Deeper Understanding

The creation of the Africa A to Z podcast has been revelatory. I am learning so many new skills, but I'm also learning about myself. I've always known that I was capable, but I had no idea what I was fully capable of until I jumped into the deep end of the podcasting pool! Our new episode on beautiful Botswana dropped yesterday-give it a listen later and let me know what you think. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/africa-a-to-z-episode-06-botswana/id1872235070?i=1000759964926

I have gained a lot of transferable tech skills which will come in handy as I grow and branch out into new areas in life. I can now record, make beats, edit, and upload a podcast; I am a One-Woman Show! This has forced me to start a new process and be a beginner ; something I haven't had to do in 27 years. I have tested my own patience as well as my fortitude. It's one thing to know what you're made of, it's another thing to see it.

With this deeper understanding, I have gained insights into my purpose. The podcast has me asking questions about myself-but this time to other people. It has me re-examining things about who I am and inviting others to re-examine with me. I'm uncovering a new level of transparency, and it can be uncomfortable but I know that my growth lives in this discomfort. After a short but meaningful conversation with one of my daughters (she's kind of shy, so I won't put her picture up, unless she's says it's okay...), I realized that my "why" had shifted.

My "why" had been to transform racial trauma so that we can all realize our full human potential. But after answering her thought-provoking question, I understood that my "why" had grown along with me. My deeper understanding is that I do my work so that we can all reclaim what it rightfully ours, our heritage. Repairing the damage done for me now looks like me knowing my history and understanding my powerful place in the world, and you doing the same. Empowered people are impactful people; they change their worlds and the worlds of the people in their orbit. By gaining a deeper insight into who we ALL are and where we ALL came from, we can understand the responsibility we all have to the world.

Nelson Mandela said, " Our human compassion binds us the one to the other - not in pity or patronizingly, but as human beings who have learnt how to turn our common suffering into hope for the future." I think he said it all right there.