Dr. Margaret Burroughs Transitioned on Nov. 21, 2010

She was a giant; a world renowned artist, educator, historian, mentor, poet, activist; a hero. Learn about her. In natural hair relatedness my mother told me Dr Burroughs was wearing a TWA in the 40's honey! How bad did she have to be to be walking around in a TWA 20 years before the black pride/civil rights era?!! She wasn't even trying to make a statement, she was just fully self possessed. I know yall know it takes a bad black woman even in the new millenium to walk in her own image but to do it then...ponder that alone.



"What Shall I Tell My Children Who are Black?"

By Dr. Margaret Burroughs

What shall I tell my children who are black
Of what it means to be a captive in this dark skin?
What shall I tell my dear one, fruit of my womb,
of how beautiful they are when everywhere they turn
they are faced with abhorrence of everything that is black.
The night is black and so is the boogyman.
Villains are black with black hearts.
A black cow gives no milk. A black hen lays no eggs.
Storm clouds, black, black is evil
and evil is black and devil's food is black...

What shall I tell my dear ones raised in a white world
A place where white has been made to represent
all that is good and pure and fine and decent,
where clouds are white and dolls, and heaven
surely is a white, white place with angels
robed in white, and cotton candy and ice cream
and milk and ruffled Sunday dresses
and dream houses and long sleek cadilacs
and Angel's food is white... all, all... white.

What can I say therefore, when my child
Comes home in tears because a playmate
Has called him black, big lipped, flatnosed and nappy headed?
What will he think when I dry his tears and whisper,
"Yes, that's true. But no less beautiful and dear."
How shall I lift up his head, get him to square
his shoulders, look his adversaries in the eye,
confident in the knowledge of his worth.
Serene under his sable skin and proud of his own beauty?
What can I do to give him strength
That he may come through life's adversities
As a whole human being unwarped and human in a world
Of biased laws and inhuman practices, that he might
Survive. And survive he must! For who knows?
Perhaps this black child here bears the genius
To discover the cure for... cancer
Or to chart the course for exploration of the universe.
So, he must survive for the the good of all humanity.

He must and will survive.
I have drunk deeply of late from the fountain
of my black culture, sat at the knee of and learned
from mother Africa, discovered the truth of my heritage.
The truth, so often obscured and omitted.
And I find I have much to say to my black children.
I will lift up their heads in proud blackness
with the story of their fathers and their father's fathers.
And I shall take them into a way back time
of kings and queens who ruled the Nile,
and measured the stars and discovered the laws of mathematics.
I will tell them of a black people upon whose backs have been built
the wealth of three continents.
I will tell him this and more.
And knowledge of his heritage shall be his weapon and his armor;
It will make him strong enough to win any battle he may face.
And since this story is so often obscured,
I must sacrifice to find it for my children,
even as I sacrifice to feed, clothe and shelter them.
So this I will do for them if I love them.
None will do it for me.

I must find the truth of heritage for myself and pass it on to them.
In years to come, I believe because I have armed them with the truth,
my children and their children's children will venerate me.
For it is the truth that will make us free!

Dr Burroughs reading her Poem "What Will Your Legacy Be?"



What Will Your Legacy Be?

Legacy? Legacy?

Do you know what the word “Legacy” means?

Well, if you don’t know, let me tell you what the dictionary says it means.

Legacy: property or money left to someone by a will; something handed down from those who have gone before; a legacy of honor, our legacy, of freedom.

In this poem, I’m not referring to material things like property or money, either of honor or of freedom.

I am referring to what a person has done with this life that God has given to him or her.

Yes, I want to know what will your legacy be? This is a question that I would like to put to each and every one of you?

What will your legacy be?

When you have finally cast off these mortal coils?

When you have crossed the great divide?

What will your legacy be?

When you can no longer run life’s race.

When you no longer have a place; when you have at last completed the circle round and when an escape is no longer to be found.

What will your legacy be?

When you walk into the unknown all by yourself and alone,

What will your legacy be?

Stop for a moment and listen to me and answer this question if you can.

What will your legacy be?

When you must cross that great divide into an area from which none can hide. When you, alone, with no one by your side with no friend to lead you or to hold your hand?

