AIEddie.com It’s no secret I’m a huge supporter of #blackhistorymonth. I’m a big supporter of black history, as much as I love and support our American history and country as a whole. While my love of history and the black American experience has always been there and always will be. It doesn’t always come across as a love of the “historical facts” but more of a pride in who and what African Americans were, are, and will continue to be and have a place in today’s society. I first learned about the history of Kwanzaa at the urging of my best friend at the time. She always had knowledge of it and encouraged me to read about it and do my own research. I did just that and found out so much I did not know. That led to me researching our country’s and my ancestors past and learning a lot that in some ways shocked me. Like how a lot of the slaves ended up having to learn to be farmers and other common tasks in order to survive and be free. It was just something I always knew we’ve came here from Africa but I didn’t know all the little things that have happened in between, like the first slave ships were owned by the English. And things like that that really drove me to want to know more and do more. I first got into the Kwanzaa celebration after discovering the concept of the Seven Principles, more commonly referred to as Nguzo Saba (Swahili for seven principles) by Maulana Karenga in his book, “Introduction to Black Studies” by Karenga. In this month long celebration of the 7 principles, I celebrate family and community. Now, I don’t mean family in the sense of blood related but instead the family you have created for yourself. This can be your own adopted family, or in my case, it was my husband and children. I have never had a problem getting along with his family and he with mine. We both grew up with families that had our back no matter what. The people you surround yourself with are some of the most important people in your life. They’re the people who help you stay grounded and can hold you together in tough situations. The reason I say family in the sense of blood is because it’s based on relationships. And that is one of the things I want people to remember about Kwanzaa is to have relationships in all forms and with every aspect of life. Whether it’s a relationship with your brother or sister in your community, or even within yourself. Kwanzaa teaches that family is like an iceberg; most people see only the tip of what it can hold. But we are all a part of our family, whether it’s blood related or not. We all have family. We all have those around us that can be a reason why you exist. Some we make the decision to have, but others we have no choice in. Those are the ones that tend to keep us on our toes and bring us back to center. They’re the ones who give us motivation to wake up in the morning or help us find a way to get over a hurdle. As a child I remember hearing the stories about the three men, Mekia and Mike and Mike. I’ve also heard many other stories in the neighborhood of men working the land who were part of the slaves. It’s like they always kept their dignity no matter how far from home they were. It’s really inspiring to think that these men kept their head up during all of the misery that they had to endure. They are some of the reasons I believe in black pride today. The principle of Umoja is one that I choose to focus on the most because it deals with family. Umoja means family in Swahili. You’ll find many people celebrating this day but the things that I remember about the first time I celebrated it is the dinner and the meal. The time we spent with one another, the laughs and jokes and the knowledge that each one of us felt important to the other. My husband who I’ve always said had the biggest heart and would do anything for anybody and his family. He has the same heart in his children, and his family has always been there for us in whatever situation we’ve been in. The other thing that made this time so memorable for me is my sister in law had never done a pot before. And this time, being in the kitchen with her in my husband’s family, I had a chance to teach her something that she wouldn’t have normally done. I didn’t realize until afterwards that she told me she would never forget that moment because we were family and as a family we took care of each other. It was really special. This year I was invited by a dear friend to celebrate Kwanzaa with her family and I was blessed to be a part of it. In her family we celebrated both the seven principles and the two holidays that come from those principles, and as a black woman my friend reminded me that I should include another holiday that also came from Kwanzaa. So during these 7 days of celebration that the seven principles are honored each day we should find a way to not only include those in our life who make up our family but should also show love for the culture and tradition of our ancestors. I don’t mean in the sense of showing appreciation by offering money, but by educating others of our country’s history and giving them the tools needed to do that on their own. We should be giving the opportunity to share information and educate others about who we really are. To make them understand why people do what they do, and why traditions have come into effect. Because even if you’re not ready to give others your truth, you should at least be willing to hear theirs. It’s true my Kwanzaa celebration is a family affair with family in both a sense of blood and of love. I celebrate because I want to honor my ancestors, and also to educate people who may not understand what it means to be black and what the celebration was created for and all the great history it holds. Thank you. ]]>https://www.blackgifter.com/blog/2018/02/kwanzaa-spirit/feed/0https://www.blackgifter.com/blog/2018/02/kwanzaa-spirit/Happy B-day Mama! (by Blythe Obiadela)http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blackgifter/~3/RvAYJhv6W2Q/ https://www.blackgifter.com/blog/2018/01/happy-bday-mama-by-blythe-obiadela/#respondTue, 27 Jan 2015 18:47:28 +0000https://www.blackgifter.com/?p=7197This was a very exciting time in my life, with all the changes it brought up with it. One of those changes was my becoming a mother, which I think is the most important one and the hardest, if not the most important. I remember the day I knew I was going to be … Continue reading → This was a very exciting time in my life, with all the changes it brought up with it. One of those changes was my becoming a mother, which I think is the most important one and the hardest, if not the most important. I remember the day I knew I was going to be a mom was after I met my first husband. He’d just graduated and joined the Air Force. I was so excited for him, and so sad for him at the same time. In love and in trouble. I’m happy I have these photos of me to remind myself of the time in my life where all those mixed feelings became so real and real fast. For it was this photo of me in a maternity gown at age 24 that became a reminder of the time in my life when I was reminded how lucky I was to have a baby. The fact that she was on her way in a few months and we weren’t even married was another reminder. In this picture I’m sitting on the edge of the hospital bed with my daughter. She wasn’t even 7 months old yet. My daughter, Anais I became pregnant when I was 17. I was still in high school when my son was born. I remember that time in my life, very vividly. I wasn’t ready for motherhood. I wasn’t ready for any of this. The fact that I was even pregnant at that age was kind of frightening to me. So was being a mother at such a young age. In this picture we’re outside at Disneyland in Anaheim. It was December and I think it was during Christmas time. I loved being with my kids that Christmas. I wish I could have been there more than once that year. Even though I wanted to