—Previously published in Black Joy Unbound: An Anthology by BLF Press, 2023

And seeing the different shades from afar, she came closer to witness them and to say:

"Blessed is the Black woman, brown in the body: for the benefits of melanin are hers.

Blessed is the Black woman who is labeled strong when she is weak: for it is in her human nature to be both.

Blessed is the Black woman's silent tears: for they shall nurture her earth.

Blessed is the Black woman who hungers and thirsts after healing: for she shall make her own way if there is no path.

Blessed is the Black woman who is melanin-full: for she shall obtain sunlight.

Blessed is the Black woman's tone—of voice and skin—for they both have been touched by God.

Blessed are the Black mothers: for they were and are the bearers of lights children.

Blessed is the Black woman who is discriminated against for healing's sake: for trauma ends with her.

Blessed are you, Black woman, when the world and even your own kind, are unkind to you—stigmatize you, oppress you, and falsely teach you to hate yourself.

Rejoice and let your heart become—Black girl lips—plump with joy when other Black women create spaces for celebrating your happiness."

Was it from the dust, from the soil, or from the earth that I was created?

It was none of these—The LORD God formed me from the rivers of ink in His hands. 

He then blew a paper boat with an oar upstream for me to carry my message—I got in as my life depended on it. And it does. Every word that I write, life springs from it. So with that oar, I dipped deep down inside myself, and on that boat, I gently rowed poetry—forming a style and rhythm of my own. Paddling pieces together with a meaning that only my soul knows. 

That's how I became a living poet.