What will your legacy be?

What deeds have you done in your lifetime which will be left for you to be remembered by?

Will it be just a gray decaying tombstone standing alone in a cemetery or will it be, as it should be some act, some service or some deed that will insure that you will be remembered on and into the eternity of life’s game?

I ask you. What will your legacy be?

Will it be the fact that you helped somebody along the way, during the time while you were here on earth?

What will your legacy be?

Will it be similar to the legacies left to our generation by people like Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, Frederick Douglass, John Brown, Ida B. Wells, Mary Bethune and so many others who made of their lives a bridge for us to cross over on and whose lives were an inspiration for us of today to make of our lives bridges for future generations to cross over on?

What will your legacy be?

Legacy! Legacy!

Let us stop for a moment and recall some of our people who left their lives as legacies to us, and who always will be honored and remembered. They were people like:

Harriet Tubman: her legacy was the work that she did on the underground railroad in which she brought hundreds of our ancestors out of the bonds of slavery; and,

Frederick Douglass: his legacy was the work that he did to help abolish slavery; and, fought against the evil of black men being lynched in this country; and,

Mary McLeod Bethune: her legacy was that she worked for the education of our youth by starting on faith, a small school which grew to be a great university; and

Dr. Martin Luther King’s Jr.: his legacy was that he devoted his life to fighting for full equality for our people; and,

Sojourner Truth: her legacy was her fight for the liberation of and full equality for all women in our country; and,

John Brown: his legacy was that he sacrificed his life for an end to slavery and for freedom of our people; and,

Bessie Coleman: her legacy was that she became the first woman in America, black or white, to acquire a pilot’s license; and,

Paul Robeson: his legacy was that he was a renaissance man. He was a concert and folk singer, an athlete and a linguist and that he fought for the liberation of all oppressed people all over in the world; and poets,

Langston Hughes and Margaret Walker: their legacies were the many inspirational poems that they wrote which expressed the soul of our people; and

Dr. W.E.B. Du Bois: his legacy was his life long struggle for the liberation of our people in his actions, his speeches and his writings; and,

Dr. Carter G. Woodson: his legacy was the fact that he early brought to the attention of the world the numerous and significant contributions of people of Africa and African descent to the attention of the world; and,

Booker T. Washington: his legacy was the fact that he worked for the education of our people when he founded and opened Tuskegee Institute in Alabama; and,

George Washington Carver: his legacy was his significant and important accomplishments in the field of science; and,

Jean Baptiste Point DuSable: his legacy was the fact he, a black man, was the first person to settle in the area that became Chicago and grew into a great trading center from the little post that DuSable of African blood started over 100 years ago; and, last but not least,

Charles Gordon Burroughs: his legacy was the first black history museum in the world which he as co-founder started in his living room at 3806 South Michigan Avenue in Chicago.

This act inspired many who were interested in the recognition and preservation of black history to the point that today there are over 100 black history museums in our country.

These are just a few as you well know.

There are many, many others who like these, left, though their contributions in their lifetime, their legacies as bridges for us to cross over on. So, I ask you, what will you leave as your legacy, as a bridge for those now and those coming on to cross over on. What will your legacy be?

I ask you, what will your legacy be? Do you know? How you thought about it? Do you have an answer? What will you leave as your legacy? If you have no answer, if at this point, you cannot say: Hearken! Listen to me! This is the moment. This is the prime moment for you to think and to get to work and identify what you will leave as your legacy for you to be remembered by. You are here. You are still here, alive and quick and you have time. You have time on your side. You have time to begin even now so get busy and do something to help somebody. To improve the conditions of life for people now and for those who come after. To build institutions to educate and broaden the minds for people now and for those who came after and to make your life a contribution that will be your legacy. Do this and your name will be remembered from now on and into eternity.

What will your legacy be? Hopefully, it will not be just a gray and decaying tombstone.

Think now! Act now! To insure that your legacy will be a positive contribution to humanity and you will be remembered, yes you will be remembered, on and on and in eternity as God wills it.

