My walk, my accent when I talk, my cooking, my mannerisms all are a result of my gumbo of Southern roots....Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Louisiana. My ancestors survived on this continent through a period of time that included one of the worst crimes against humanity... one that many bloodlines did not survive. Yet, I am here. "The blood has already been shed," they tell me. "You are to step into this power UNAPOLOGETICALLY!!! "We had to hide who we were so t…

In lieu of having two adult children, I've had time to go back and reconsider how I raised them. If I could do it over again, I would have been more emotionally available. My reason for not doing so was my previous belief that it would weaken them if they had gotten used to being treated a certain way and I knew this society would not treat them the same way. I wanted them to have tough skin so that they could survive. Unfortunately, in this society, black people are not looked at with empathy a…

In 2008, I had a friend who lived in a house on thirty two acres of land. Whenever I would visit her, it was if I was visiting another country. Although I'm accustomed to living in larger cities, this lifestyle of foreign but intriguing to me. On one visit she took me to a tent by a creek on the property. It was so relaxing there, I decided to sleep there that night. It was a night that changed my life. I hadn't slept that well in years. From that night, I was determined to incorporate more time…

I had a patient last week with a gun shot wound to the head. As I'm having a conversation with them with they're eye dislocated... hanging on their cheek, I was reminded of a grim reality: until it's your time for you to die, you're not going anywhere. Over the years I've spoken to many on their death beds and I've NEVER heard anyone regret buying a bigger house, more expensive car or anything material. The conversations were always about things that were absolutely free such as spending time…

"Rootwork, Hoodoo, Conjure, Juju" … these terms are often followed with horror stories that exemplify their negative connotations. The question is "Why?" Why are these terms describe an ancestral form of alchemy as "evil". These rituals of resistance were brought to America by enslaved Africans. Before we get to our original question, let's explore what "Rootwork" is. Rootwork is an ancestral form of alchemy which includes herbalism, mediumship, and divination. Herbalism (herbal medicine) is t…

"Your ancestors are calling you back" I was told, the day before I left for Ghana. It was 9/23/2006. At the time I thought I was going there to study dance for 3 months. Little did I know it would be my 1st spiritual initiation. Yet, my message to a few before my journey was "I'm not coming back the same" and I didn't. About a month after I arrived, I had a vision of a trail that divided at a tree. In that vision I saw people lined up along the right trail with smiles on their faces. Then a vo…