A lot of us plan for things and the plans always seem to fall through, with us tending more to the unexpected surprises and things not jotted down in our planners. I didn’t have a blueprint for the series – just a thought, just a single vision. I didn’t write an extensive overview mapping out who would kick it off and for how long the series would run in the beginning. I just wanted one thing:
There are a ton of women that can write their fingers off however, there isn’t a single soul on this planet who can tell your story like you can. There are people who have gone through similar obstacles, can relate to your experiences and will wrap your situation in pretty lil’ packages to make it all sound consumable, but I didn’t want that.
I wanted raw material. I wanted work that was hard to digest. I wanted people to read to those, now, I see why they don’t show this on basic cable-type shit. I wanted, ‘This happened to me. This could’ve killed every part of me. This is me now, overcoming it.’ And as hard as that sounded, saying it out loud, it felt possible. I had to follow through with the vision.
You ever had a burning feeling in your soul, a dream scratching and clawing at your insides, wanting to come out, and you don’t even know when’s the right time to push to give birth to those dreams? You keep seeing that goal of yours present itself in other people who confirm that this thing is what you need to do, but you create a monument of excuses out of fear. You say it’s money, as if others haven’t created brands and empires on a few dollars and a dream. You’ll tell yourself you don’t have the time, but there you are, sitting at home daydreaming about what you want to do instead of acting on it. Too many excuses, not enough execution.
When I decided to just go for it and write my most personal piece to open up the series, the responses were overwhelming and the stories poured in. This was what I had envisioned, and it all stemmed from a name scribbled on receipt paper, a bright idea for a brunch and running the idea past my blogger boo to make sure I wasn’t tripping.
Almost 5 months to the date later, What Binds Us Together: Our Stories grew into this beautiful project with incredible stories I’d never imagine on this space. I’m excited for the small relaunch of the series tomorrow and I continue to be amazed by the women who bare it all for the world through their lens. In a few months to follow, WBUTOS will have its own space, which is in its creative phase right now, but will be up before you (and I) know it. I’m keeping the release date under wraps for now.
This next batch of women will move you, motivate you, and make you cry. That’s a guarantee. I have to thank every writer who submitted work for round two of the project and began their journeys for closure on this space. Women who didn’t know how to find peace in their experiences and decided What Binds Us Together was the place for them. This was once my space, now it’s our space. All from a thought that I just ran with…