His Videos Confirm to Me That We Are the Muheffin Gold Standard:

In a previous blog, (this one) I talked about the need to reprogram our minds because their is truly a default program out there and it is running our perceptions of ourselves (as well as others perceptions of us). You deprogram and then reprogram yourself with a self empowering program by seeking out positive images and information about yourself. Youtube has a wealth of videos dedicated to the beauty of black women and our fave topic, natural hair. It also has a wealth of videos dedicated to the contributions of people of African descent. You no longer have to say where are all the images of me. You can see you in all your splendid glory 24/7.

The following videos are two of my favorites from one of my favorite youtubers. Everytime I view one of his videos, I thank God for making me a black woman and I marvel at God's artistry and how it was applied in the making of us. I feel my power and beauty anew. I'd highly suggest that you subscribe to his channel and check for updates. Excuse his ridiculous user name and just enjoy his awe inspiring, soul fortifying videos.





Also, check out his amazing blog here:http://blackwomenarebeautiful.blogspot.com/

Every Black Woman and Man Needs to Hear This:

Some fortification for your journey as a black woman on this planet:

"She Think She All That."

OK so one of my twins was walking down the hallway at school on her way to class when she spotted a little group of girls mean muggin'. The little leader leaned over to the girls and whispered "She think she all that." God forbid they figure out there's two of her. I asked my daughter if she responded she said no but from a cursory glance, noticed that their relaxers were badly broken off and she also noted that they were a grade below and of no consequence to her.

It's really interesting. Just 2 years ago my twins had broken off, damaged perms too, however, they were never upset about other people's hair, they just wanted to get their hair in order. They made the decision to transition. Actually, they never wanted a relaxer, their father wanted them to have a relaxer (he's old school) and as I detailed somewhere on this blog, I got tired of arguing with him. I also grew tired of my twins being so upset about their hair. They just didn't like what I was doing with it. It was for me a low point. I surrendered and got them relaxed when they were about 8 years old. Their relaxer started off mid back length and thick. Needless to say, by the time they were 10, their hair had broken to chin length even though we only got their hair done in the best salons and kept their appointments religiously. The girls rebelled, I had already rebelled (well my hair did before I did)) against the relaxer and they saw what I could do with my hair in it's natural healthy state. They said enough, with the relaxers. I told their father the jig was up. We then went through a lengthy transitioning period. They were soldiers. On the other side of this period, their hair has regained it's health, fullness and a good deal of length has returned.

So here they are being the envy of girls with the short, broken relaxers that they themselves had suffered with not long ago. The difference is, those girls may never know how wonderful their own hair can be because it is likely that they have no examples in their lives of women wearing their God given hair. They think that twin is different from them, that what she has is unattainable. They probably think they are doomed to broken hair that never grows and miserable burning chemicals which are "necessary" because they don't have "good hair". The really sad part is they are jealous of the same hair that their parents are killing. It is very likely the hair they themselves have. Twin's hair is 4b. The maligned "shame" of the black girl. The "nappy" hair. The hair parents are trying to cover up with chemicals. Those girls were looking at healthy well tended African textured hair and they were jealous and envious of it. They didn't recognize it as the hair that also grows from their scalps because they likely have not seen it for years. They thought her hair was different from theirs. Twin's hair couldn't be just like the hair from their pre-adolescent life. No one wears that hair in middle school. It must be special hair. It isn't permed or short. It must be "good hair". The hair that we don't have. The hair that we envy. The hair our parents adore. Girls with this hair are treated differently. So a little studious black girl walking down the hall with African textured hair that is lovingly tended by her mother is now that girl. If they knew twin, they would know that she does NOT "think she all that". She is not who they think she is. She is not different from them. What is possible for her is possible for the vast majority of black girls. They don't have to look at her and feel ashamed. They are really sisters.

We live in a predominantly white area and the girls attend very predominantly white schools. You will notice that the only girls of African descent you'll see without relaxers are bi-racial or very young. You'll also see the damage that goes hand in hand with relaxers. My daughters are the only girls of African descent in their middle school that are not bi-racial, that are not relaxed. We were hanging out with some friends of theirs and their mothers, when one of the mother's starts to berate her daughter about her hair (it was relaxed and damaged, oxymoron I know). "You've been messing in it, that's why it's so short now". She had been stealing glances at the twins hair. It seemed like she felt the need to somehow explain the state of her daughter's hair to us. When we were alone the twins brought that exchange up and said her hair is short because it's damaged from relaxers. She needs to stop relaxing (the friend's) hair. We didn't feel we could say that to the mother and daughter at the time.

