Shoe Personality of the Week: 2/20/2012

These ain't even my style, but symbolism is the order of the day so...rock wit' me for a minute.

For those of you into sun cycles, this marks the beginning of my 37th. It's cause for celebration & reflection. It's time to look back so that my vision can be clear as I look forward.

A lot has happened in the last year. Things that I expected occurred in ways that were unexpected, maintaining the element of surprise for things that I felt approaching on the horizon. A lot has happened this year & it has been good, even through the most trying times. I'm on the edge, teetering on a lot of change, excited as usual but also anxious.

Today is my birthday eve but 2 wonderful things happened. One of my oldest & dearest friends texted me early in case the hustle & bustle of his Life, a lawyer married with 2 little girls, prevents him from being timely tomorrow. He's always the 1st & it's always his goal. What makes his birthday wishes so special is that we almost NEVER talk during the year except on our birthdays or when he's in town on business & we get a half a second to catch up. He's a prime example of the way friendships don't die simply because Life moves rapidly past the moment you first joined. I speak his name rarely but he is 1 of my favorite people in the world, someone I'm proud of & who I always hope is proud of me. His annual birthday shout out reminds me that I'm loved all around, thought of even when I'm not aware & supported from great distances. He, among others, are the reason why I thankfully don't identify with loneliness & can be good by myself--alone. 2ndly, I received an email from the oldest Mama in my Life. Coming from an African centered background, I have a lot of Mamas who helped to raise me & still chime in when I'm in need of a word or 2 to get me over the hump. This particular Mama is battling cancer, has everyone else worried, but still remembers me through her own adversities. Moved to tears by her selflessness & the reminder that she's always been present for everyone, in my Life, since I was at least 3 years old. This example of womanhood, childless & never lacking love & adventure, has been my Shero since I met her. The receipt of her email transported me instantly back to chasing Cardinals & squirrels in her apartment courtyard. She's the reason I love Cream of Wheat & salmon cakes. She's the reason I love deep black skin, wanted to be tall, & knew in the back of my mind that I wouldn't die because I couldn't give birth. She's part of my history & who I am, the stories of who I've always been, the pieces of me that have not changed with each annual revolution are the stories I love to connect my self to my self. She is the keeper of some of those stories, the memory of me short enough to walk under tables but with a presence that hinted at the heights I'd reach despite being betrayed by my body. She's the reminder that I'm bigger than Me, come from more than my parents, have a responsibility to make others proud & walk in their sometimes scary vintage shoes.

Tomorrow will be filled with loving words of wisdom, encouragement, & nostalgia. It will be filled with love old & new & the joys of being special to my own community of people, joined by their love they have for me & the love I have for them in return. I'm not celebrating simply because I'm a year older & these days typically come with signs of celebration. I'm celebrating my connection to all of the people, places & things that are near & dear to me & hold me dear to them. I'm celebrating my imprint in these Interwebs, traces of who I am for posterity. I'm celebrating the circles I'm a part of & the things they've exposed me to. I'm celebrating the wealth of parents I have, the 2 that created me, & the host of others who've loved me & nurtured me. I'm celebrating the ability to do many things that I love & to do them well. I'm celebrating peace of mind & clarity necessary to make some of the moves that are in my near future. I celebrate options & resilience so that I may move forward successfully as I always do, determining what that means & looks like for myself. I'm celebrating the return of loving relationships & the wonders of exploration. I'm celebrating being kissed regularly & having a constant ear & a shoulder. I'm celebrating sisterhood in personal & professional connections that are aligning me with people of like mind, creating mutually beneficial relationships that will help promote us all in our personal & professional endeavors. I am thankful for what I have & how I live & the sense of adventure that will propel me ever forward.

No confetti is falling (unless 1 of you arranges something) but it IS a party up in here. However you celebrate, do that with me tomorrow. Raise a glass, blow 1, sing, shout, dance a jig in my honor. Thank you for carousing with me in spirit & for coming through here to read my thoughts & feelings on the world around me. Your participation is not necessary, but it's damn sure appreciated.

Watch me move.