welcome to 'for, josephine'

my great great great paternal grandmother, Josephine, was a Gullah Geechee woman who practiced hoodoo in lowcountry South Carolina. If you’re not familiar, Gullah Geechee people are West Africans who escaped slavery and built their own communities and tribes on the sea islands of Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Florida. My maternal grandmother, Queenie, was also a North Carolina hoodoo priestess, known for her root work and spells in her neighborhood that always worked. However, Josephine was the first ancestor who kept coming up to me in dreams and visions, leaving clues as to who she was.

At 25, I went through this period where I wanted to know more about who I am and who I come from. Through exploration of my genealogy and conversations with my grandparents, this realization came through to me that my life as the Black sheep of the family wasn’t for nothing. I am Josephine’s chosen one— the one meant to break generational curses and break karmic loops. I come from a group of people who relentlessly fought for their freedom, their joy, and their solitude. I come from a people who unapologetically stuck by their roots, their culture, their language, their dialect. I come from a long line of badass conjure women. While some in my bloodline later converted to Christianity— a religion that was deemed more acceptable and palatable— I see that I was tasked with the responsibility to carry the torch in honor of my grandmother, Josephine. This journey has awakened me to my many spiritual gifts that I’ve had throughout my entire life— ignoring them because of… colonization. This era of my life is about accepting and knowing the immense power that exists inside of me.

I went through this experience that stripped me to my core, exposing my childhood wounds, bringing back childhood memories, traumas, and triggers. This person served as the catalyst to my spiritual awakening without even trying. I felt as though this person was sent from my ancestors to position me into the path I am supposed to be on. The connection felt so ethereal and otherworldly to me, that I needed a higher power to understand what I was going through. I realized that I let love consume me, I realized that I had control issues, I realized that I was obsessed with perfectionism, I realized that I idealized people too much… and that scared me. I started thinking about my bloodline and ancestral traits I have. I began identifying the toxic traits of family members that I inherited and how much I get in my own way. It was a connection that completely forced me into a new direction and a new woman.

I started receiving all these channelled messages from Josephine and Queenie to break the curse of entering relationships with men who lacked the capacity to see me in my entirety. They wanted me to break the curse of overextending myself to men who couldn’t do the same. They wanted me to break the curse of trying to prove myself worthy, because I am already powerful. I come from power. I come from rebellion. I come from magic. It’s already in me, I just need to pivot my focus and find a balance. This journey has been so healing for me and equally as scary, too. But— I trust them. They walk with me, they’ve guided me, they’ve spoken to me, they’ve given me directions. It’s forced me to let go of control and to find the beauty in surrendering.

When I think about what I want to leave on this Earth, I constantly think of legacy, community, impact, culture, and authenticity. In me leaving a legacy, I want to venerate my ancestors through everything that I touch, because they’ve always looked out for me, even when I wasn’t connecting with them. I would always feel like I was meant for something MUCH bigger. Always. Ever since I was a little girl, I knew there was something very peculiar about my aura. I could effortlessly read through people, predict events, environments, and situations. My dreams were wildly vivid with seemingly hidden messages. I challenged the religion I grew up with, I challenged my parents, I challenged my siblings. I picked up on patterns that others would miss. My ancestors have been trying to connect with me this entire time, because they chose me. Through me honoring them, I feel as though my path will be divinely protected, attracting endless opportunities not only for myself, but my future bloodline. I am breaking the chains and bringing back what we were told were demonic. My children will be familiar with hoodoo, African spirituality & cosmology, astrology, etc. And I also want my people to be aware of the power that exists in Black mysticism.

this platform aims to educate Black people about all things metaphysical and esoteric. Living in a very Western society that prioritizes control logic, control, and only things we can SEE (a byproduct of White supremacy and colonization)— I have chosen to honor my ancestors and my roots by trusting in the unknown and believing that there is something out there that is greater than me. there is so much healing that can exist for the Black body and the Black mind by exploring and being curious about Black mysticism. Before slavery and colonization, ancient African civilizations relied on ancestral knowledge, cosmic guidance, our dreams, and our hearts to make decisions. And then, colonizers infiltrated our minds, forcing on us this culture of detachment, hyper analysis, and stoicism. I want to challenge that. On this platform, I aim to educate my people about iconic hoodoo figures. I want to highlight the experiences of Black conjure women, shamans, tarot readers, astrologers, and hoodoo practitioners. I want to provide the spiritual knowledge I’ve picked up on. I want to provide my people with astrological insights and mystical concepts that they’ve never thought to look into. Because in doing so, it can be incredibly life changing, especially for those who have a toxic relationship with control and perfection.

I’m not trying to convert anyone to spirituality. I’m not even saying you have to completely believe in 100% of anything on this platform. I guess my purpose right now is to speak and share and enlighten and go against the grain of what’s usual— in honor of… Josephine.

love,

kamory.