Some people can and do grow long, what appears to be healthy relaxed hair, but they are not by a stretch, the majority. What about the chemicals? Even if you are one of the rare few with apparently long relaxed hair, you have no idea what relaxers and the attending maintenance products are doing to you internally. The products that we use to maintain the illusion of straight hair, hair that is the exact opposite of our reality, are filled with chemicals that we have no idea what the health effects of using them over the long term are. What of the psychological effects of going through so much effort to hide the truth about something so basic to our physicality as hair texture? Their are so many reasons why we need to stop this madness. One of the most compelling reasons for me is so our girls can know they are good enough; that they don't have to envy anyone. They are already beautiful as God made them. They are all that.

I'm So Sometimey...My Twins are Done Transitioning

I'm Sometimey as you are fully aware by now. It was a long hot summer. My husband killed our grass with weed killer. My youngest daughter is 7 and her B-day party is tomorrow. She is having a Princess Tiana theme this year. I figure I'd better get it in before she enters the tween zone that the majority of her friends have already reached ewwww. My baby is growing up to fast.

This is what her cake is going to look like:



My last Princess Party, sigh.

My twins are done with their transition. They have all natural shoulder length hair and are militantly anti-perm. If they let me, I'll post some pics of them. They are wearing braid-outs. It took us two years (ages 10-12) to reach shoulder length(unstretched). We do a simple method of washing and detangling it (in sections, gobs of cheap conditioner, wide tooth comb and denman brush) every two weeks (that's all I can do sorry Kimmaytube lol). I put their hair in about 20 braids (well moisturized and sealed with oil, let that air dry over night. Take it down the next day a voila, gorgeous. To keep it up over the next two weeks I re-braid it at night into 8 to 10 braids (adding moisture if needed). I do not comb it or brush it for these rebraids, I just finger detangle, moisturize if needed and braid. I take it down in the morning and BAM, gorgeous. It gets more defined with each rebraid. I have to clip their ends this weekend. I clipped V's last week.

I discovered a new blog!!! This mom is not sometimey like myself. She is awesome and so are the styles she does on her daughter's hair.

Braids, Beads, and Beyond. Enjoy!

I had a lot on my mind besides hair...

but I didn't really feel like writing about it all plus my computer went to crap but here I'm is. I can't wait to get a Mac. Windows is pure garbage.

Let's see. My hair is a crazy mess right now because I've been lazy. I'm under a wrap right now and it's not cute. It's not a look. I'm going to try to do it this week because my hubby really misses it and I miss him it it. I'm going to have the mother of detangles on my hands. It will be an epic undertaking because my hair has grown and grown during these months of neglect.

The one issue I have with neglecting natural hair is that the shed hair can be immense by the time you do it over. Getting it all out can be vicious.

I've going to have to do some trickery in order to post pics. My computer still isn't all the way in order. I'll figure it out.

I see some kiddies in your avatars so I guess that means I cain't cuss no mo. Dang. Read my posts first before you let your child read because I can't help myself sometimes and this is primarily a blog for adults, though I really love how committed the mother's that I have talked to are to keeping their children natural and proud. I know inspiration is necessary.

Love

Hott!!!

How To Achieve Loc Growth on Loose Hair

Locs achieve their length because low-no manipulation, leads to no breakage, which leads to length retention. With this understanding, I adopted a very low manipulation regimen for our hair. This is the only thing that I am consistent with so I contribute our growth success to closely mimicing a loc regimen, meaning I leave it alone for extended lengths of time allowing our hair to grow. When I do refresh our hair, I do everything I can to minimize hair loss and breakage so that we can retain the growth we achieved during the extended time our hair has been left alone.

I've personally found box braids to be the best style for this kind of regimen. Having extremely coily hair, I found that I could not leave twists in our hair for really extended lengths of time because our hair would loc and we would lose hair in the detangle. Box braids de-coil our hair, stretching it smooth so that we don't lose hair that isn't shed hair in the detangle. I still do twist and twist-outs from time to time. I just can't let them stay in past two weeks.

