“Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.” – Kahlil Gibran
Dear Fellow Warrior,
I wrote this recently one night, while fighting my insomnia. I call this piece of writing, “The Soul of an Angry Brown Woman” Let me know what you think of it.
The Soul of an “Angry Brown Woman”
If I ever appear angry with the world,
I will never apologize, nor will I tolerate
the demonization of that anger.
Anyone who has read even a fraction of my story –
the open book I have always been –
Would be shocked if I wasn’t angry.
There are moments of rage and defiance,
Moments of grave sadness and despair,
Then moments of quiet acceptance…
I will embrace, without shame, the “angry brown woman” within.
It comes from a familiar place… I know…
And those who understand trauma,
Should know where it comes from, too.
Otherwise, continue to remain silent…
And rest in the comfort of a life untouched by these storms.
For even in this “righteous anger,” there is beauty,
There is goodness within this soul—
Carrying the scars of past wounds…
A goodness that only another good soul can truly see…
The rest won’t see.
The rest will fear the visible defiance on the surface.
While dismissing the treasure beneath…
Do not question a brown woman’s “fierceness,”
Her “passion,” her “fight-mode,” her “righteous anger.”
It rises from the deep well of trauma she’s endured…
A struggle that becomes beyond herself,
In every opportunity, in every moment of leadership,
In the spaces she carves out herself…
Especially when her justice was denied.
For some of us,
There is no choice but to rise and resist…
Even with the desperate yearning to crawl in a cardboard box…
and be shipped somewhere afar…
For if we don’t,
We will be silenced beneath the weight of a merciless world.
Many fighting for social justice and freedom,
The defenders of human rights and dignity,
Are driven by the very traumas that first broke them…
…Then gave them Purpose.
******
Solidarity, Peace, Warmth, and Blessings,
Your Sister, Dr. Elsa
Warrior KQueen
“She wasn’t looking for a Knight. She was looking for a Sword.” – Atticus
Note: Featured painting is my first abstract piece from 2016, as noted in my gallery HERE.
Thank you for reading and engaging!
You can learn more about me here. If you feel inspired by my writing and would like to support me, you are welcome to do so HERE.
I also welcome discussion. Please feel free to use the comments section below. Thank you, I wish you well on your academic, writing, and artistic journey!