#norebfresh

“I’ve got myself to remind me of love”  -- Maze and Frankie Beverly

Today, I met with some sistah friends for my second writing circle entitled "Deconstructing What Mama Taught Me".  It was beautiful conversation and writing that led to self-realization. We cross referenced the knowledge handed down from our mothers and helped teach each other whatever went missing from our mothers' lessons.

Through this discussion, I realized how lucky I am to have a mother who is confident, free minded and loving. I never fully acknowledged how much I admired my mother. She taught me so much by her being herself. She taught me to embrace my natural beauty, the power of forgiveness, how to create strong friendships with men and the sexiness of confidence. She taught my sisters and I how to hustle and the power of prayer. She also taught me through a non-example at times. Sometimes I have to let go of those lessons by non-example and realize that her mistakes were her mistakes, not mine.

The healing came from the fact we all realized that through out the good and bad that mama taught us or didn't teach us, it is our responsibility to take control of our lives. We wake up and realize all the power and beauty mama has endowed us with, we also need to realize how to use those gifts. We can choose to use them wisely and push through our fears or we can choose to repeat mama's mistakes. This is our lives. We choose the steps.

I am excited for the next writing circle on February 23. Our topic for that day will be "Father: man, method or missing?" If you are a woman in the Philadelphia area looking to heal through conversation and creative self-exploration, feel free to contact me so you can attend.