This may surprise you but I never wear my box braids out, yet my hair is in box braids everyday. I will put 20 or more braids in my moisturized hair during the weekend. This gives me a defined braid-out that I can keep going for up to a month. The way I do this is I take those braids down the next day and braid them in larger chunks (10 braids) adding more moisture to my hair if needed. I don't comb, brush or part, I just grab large sections, add more moisture if needed and braid. I put on a satin bonnet and go to sleep. Monday morning, I take the braids down, finger through, shake and go. I repeat the process at night, never combing or brushing. Sometimes I will style my hair in an updo. There are many styles that I do none involve combing or brushing.

My scalp loves Aloe Vera and stays exceptionally clean and dandruff free when I spray my braids and scalp with Aloe Vera Juice. It must be the healing effect that aloe has on skin. I have Dermatitis brought on by the extremely acidic nature of chemical relaxers and Aloe has allowed me to heal my scalp and maintain the health of my scalp while keeping my box-braid regimen going for up to a month.

Hair does attract dirt so I clean my braids with a wet cloth during this phase if necessary and sometimes do very diluted ACV rinses while my braids are in (ACV can be very irritating if it's not diluted enough). ACV is also great for maintaining a clean, healthy scalp. Other natural ingredients great for cleansing the scalp are baking soda dissolved in water and witch hazel.

The key to this regimen is keeping the scalp healthy and the hair in a moisturized and stretched state so that when it is time to wash and detangle, it isn't traumatic to the hair. We want to maximize growth and minimize breakage.

I never wash all of my hair loose. I take one braid down, co-wash, finger detangle also using a wide to comb to help remove shed hair if necessary, rebraid and move on to the next.

As for my youngest seen on this blog, I simply leave her box braids up as long as possible using the same cleaning and washing techniques.

I am no product junky and am not loyal to anything. I just like anything that helps with moisture. The only thing I use on a consistent basis is Aloe juice and olive oil. I like my hair moisturizers thick. I also like shea butter because it's heavy and our naps like heavy products because our hair is naturally dry and sucks product in. Heavy products also help to smooth out our coils so that our hair can maintain it's stretch. I use cheap conditioner for co-washing and detangling. When I make my own, I use canned coconut milk, oil (usually olive), honey and sometimes an egg yolk when I think we need a protein treatment.

That's pretty much it. I hope you are finding success in cultivating your beautiful, glorious, natural hair.

Pray what ever prayer...

...this photo inspires you to pray.



Donate $5 to Wyclef Jeans Haitian charity, Yéle Haiti, by texting "YELE" to 501501. (The donation will be automatically charged to your cellphone bill.)

Angels Over Haiti

My mind is hurting and my heart is broken

I don't how much more you can endure

I pray hope is in abundance

I pray miracles pour down from the sky

God send an army of angels

made of the many that have gone from you

who now plead your case in heaven

so that a new dawn will shine upon you

it will surely come

may the tears of mourning cried

baptize the ground under your feet

so that every step you take

will forever be

on holy ground

on sacred ground

on hallowed ground

on blessed ground


Donate $5 to Wyclef Jeans Haitian charity, Yéle Haiti, by texting "YELE" to 501501. (The donation will be automatically charged to your cellphone bill.)

Growth

4th birthday


2 months after 5th birthday


6th birthday

My Baby's Royal Treatment at Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique

Here is a photo video of my daughter having her hair done at Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique in Magic Kingdom, Walt Disney World. She had it done when she was 3 as well. I took her 5 braids down in the morning. It was nice and moisturized with no tangles. Her stylist used "Let's Jam" and a hair brush that I brought. I asked the stylist not to completely get rid of her braid parts so that I could get it back into her 5 braid style with ease the next day. She did a great job of covering the parts without getting rid of them. My daughter loved this both times. She will be going back next trip.

Here is the pic...

That I took of my youngest's daughter's hair when i Decided to length check it. It accompanied the blog that bglhonline talked about on Sunday January 10th. Since I am aware that most of you found me because of that post, here is that blog in it's entirety entitled "My Daughter's Beautiful Naps".

