra material to strengthen a damaged material, typically floor joists”
The concept of sisterhood, sistering, and what it means to be a true sister, has weighed heavily on my heart since I was a young child. Never belonging to those I share blood and memories with, has caused a lot of damage to my psyche, which I’ve only begun to have the vocabulary and courage to express it and begin healing it. But learning to trust Iyami, Divine Mother, I’ve decided to be more brave and resist oppression through attempting to discover and be more aligned in love, share my art, learn about my true ancestry/ancestral tongue/ancestral spirituality and my story, whenever possible. And access to the internet has made that possible.
On my website, Indigo Collection *, I’ve started a Meditations series. Where I meditate and transcribe the flow from my heart. Specifically on Chicago, all forms of art, and love. Which are themes I’d like to get more into here and create healthy, respectful, yet challenging dialogue. I’m hoping to get more traffic to the website, get more engagement, content and support for my youtube channel, Hearth of Hearts, and to start a podcast where myself and others interested, can talk more deeply about these themes from how we’ve observed and lived them. I’d also like to make available resources that could benefit young, single, Black women/femmes, who are also very much nomadic and free spirited so they can more easily remain creative, warm hearted, financially independent, and determined to be unbound by the confines of the circumstances in which they were born into.
*Indigo, the color, represents “devotion, justice, creativity, dignity, and wisdom”. Indigo adults, or in this case, Indigo Sisters/Elu Arabinrin, need our independence and the agency to make the best choices for our own lives and journeys to Self.
