Look, I'm good. As a matter of fact, I'm pretty dang phenomenal. Some might say "Black Girl Magic" personified.
Mother, Black PhD, Nonprofit Founder, Professor, DEI consultant and Mental Health Advocate. Not to mention a fun-loving dope chick always up for an adventurous good time.
But somewhere along the way of success after success, I found myself only moving in spaces where I could, would and do succeed.
In comes the Tamia dance. I mean...is it just me? Because I can't seem to get it and it's getting on my last nerve. Not me, the former high school cheerleader who took her swag on to her college dance team. Not the "there she goes again" girlfriend who could shut down a dance floor all (handclap) by (handclap) her (handclap) self. Not the one whose moves won dance competitions (formal and informal) that opened doors in her professional and personal life (in my Tabitha voice; "the personal is my business").
I have been a Tamia fan from Day 1. Don't challenge me unless you know the words of every song on her first album. So, I'm at a loss. How could Tamia do this to me? No amount of wedding reception trials, YouTube tutorials or BBQ lawn dances have been able to get me to step, cross, turn my way into understanding this dance. And I don't like the way it feels one bit!!
And that my friends is when it hit me. Tamia is humbling me with this line dance. She is pulling me out of my pseudo perfectionism and forcing me to accept that I may never get this dance and that's ok. Joy can come from being perfectly imperfect. Black joy can reside in laughing at yourself. At being silly. At letting go of the stress others put on us and that we put on ourselves. At just being.
This 4th of July, for just a moment, let's set aside the social and political climates that continue to devalue us so that we can indulge in ourselves and our loved ones. Let's use some of that leftover Juneteenth energy and swing our melanated hips at whatever family or community event we chose to spend this day off of work. And if you happen to trip or step on a couple of toes while on the dance floor, laugh it off and thank Tamia for creating the opportunity to be beautifully human.