A Liberation Spell

The following collective spell was generated by our listener community over the first week of 2018, guided by adrienne maree brown’s new year liberation spell-casting practice. Thousands of you practiced alongside us, and shared your spells with us on social media.

Check out the practice episode that guided us in generating our spell on RadioPublic, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher.

We hope these words ground and inspire magic in our movements. May they be so!

our collective spell

Past

I lay down the onslaught of death as entertainment,
of false expertise on the whole wide world,
of unnecessary drama and all the distortions of ego.

I release a simplistic and polarized view of my ancestors,
internalized ableism;
lay down the burden of carrying and solving chronic illness and catastrophe alone,
and let go of the drift that keeps me from myself.

I release the painful burden of perfectionism.
I release the capitalist impulse to work without rest and welcome a more balanced life in its stead.
I renounce reach and embrace depth.

I release the muscled effort it takes to persist in a place that cannot hold me.
I take forward with me the skill and art of grieving.

I am burning up of all that must be let go from 2017 and filling that void with a gratitude list.
I learned how to let go, how to set boundaries, and am learning what it means to heal.

I carry forward standing in my dignity when I’m in solidarity; creativity as birthright/big magic; sexy, creative, juicy, vital ways to channel my natural animal aggression; heart connection to individual and collective resilience of us sick and disabled folks; that heart and movement and intuition are vital to movement.
 

Present

I am no victim of life, I shape change.
I know I am never alone - heard, seen, and supported by what is greater than me.

I let my imperfections be known and be lessons.
My weaknesses are a gift that I will offer as an invitation to others to more fully share of themselves.
I choose to cherish my softness.
I am in my power and dignity as a survivor; in the belief that I belong here on earth.

I hold close the joyful and resilient relationships that I have co-created in this lifetime.
I stand in my ease and a deep vulnerability with those who can hold me, and partnership that doesn’t ask me to shrink.

I sit with the truth that reflection is painful and that the pain emerging from that reflection is transformative. 
I focus my power and attention, generous where it's needed and lovingly boundaried elsewhere.

I am closing the gap between what I can imagine and what I can create.
I tap into universal forces as well as my inner resources and strength.

I center a burning desire for a city and state where a leaderful movement takes shape and freedom is manifest, step by step.
Together, we embody the principles of connecting with God authentically, crossing boundaries, and confronting injustice.
 

Future

May 2018 be the year that I finally take steps away from shame and self-hate, knowing this journey will likely take a lifetime.
I will be in a daily practice of 100% honesty with compassion.
I also promise to be honest when I do not know the way forward, and to place my trust in those who know better.
I practice accepting reality checks.

I will be seen in this life as I am: unapologetic, learning, and reclaiming my whole life; as we become unapologetic, learning, and reclaiming our whole right to be with this planet in peace, and with each other in peace.
WIth my eyes on liberation, I practice living gloriously in imperfection.

I practice dropping my tail into earth, groundedness, and place.
I practice spreading my wings into a generous embrace that mobilizes endless goodness and radically includes.
I embody empathy in a manner that is healing to our community both individually and collectively -
to go deep, to purge, to return, to create, to heal.

In 2018 I will make peace with my genetics and cultivate coping skills as gifts for the descendants.
I let go of pushing forward, only to cut back... planting seeds of liberation, ending my perceived lack.
I will be with elders who model right-sized power.

I commit to engaging generative conflict, but ignoring drama.
I move toward time that is responsible and also honoring of my own rhythm.
I build a world with freedom from greed, 
a world where violence and isolation are unthinkable.

Here's to the new that embraces the old.
Here's to the healthy that holds the sick.
Here's to the joy that feels the pain. 
Here's to the strength that supports the weak.

I practice finding wealth in group energy.
I practice finding strength in numbers and circles,
creating interconnected nets to liberate knowledge from hierarchical systems.

I release the impulse to shrink myself in reaction to the neoliberal, hypercritical discourse on the Internet.
I commit to confronting systems of oppression and their leaders bravely and strategically.
I commit to taking bold action and risking imperfection in the service of liberation.

I practice a contribution in this world that takes risks big enough to honor the powerful fire in my belly and the expansiveness of my heart.
May I expand my understanding of what it means to be a co-conspirator in the liberation movements of our time.

With Prince, Beyoncé, and a cerulean velociraptor as our witnesses...

Together, we declared 2018 the year we rise up.

Thank you to contributors: @adriennemareebrown @katewerning @newdaynyc @mrghyseye   @ekuaadisa  @micahblaise  Jennifer Frey @moodspectrumtraumarecovery  @rabbaidarkside  @alylaure  @susannahroserise  @mickynoir  @thatgrandmalife  @irobyn  @mzbigbig  @seatonyc  @mountain_anarchist  @moejustice  @guardianoftheheart  @las.yogini.life  @river_and_root_ceremonies  @sassafrashealingarts

Join us for more free practices on Healing Justice Podcast

Check out our conversation & practice catalog on RadioPublic / Apple Podcasts / Stitcher / Spotify