During a Path session with my ally and sister, I shared some new and wonderfully surprising feelings I had experienced about our childhood. After working hard to learn how to heal the pain and injury that we experience as children and walking myself and others through the steps it takes to do it, I recently woke up with vivid memories of being a little girl in my family. But these were not the usual, gut-wrenching memories of the rage and abuse that haunted my parents' dreams and fueled their frustration with their children. Instead, I remembered the sweet, heat-baked, summertime smells that greeted us when we opened the door of our neighborhood candy store. Such magical treats like mint juleps, banana splits, candy necklaces, jawbreakers, jolly ranchers, and a host of what seemed like hundreds of other sugary delights.
I remembered the magic that my mother wove through our lives, with the rich flavors of her southern cooking and her attention to every detail of what we ate, how we dressed, our hair grooming, and what books we were reading. Every holiday was a glorious and fantastic celebration of the joy and wonders of being a child. Christmas (the most magical and my all-time favorite!!), Easter (the clothes!!), Thanksgiving (the food!!) were her specialties. My father was the fierce and tireless gatekeeper of our family, fighting and struggling to keep the demons from devouring the innocence of his little girls and his son. He had his magic, too. He brought music (all the best jazz) and laughter (he could have done stand-up). These were my proud, Black parents, who faced the impossible every day, as they struggled to hold on to the dignity and self-respect ripped from them, at every turn, because they were Black.
As my sister and I spoke lovingly about our parents, we realized that, despite all the difficult and painful things they did to try and keep us safe and alive, it was so clear how deeply they loved us. They always made sure we didn't go without anything that we needed. Not only the food, clothes, and shelter they so generously provided but also the magical childhood things they gave us to make up for not knowing how to protect the delicacy of our young feelings. These people were our roots and, within their hearts, they held the truth of our ancestral heritage. They helped to shape us into the people we grew up to be. I am only just realizing how much I love them, and I'll spend the rest of my life honoring and celebrating their presence and their memory on this earth and in my life.
I will always be eternally grateful to my parents, my spiritual teachers, Chakra and The Team, and The Path: A Journey Into The Light, the ground-breaking work they created that allowed me to heal. My parents bravely chose to provide the obstacle course—with their injury—that I had to overcome to find my true self in Love. Chakra and The Team worked tirelessly with me and taught me how to heal, not only myself but also the legacy of my family injury in Fear.
Because of the indomitable spirit and determination that my mother and father imbued in me and the solid foundation of love that my spiritual teachers placed beneath my feet, I am so passionate to do everything in my power to bring love and healing to the human race. So, when I say to you that the most necessary and vital thing that you can do in this life is to heal and to learn to love all of who you are, the walk of my own life is what I always offer you, as my evidence of this truth.
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