Thoughts on Resilience

I am a woman who was taught to rise. I grew up believing resilience was the only option. At 7 years old I lost my father to a long battle of Colon Cancer. Shortly after I lost my MaMa House (grandmother) to breast cancer. I became familiar with losing people that held meaning to me. My mother was strong and never let us fall despite the many trials we experienced. She held us in her hands even though I am sure she was weak herself. She allowed us to feel all the deep emotions that accompanied loss and encouraged us to release it. The caveat was we couldn’t stay down. We had to keep marching on. Even when the road was scary and sometimes felt lonely we had to keep moving forward.

 As an adult and after experiencing a divorce I slumped into a very dark place. I was nine months pregnant with my son Jerusalem, and my other son Jude was 2. I kept asking myself how I was going to make it through. There were many days I couldn’t bear the thought of doing life all alone like my mother had to. There were many days I wanted to crawl away and hide from my shame. But my mother reminded me that we rise. We can feel the emotions and we can take time to heal but we must choose to rise. She didn’t let me stay in my depression and she reminded me of who I am. She reminded me of the people that loved me and reminded me of my strength. Even though it may have felt that I was weak, I was not. I came from a line of strong women and enduring was in my bones. So I decided to rise.

WHERE ARE YOU BEING CALLED TO RISE?

 "Did you want to see me broken?

Bowed head and lowered eyes?

Shoulders falling down like teardrops,

Weakened by my soulful cries?"...

"Leaving behind nights of terror and fear

I rise

Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear

I rise

Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,

I am the dream and the hope of the slave.

I rise

I rise

I rise."

-Maya Angelou