"You are a Goddess."
She said staring at my Dulce de Leche sprinkled in midnight ink. My hair intricately tied into a bun placed above my crown. Nude painted lips of mine smiled in gratitude, flattered at another believer seeing the God in me.
"Igualmente hermana, igualmente."
Streamed out of my mouth and into her fluffy mocha ears. Floral patterns wrapped around her curves and violet tints illuminated her Afro like a halo. Smoke levitated from her nose towards the heavens. God was looking down upon us and She was pleased.
"You are a Goddess."
She repeated in astonishment because we grew up with broken mirrors unable to see the beauty in ourselves. We come from two different worlds and share the same reality. We were Scary Spice in environments full of Baby, Sporty, Posh and Ginger. We were Chorus Girl #6 in Broadway productions. We were taught to want to be Disney princesses but we looked like Disney mammies. Our societies told us that we were ugly, useless, and unwanted. However if we were made in the image of God what does that say about our culture? We were mirrors to each other and when we sat face to face we finally saw ourselves.
"Igualmente hermana, igualmente."
Spoken from my heart because we had to give ourselves permission to be beautiful- smart- important- valued. She and I were subversive by existence. A biracial black woman birthed in the nation of segregation and a dark skinned black woman given life in a country where mixing the races was the solution to blackness. But you can't bleach blood and you can't bleach love so we represent all that they have tried to erase. Yet here we stand. We are the stars of our own films and our two worlds intersect in a foreign bar. She and I transcended dreams made for Cinderellas. You have my permission to be great.
"You are a Goddess."
You are everything I needed as a child. You are black-feminist-spiritual-educated-adventurous-vulnerable. You are powerful and without remorse. You are thought provoking and complex. You are what they don't want us to be. Free. You are who I see in the mirror and I needed your existence for the validation of my own. You are a reminder that I too matter. You are a Goddess.
"Igualmente hermana, igualmente."
#ReclaimMissionary
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