On my pursuit of ancestral tokens
In this season of ancestral exploration, I asked my mother if we had any treasured family recipes. She told me that she’s always just played it by ear, confirming what I already knew from a childhood staring at an impossible fridge only to see my mother whip up an eclectic and worldly meal for dinner. Unsatisfied with her answer, I called my grandma in the hopes that there’d be a secret golden recipe tucked away safely, a token of ancestral knowledge. Beaming with pride, my grandma told me her cakes were always a touch different, depending on what fruits and flavors were in the house. And then it dawned on me that my mother and her mother carry within them the craft of seeing beyond what is in front of them and making their own magic.
I am humbled and elevated and honored to be the daughter of this magic maker, happy birthday, mama!
I am humbled and elevated and honored to be the daughter of this magic maker, happy birthday, mama!
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For a time, I was reluctant to stitch the narrative of my ancestors into my own story. To do so felt like it would be a kind of surrendering, an invitation for an inheritance of vulnerability and strife.
Shortly into this pursuit, it became undeniable how deeply my ancestors seeded tokens in all that I am. My joy, my queerness, my walls, my freckles, my daily rhythm, my imagination is all generations in the making.
With wild-unabashed pride, I am the third great granddaughter of Reverend Elias Camp Morris (centered above). In his time, he founded the National Baptist Convention and the Arkansas Baptist College, started a newspaper and publishing house to uplift Black voices, and traveled the world to bring back with him a vision for what became the Centennial. He protected and built whole and vibrant futures alongside his community.
This hum within me is him, among so many big thinkers and community builders in my family line. I am overjoyed to share this portrait of Elias, painted by a rare talent, Ashley Wilder, who sees far more than what’s in front of her. It is powerful to not just uncover, but also create new ancestral tokens with the same hand we shape our futures.
Shortly into this pursuit, it became undeniable how deeply my ancestors seeded tokens in all that I am. My joy, my queerness, my walls, my freckles, my daily rhythm, my imagination is all generations in the making.
With wild-unabashed pride, I am the third great granddaughter of Reverend Elias Camp Morris (centered above). In his time, he founded the National Baptist Convention and the Arkansas Baptist College, started a newspaper and publishing house to uplift Black voices, and traveled the world to bring back with him a vision for what became the Centennial. He protected and built whole and vibrant futures alongside his community.
This hum within me is him, among so many big thinkers and community builders in my family line. I am overjoyed to share this portrait of Elias, painted by a rare talent, Ashley Wilder, who sees far more than what’s in front of her. It is powerful to not just uncover, but also create new ancestral tokens with the same hand we shape our futures.