One month to go.
What do you want to release from 2020?
In December of 1979, my parents moved from Jamaica to Florida. Only in retrospect can I look back and honor all that they left behind: the country that they were born in, the close support of family and friends, a business that they had built. However, sacrifice is more than leaving things behind; sacrifice is “to make sacred.” What were they making sacred? What were they sacrificing for? The safety of their family.
Political and economic instability led to an increase in violent crime. My parents had experienced this first hand, and they began the long process to leave the country. It is not a simple process to leave your homeland behind. We have other family that chose to stay in Jamaica for their own reasons. For them, the balance sheet was different. They made the sacred decision to stay. They have had equally rich and successful lives. We must all take stock of our own lives: no one else can do it for us.
As I look back at 2020, I think of both the good and the bad that I must step away from. Some of the changes have been made for me by the world events of a pandemic. Like so many others, I let go of the old vision. This year, I had hoped to perform as a storyteller at more festivals. I had hoped to expand the local events that I had built. Instead, group events have been cancelled, hiring freezes, funding revoked, and so I look towards creating a new vision that matches the current reality. I look towards what I am making sacred.
What do you want to renew for 2021?
My parents visited different cities where they had family support. They travelled to Toronto, New Jersey, Miami, and other cities. My father had cousins who lived in Miami, and it was close to “home.” Jamaica slowly became the place of Summer Vacation with extended family, and South Florida became our new “home.” My grandmother came to help us settle in, then we met the neighbors. Uncle John and Aunt Flo had retired from New York, they did not have children, and they insisted on taking care of us after school until my parents got home from work. We started to build a new community … a new extended family.
When I think of what I want to renew in 2021, I think of community. This time of isolation has brought the world closer in some ways, but farther in others. For me, the community of storytelling performers have joined together and supported each other at this time. Artists in the gig economy have had great challenges. I am blessed that it is not my primary career, and so I support the community as best I can. As I start to vision some new future with storytelling performance, I look outward to find and create the community that will support me.
What is the community that will support you in your intention for 2021?
One of my communities comes together to set New Year intentions each January in a workshop. This year, we will be online. There is power in doing a process together. We take stock of the past and vision the future. Join me in this “Release and Renewal” New Year gathering or start your own. Get a community of friends together. Talk about your hopes and dreams for the coming year, journal, and set your intention with a ritual that can be as simple as lighting a candle, setting off fireworks, or building a bonfire. Find your community of support.