Holy Followers Batman!!!

For real though!!!

I logged in here to post something and my followers have more than doubled!!! It's the bglhonline effect poppin off to the fullest. It's my favorite site for natural black hair. The work that they put into it is amazing. I read them every day for inspiration and to continue my education in caring for the 4 heads of beautiful African hair in my home (3 daughters and my own, hubby rocks a low fade). I love seeing beautiful pictures and reading the stories of black women who have learned to love themselves. We are just so cold when we let go of the conditioning that we have been under. I'm addicted to our beauty.

Let me just tell all you beautiful people that I am not like them. I'm lazy. I up date randomly. I'm mad opinionated and raw up in here but I say everything I say out of love. I may offend because I do hold some strong opinions and I do come here to let off. Many times I write when I'm aggravated so don't take me to hard. Sometimes I come back and read my own stuff and think dang I could have been more diplomatic about this or that but I leave things as they are and ride out.

Thanks for taking time out of your precious lives to read me. I hope that at some point I can give you inspiration and something to use on your journey through this life. We are family on this planet. We have to help each other make it.

Gorgeous!!!

Transitioning

Ok, so I was on nappturality.com today and came across a post by a traumatized 16 year old who just wanted to transition from perm to naps but was so confused about how to do it. She had a crazy stylist who was feeding her all types of horror stories so here is my post to her. I thought it might help some other youngsters or anyone else who is thinking about transitioning but doesn't want to Big Chop and or look crazy with the two textured madness, while their perm is growing out.

It's really not that complex. I never dealt with my hair while transitioning. I was cute the whole time. I had full head nappy weaves, cornrows and kinky twists with endless styles. Find a good braider not a salon that deals in perms but a braid salon or even a local girl or woman that is known to do great cornrows and braids. If you see a woman or girl with pretty braids or kinky twists, ask her for her stylists number. Your mom really just wants you to be groomed and look nice at the end of the day but the only way she knows to groom you and keep you cute is perms. If she's willing to shell out to a salon as often as she does, she'll pay a braider to keep you fresh. Buy a braid book from your local beauty supply and bring the book home to show your mom and dad all the gorgeous styles you can have while growing your perm out. Have your mom help you choose your styles. Transition under braids and kinky twists and if you like full head weaves.

My oldest daughters are transitioning and they are in sixth grade (twins). I have been doing large indivuals with added hair and cornrows with added hair on them and redo them every two weeks to four weeks. I have been cutting the perm off a little at a time each time I redo their hair. They only have about a half an inch left to cut they started with chin to shoulder length permed hair. They are over a year into their transition. Transitioning this way, they haven't had hair drama and trama because of dealing with two textures. They now have about chin length natural hair right now but want to start wearing it in twists, and braid outs etc. when it is about shoulder length. When I was transitioning, I had my braids and weaves done by a couple different stylist in my area.

Have your hair deep conditioned every time you have your cornrows or what ever style braids you are wearing redone. Have your hair braided with something that is moisturizing and conditioning. Spray your braids every day and tie them down to keep them fresh (I use aloe vera juice mixed with olive oil). Have your braider watch her tension. You don't want braids that are to tight because you don't want traction alopecia. You will look cute all the way through and your hair will be growing out without you having to deal with the several stages that it will go through on the way to it's natural perfection. You can practice doing braids and twists on your hair the day you take it down to have it redone. That way you will be familiar with it when it is completely natural.

Read all you can about caring for natural hair while you are transitioning so you can be prepared to handle your hair. It's not as hard as it's made out to be. There are four 4b's in my home and if it were that hard, we'd all be looking crazy or have perms but we are just fine. You tube tutorials will be a huge help in learning how to do all the gorgeous styles you see here as well as this sight also bglholine.com is great for learning about and seeing the versatility and beauty of natural hair and they feature lots of tutorials.

...and yes, your hair will break off, the permed hair, but you aren't trying to keep that any way and if it 's up in braids, you'll never have to deal with if it's looking right or not. The important thing is, that your natural hair will be growing in and that hair will be healthy and unbroken and it will grow long. It took a little more than two years for my hair to become the giant that it is now.