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Grounded. Empowering. Culturally Rooted. Spirit-Led.
Our Stories
These stories are more than memories. They are stories from real Black women serving as reminders of the ways care was passed down through our mothers, grandmothers, aunties, and other elders. Sometimes clearly explained, and sometimes simply lived. This space is for sharing and reclaiming the rituals, scents, and practices that shaped how we learned how to care for ourselves naturally and intentionally today.
The month of May invites us to pause, check in, and explore simple ways to support mental clarity, emotional grounding, and intentional self-care.
Featured Story
The Castor Oil Belly Rub
Growing up, my mother told us she used castor oil when she could tell we were backed up. She would rub castor oil on the belly, the crown of the head, and the bottoms of the feet, so when I had kids, I found myself doing the same thing. And listen, you better be ready the next day, because it worked! My babies felt better, they were smiling again, and I realized I had carried one of my mother’s practices right into my own motherhood.
More Stories from Our Community
The Bee Sting at the Family Reunion
I was about eight or nine when I got stung by a bee at a family reunion. I ran back crying, to where my mother was and my grandmother overheard and said, “Come here, baby.”
She took two fingers, put them in her mouth, pulled out some snuff, and slapped it on my leg.
I was disgusted. But it worked.
The sting was out, the pain was gone, and I went right back to playing. Years later, I still wonder how she even knew to do that.
The Castor Oil Concoction
I used to hate getting sick as a kid because my mother would give us castor oil.
Sometimes it was warm castor oil chased with orange juice. But if we were really sick, she would make this concoction on the stove. I still don’t remember everything that was in it, but I know it had castor oil, honey, and something else. And it was nasty. The smell alone could make you want to throw up. But that was her way of caring for us. She knew what to reach for, even when we didn’t understand it.
The Smell Good Pot
My great-grandmother always had something simmering on the stove to make the house smell good. It might have been orange peels, cinnamon, cloves, lemon, or whatever she had in the kitchen. You could smell it before you even made it all the way inside.
The house felt warm, clean, and ready for company. Years later, I still think about how something so simple could change the whole feeling of a home.