Poem: FREE by Jenice Armstead

Imagine how happy and free I could be if I took me a little less seriously

If I looked at my failures with shrug and smile

And remember all of my successes with pleasure and pride

If I realized that I was great instead of analyzing all of my mistakes

Then sat with my collected thoughts to give a reasonable intake

Imagine how happy and free I could be, if I did everything in my power to just enjoy be me

Being is me is what I know and have come to understand

It is with great measure that I make that immediate demand

Imagine how happy and free I could be if I did everything in my power to be the best me

Success comes and success goes

What you are left with, nobody knows

It is vital that we understand that we are who we are for a reason

Reasons come with many seasons

But, how happy and free we all would be if we were just happy being free

Then, I imagine how happy and free I would be if I did everything in my soul to be the me I

was meant to be

I dedicate my poem, to the memory of Nelson Mandela

Published in April 2012, in “A Natural Hair Journey” Stories and Memories of a Curly Girl” by Jenice Armstead

Monday Morning Mindset

In a world full of upset and disappointment, it is encouraging to see positive views of your perception of what the world could be. Having worked for several large corporations and small businesses, the realization has come to me that it isn’t what you do – but how you do it. When you realize how invaluable you are, you begin to see the most positive sides of everything.

The other week I had the honor of meeting a complete stranger during an interview for a business contract. In perfect hindsight it seemed that we had no common denominator with one another. But, it is always important to look past what you see. This young woman shared her hardships with me about her starting to “go natural” with her hair. She asked about my natural hair journey and advice on what she could do. I answered her questions, but it was also put on my heart to tell her about my personal and emotional depletion with my natural hair journey. I told her how I have received many adverse comments and snide remarks about my hair and how the comments often made me feel. I shared how it was one of the hardest things I had ever done, yet one of the most freeing things I had done for my Spirit. She started crying uncontrollably and I asked her if I could give her a hug. She agreed, and then we both sobbed together for a few minutes.

For a moment we shared the same pain, discord and upset about “going natural.” But, it was much more than that, we sobbed about not being accepted by society, low self-esteem and our overall feeling about how our “nappy” hair made us feel. She apologized, for being “silly” and crying. I told her that it wasn’t silly, and that sometimes you just need for someone else to simply understand your pain. She thanked me and I was honored to have shared that moment of human empathy with her.

There is freedom in sharing the truth, no matter how painful it may seem. If we took a little more time to share in each others pain, the healing for each one of us could infect the world with more love.

Jenice

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