As I learned from erin dale mcclellan, Indigenous medicine wheel technologies are ancestral tools that can ground and connect us - to the Earth, Spirit, ourselves, and one another. Often, they are rooted in the four directions and/or the four elements. I didn't know it at the time, but the immersion in the Before Yesterday We could Fly exhibit was a practice in witnessing these tools in action. Back home, as I began writing about the Black Women at Home Project's first field trip, I was...

My life is full in all the ways I have prayed for - mothering, daughtering, partnering, volunteering, friending and working for pay. I have worked intentionally to curate what enters and exits my life. Yet, I find myself with a new struggle - showing up for myself in my own home. My house is messy most of the time. I’ve started shopping at Trader Joe’s again so I can cook less from scratch. I look around and often feel neither stimulated nor calmed. I try to reattach myself to home in big,...

So much of what we hear about self-care is to go for a walk, take a bath, talk to your friend, eat healthier food, take a trip, etc. According to Dr. Pooja Lakshmin, author of Real Self-Care (Crystals, Cleanses, and Bubble Baths Not Included) , "real self-care is not a thing to do, it’s a way to be...it’s about changing your internal reality - or your consciousness.” Got that? I am rereading this book now. It is timely. Themes from the BW@H interviews show that yes, these women are...