If you follow me on my personal social media platforms then you already know the news, if you don’t let me be the first to tell you: I am pregnant!  I am 6 months and at the tail end of my 2nd trimester and what a time to be pregnant!  This has been for the most part a decent experience considering the current circumstances.  

If you are wondering what we are having; we are having a boy and I could not be more thrilled.  

A dear friend asked me how if feel about bringing a life into this world with all that is going on? Well, to be honest I feel honored and very hopeful.  These recent times of a global pandemic and civil urest have inspired me.  The conversations that people are having around loving and respecting thy neighbor and around race, justice and equality have been needed for so long that I can only feel hopeful and empowered.  

As this little male body grows inside of  my female body, I can only imaging the talks we will have together and as a family.  Deep thoughtful conversations are something that I truly enjoy and I hope to pass that ability to dive into the real, on to my young boy.  

My hope for my son is that he will feel free enough to think and question all that he sees and hears and reads.  I hope that he learns courage and grace from what I do and say, but mostly from how I move around in this world.  We have learned that children are visual learners and I must be mindful of how I represent my Black womanhood to him.  

I hope to empower him to speak-up for himself and others when they need an understanding voice.  I hope to encourage him to be a free thinker and to have the courage to make space for himself when others are not willing to make space for him.   

I also hope for my son to be of this world and know that the world is of him.  I believe education, travel and exposure to various ways of being are the building blocks to compassion, community and self-confidence.  There is a beautiful quote that I love: 

“The best teachers show you where to look but don’t tell you what to see.” – Alexandra K. Trenfor 

With that, I look forward to watching my soon to be boy truly see this world, and know that it is a place of wonder and possibility, with its beauty and it’s many flaws.  

Thanks for reading!

Charmaine