I was born into wellness. We didn’t have a name for it. It was my grandmother’s garden; it was long conversations on the back porch with sweet sun tea poured over ice. It was sitting between my mom’s legs on the floor as she greased my scalp and cornrowed my hair and impromptu dancing to Stevie Wonder in the kitchen with my mom and brothers. Although I didn’t necessarily have an easy childhood, those sorts of memories continually are my compass for joy, connection and feeling free in my own body.

When I feel that embodied freedom, I call it wellness.

I have everything I need.

1. My twice-weekly private pilates session (otherwise I’m a mess)
2. At 47 years old, I don’t code-switch.
3. Time outdoors with my family

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

“Okay, you’ve read the text. You know the words. You’ve looked at the history. Now, transcend all that. Put it aside and live it. Encounter it.” — Fatemeh Keshavarz, my undergrad Persian teacher in an interview with Krista Tippet.

Honeycrisp Apple

@shazandkiks
@basebutter
@empresskarenmrose

My days begin with a check-in with my husband over coffee. Especially since our boys are at home in virtual school, we have to co-create our days so that each of us feels like we have time for our work and can still be there for our kids. Although a lot of my friends have thrown out bedtimes for their kids, we still have them turn off screens and go to their room by 9:30pm. Doubling as mom and founder throughout the day is intense, so from 9:30pm on I’m unwinding.

I like to shop for wellness items while travelling so I leave room in my suitcase for wellness finds. But I have to have a hydrating, alcohol-free face mist, eucalyptus and lavender essential oils to help with sleeping, a multipurpose balm, cozy socks, ear plugs, a travel candle and moringa tea. I usually put my hair in braids when I travel but if I’m wearing my hair in an Afro, I always have castor oil to protect and style my hair.

Maybe it’s because I’m a Southern girl but I have to have a clean house in order to really relax. So, I put on a poppin playlist and dance until I’m sweaty. If I’m really run down, I’ll order some hearty soups and eat them for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The fam knows that if there are loads of soups in the fridge and that I’ve been cleaning and dancing for hours, it means I need to stay lowkey and quiet for a day or two.

The song "Django Jane" by Janelle Monae

80 percent healthy, 20 percent fun

Siracha, Tabasco for Southern dishes

I lived in London for 7 years, so I love a milky tea. Frothing my oat milk turns into a treat.

Sparkling water is my fave. Sometimes I throw in a some berries for flavor or fresh mint or lemon balm from my window garden.

Oat milk, raspberries, a very ripe banana and frozen mango. With a stripe of hemp seeds for some texture and nuttiness.

Teas for sure. My current obsession is the Rimshot blend by Adjourn Teahouse.

And justice for all.

I talk on the phone with my childhood friends for hours. I’m so blessed to have friendships that have lasted for 40 years and when I need to unplug from the world and get back to myself, I curl up in my bed and have a sistah powwow.

Dance

Make a lemon balm and ginger tea and sleep.

When I was younger, I tried a DIY banana mask for my hair. I guess the recipe hadn’t been tried on afros because it hardened my coils and it took hours to pick out of my hair.

The relationship with my children. Not so much being their mother but watching them broaden into themselves. It’s the most mystical thing.

I laugh my way through the day. I love a body laugh — as in jump out of the seat, dance on my tiptoes and throw my head back kind of laugh. That happened this past Sunday during a parent vs. kids Pictionary session. My ability barely goes beyond stick drawing. There’s nothing as freeing as showing you’re really bad at something in front of your own kids.