Oshun River Inspiration
A daughter of Oshun, I kneel before the ancestral waters.…to seek wisdom, guidance, healing. I am called to do this work, as a descendent of enslaved Africans. My job is to help people remember who they are, embrace the goodness and powers of their ancestral legacies and bring healing to the land.
I carry within me the story of a freedom fighter, a justice worker, an author, an educator, a cultural worker, a life path mentor, a storyteller, a diviner, a ritualist, a priestess, and an ancestral lineage healing practitioner.
I also carry within me the knowledge, wisdom, resiliencies, power, pain, spirit and memories of countless generations of ancestors. This means I know things that I don’t know that I know, so I am constantly awakening to new insights and understandings…insights about the earth as an ancestor, the power of plant intelligence, and the elemental allies that help us along the way.
As a young child I grew up loving the land, taking long walks in the woods, gathering ferns and other wild flowers, picking four leaf clovers and breaking wishbones for good luck. I was part of a large, multigenerational household that had more love and laughter, more savory food and family fellowship than money and material possessions.
But all of the love and comfort in my protective extended family could not shield me from the harsh realities of a racially unjust world. So at the young age of four or five I became aware of a troubling in my soul, a quiet inner voice that called me into the story of a freedom fighter, a justice worker, and a change maker. That voice has never stopped speaking to me.
It guided me to become a social pioneer, to adopt civil rights workers and freedom fighters as my cultural heroes. That voice guided me to a career in non-profit community development, cultural work and to a metaphysical spiritual journey that ultimately led to the embrace of African spiritual technologies and practices for cultural healing.
I invite you to stay connected with me by joining my email list.
Velma E. Love, MDiv., PhD.
Ancestral Linage Healing Practitioner, Narrative Coach, Educator, Author