Unprotected.

Posted on by Sherron

I’m a black woman. I’ve always known I was black. From the moment I understood what race was. However, I never let it define me. I’ve just been a girl who became a woman. I never felt the need to put my blackness in the forefront. Never really saw how it affected me until recently.

When we talk about race, we automatically assume it’s about racism. Although I recognize that racism is all around us, this is not that kind of post. This is about me. A black woman. A black woman who doesn’t feel protected and I’m not sure if I ever have (with exception of my dad). And I’m wondering whose fault is that?

Protection does not just mean physically. It means emotionally as well. I have not felt emotionally safe in my relationships. I have not felt safe to rest. I have had to be strong constantly. I have had to be a work horse; always with 2 jobs or more. I have had to worry about everyone around me, take care of everyone around me, and neglect myself. I mention my blackness because this seems to be a theme for other black women I surround myself with and encounter.

And we are tired.

Who protects us when we have breakdowns? When we’re depressed? When we are exhausted? When we absorb all the anger and pain of our loved ones? When do we get to be soft and rest in our femininity?

Who takes care of us?

Is it our fault that we exude too much strength? Does it come from our distant past of being slaves? Working in the fields, in the house, taking abuse, being raped, breastfeeding all the babies, cooking all the food? Being ripped away from our husbands and children? Has that ability to take on pain just been passed down from generation to generation and we accept it as gospel?

Some could blame our men who have not learned to art of protecting, providing, and leading us. Most of them (including us) have been apart of broken homes and we have not been shown or taught what that type of household looks like.

I could come up with many excuses and reasons to why black women don’t feel safe. Many reasons why I don’t feel safe now. But the real issue is, how do we change it? Based on Malcolm X’s famous quote, this feeling, this issue is not new. But it’s something that needs to be addressed.

Protect the black woman.

New Mom, Who Dis?

Posted on by Sherron

Between being a new mom and the pressures of work, I haven’t felt like myself lately. I can’t remember the last time I put on make-up. Please don’t look at my nails or toes. Don’t ask me the last time I went to a concert, movie, or an outing without Jayden. Don’t even talk about the gym. Planet Fitness has just been taking my $20 every month, but haven’t seen me since I was pregnant.

The trip that my husband and I took in January was supposed to give me a new perspective. Remember, “Let’s practice self-care all 2019”? Well yeah, I haven’t been doing that.

I’ve always been one to put other’s needs ahead of my own, but it’s become especially bad these last weeks. I wake up with thoughts of “What do I need to do for my son, my husband, and my job today?”, but never, “What do I need to do for myself?”

I know being a mom is no excuse. I know for a fact that moms can stay in fashion and in shape, look polished and manicured, all while taking care of their family.

Well, let’s just say I haven’t gotten the hang of it yet. I’m a hot mess.

7 months may seem like enough time to get myself together but believe me, time flies and those months have been a blur of nursing, pumping, cleaning, washing, changing, feeding, entertaining, teaching, working, rinse, repeat.

It’s not that I hate doing these things. Being a wife and mother is everything I prayed for and I know responsibilities come with it. It’s just that I have to make myself a priority. I need to be taken care of too and I have to make the time to do it.

Now that I’ve recognized that it’s too much of a problem, I am determined to take a piece of my day and dedicate it to doing something for me.

So to all the other mommies who feel like me, let’s try to practice daily self-care. Give yourself 30 minutes to exercise, go get a mani/pedi, go see a movie by yourself, hell, just take the long way home if you have to. We need it. If we don’t take care of ourselves, we can’t take care of the people we love.

Now let’s see if I can go practice what I preach.