Shades Of
Strong Sista Circle
hey, sista queen
I know you!!! Yep, I sure do!
You’re the girl walking around in those super cute heels, hair done, nails done, wearing a gorgeous dress that would make Kerry Washington do a double take. Everybody loves you because you bring the fun – always laughing, breaking out in random song and dance. You’ve really got your ish together, right?
Yeah! Except you don’t.
That’s right, I’m calling you out!
Consume Your Thoughts
I see you crying yourself to sleep at night. And on the nights when you’re not crying you’re just lying in the dark staring at the ceiling. You’re hoping that somehow in the middle of all the silence, you’ll find the answers to the questions that consume your thoughts every second, every minute of every day.
“When do I get to be happy?” “ Why is God ignoring me?” “ When will my heart stop aching?”
You’re even secretly plotting your revenge against everybody who’s ever done anything to you. Why do they deserve to be happy when your soul is crying, bleeding? You’re drowning in doubt and fear. You’re no longer sure that there is happiness, peace, and freedom on the other side of it all.
Oh, and let’s not forget that daily drive to the office…
The Feelings Of Sadness.
Clearly, the music did what it was supposed to do, right?
But aren’t you exhausted from all of that pretending?
Aren’t you tired of wearing a mask?
It DOES NOT have to be this way.
Imagine a life where you live by the words, Yes, I sing and dance in my car. Yes, I see you watching me. No, I don’t care because….
I totally sang that in Pharell’s voice. Did you?
Okay, maybe you didn’t.
But the point is, you could be singing and dancing because you really are happy, not because you’re pretending that you are.
What if instead of waking up dreading the day, you woke up every morning excited about the promises of God, eager to take on the day because you know that each morning you open your eyes, you’re one step closer to the life, the career.
The love that you desire?
What if instead of spending time with people who don’t know the real you, you were spending time with people who allow you to just be you, no mask, no facade, just perfectly imperfect, flawlessly flawed YOU?
and…
What if instead of ending your day obsessing over everything that is going wrong or has gone wrong in your life, you ended it with a nice warm bubble bath, complete with a glass of wine basking in the joy of how amazingly awesome your life is?
Can I let you in on a little secret?
This can be your life!
But to get there, you’ve got to:
o Break the cycle of over thinking and obsessing about what tomorrow may or may not bring
o Stop waking up every morning just going through the motions pretending that you’re okay
o Stop letting circumstances decide when you’ll smile again, laugh again, love again, be loved again.
That’s the sistah circle comes in..
But then you get up every morning and it’s back to that cute little mask….
That mask that covers the heart that’s feels like its breaking with exhale.
That life-of-the party, handling my business mask that makes each breath ONLY just a little more bearable.
That mask that has you lying to the world and those you care about.
Yeah, that mask!
And YES – I called you out for wearing it!
In the name of all that is STRONG, BLACK, and WOMAN you’re working it girl
Seriously, it actually looks good on you…
…except for the edges that are curled and worn constantly taking it off and putting it back on.
…except for the cracks and tearstains from when you broke down in the restroom by yourself at lunch.
The world doesn’t notice. Like I said, you look good!
But aren’t you tired, sis?
You’re here because you’re tired of suffering in silence because
You know IT IS YOUR BIRTHRIGHT to be our truest, realest, unmasked self every second, every minute, every hour of every day.
We were born naked and vulnerable — freely embracing and experiencingexperienceing every emotion.
A place where you will be seen valued and heard.
Imagine being part of a safe and sacred space where everyone there GETS IT – space where sistas see you even when you struggle to see yourself.
~ Imagine not having to walk this path alone … that a community of women have your back every step of the way.
Cultivate and nurture seeds of hope, healing and happiness into a verdant forest of blessings so that women and their daughters and their daughters’ daughters may come to sit under those branches and inherit healing, so that our ceilings of abundance will be their launch pads into all the things that ancestors fought and died for.
For the Queen who’s battled insecurities most of her life and had people ridicule her aspirations growing up.
For the Queen who is tired of pleasing everyone around her for the sake of being accepted into circles that she doesn’t even want to be a part of.
For the Queen seeking the courage to stand up for what she knows is right and fight for her sisters to do the same.
For the Queen who is reluctant to fully embrace all her poor choices and transform her pain into purpose and power.
Contrary to what society wants her to believe, there is something so uniquely rare about a woman who fights for what she wants, stands up for herself and embraces her battle scars.
She isn’t weak. She is not defeated. She isn’t destroyed.
SHE’S A SURVIVOR.
She lived to share HER story
and you didn’t just do that for you…
You did it for your daughter and their daughters all of those who will come after you
You fought the good fight…
WE fought the good fight so that our daughters and their daughters would KNOW that they are more than what life throws at them.
We’re standing in our truths and telling our stories because doing so, gives her permission to do the same!
