Drawing on stories that inspire you is essential as you navigate your mindful involvement in seeking justice — in large or small ways. Just as stories can shine a light on who you are, they can also inspire and fuel your resolve to take action to support mental health and emotional well-being in your life and communities.
In my own journey, I have gradually recognized that the ancestral stories passed down to me by my family, friends, and educational experiences are sometimes missing a key component: the risks of lacking balance.
Finding Balance, Fueling Motivation
I remember the first time I came across the full quote from one of my sources of inspiration, A Burst of Light, which is a collection of essays by Audre Lorde. After reading the full quote, it was clear to me that my need for balance was not optional — instead it was core to my survival and thriving.
Here’s the popular quote I’d seen: “Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation…”
And, here’s the full quote: “I had to examine, in my dreams as well as in my immune-functioning, the devastations and the healing possibilities that cancer had made real. And in the midst of this striving toward life, the most radical thing I could do was to insist on the importance of my self-care. Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation…”
Self-Care isn’t a luxury — it’s essential.
Audre Lorde’s wisdom as she battled cancer reminds us that self-preservation is not a luxury. It’s a necessity. For us as young people of color, prioritizing self-care is a powerful and radical act that nurtures our individual well-being and collective resilience.
By embracing your personal narratives of actions taken and planned toward mindful justice, you and others can harness inspiration and take steps to improve your mental health and emotional well-being today and as you grow at school and in your career.
Three Action Steps Towards Sharing Your Narrative
1. Reflect on Experiences
Set aside time to think about moments when you balanced justice work with self-care, and how your values guided your actions. Consider examples in your life where you felt grounded or challenged or experienced a sense of balance. Identify what values are important to you and how the concept of mindful justice connects with these values.
2. Identify Supportive Practices
Recall self-care habits or community support systems that help you stay grounded in advocacy. Identify which strategies or sources of support have helped you to protect your mental health and emotional well-being. If these self-care habits are unfamiliar to you, set aside time to explore strategies in the toolkit.
3. Seek Inspiration
Explore stories, quotes, or examples from others that resonate with your current or desired approach to mindful justice. You can read, watch or listen to stories of individuals you admire and pay attention to how they discuss balance in their life journey. Take note of any quotes or excerpts that inspire you.
The Takeaway
Drawing on your own stories of resilience and mindful justice can empower you to engage in radical self-care as a daily habit. Take these reflections and use them towards sharing your narrative to inspire and uplift — not just yourself but your entire community. Looking for ways to take the next step? Check out the Justice toolkits for practical resources <link to relate/Justice> to support you in your journey.
