to the black women who shaped me.

black women would ‘never stay long’

always demanding that their children make haste

yet conversation tugged them in our home

and they talked until the couch rearranged its atoms

to fit their form

the living room would be filled with the

jingling of cowrie shells

dangling from the branches of my aunt’s locs

that now hang from mine

the smell of palmer's cocoa butter

made my aunt glow like venus

lingered throughout the house

now it lingers in mine

dried bouquets of flowers

gifts from her most beloved

would sit on the desk in my mother’s bedroom

now they sit on mine

hot grits always on the stove

baseball bat next to the bed

concealer to shape brows

gold to compliment skin tone

life lessons learned

now present in mine

now, when i visit my friends

i ‘never stay long’

Liner notes:

When I was growing up, my mother loved to entertain and have gatherings with her closest friends. From Black Panther watch parties to tea parties and brunches, I witnessed the joy and bond that Black women share when they come together. Watching her interact with her friends taught me the importance of community and the beauty of sisterhood. Although my mother is an only child, I still have countless aunts who have always been present in my life. They would never shy away from taking up space in any room they walked into, and I always try to echo their presence and confidence. Nothing can ever properly prepare you for the feeling of being a Black woman in academic spaces, but watching them taught me the power of owning your space, which has been essential as I come into spaces that often do not feel like my own.

From Black women, I have learned a wide variety of lessons, from leaving grits on the stove in case of an intruder to writing emails in a way that doesn't make the recipient immediately groan. I do not know if these women fully understand the impression that they left on me because while many of these lessons were taught verbally, most of them I learned through observation. The wisdom and resilience of these women continues to guide, shape, and empower me to navigate the world through strength, sisterhood, and self-assuredness.