Self Care Project by Tasha Jordan

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In honor of yesterday being Martin Luther King Jr. Day, we wanted to do the Self Care Project, but there was already a Model Monday. So, we decided to push it back to Tuesday!

AHIMSA.  Sanskrit for safety and non-violence–the pillar of the work of one of our nation’s greatest leaders.  As I reflect on Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.–his work and his legacy–I am compelled to think about what that means to me.  My lifestyle.  My mission.  And lately–my artwork.  My small business–The Self Care Project–first began as a doodle.  And then it became letters and images that were in my head.  I would look up favorite quotes that inspired and moved me and make them into beautiful creations that the words were so deserving of.  Maybe it was a quote that spoke to how I was feeling in the moment.  Or a Martin Luther King quote that resonated with my soul.  It gave me a whole new meaning to the words of my ancestors–people that have walked before me helping to pave the way.  

AHIMSA.  Non-violence.  Caring for the self.  The Self Care Project isn’t all about art. It’s about taking time for self.  It’s about reflecting on the life that is happening around you and what is happening within you. It means drawing inward and asking the question “How can I be nonviolent to ME?” 

Self care is nonviolence. 

For me, that method of nonviolence to self means constant reflection.  It means stacks of paper filled with India ink and curves and brush strokes all over the floor as I experience racism and constant micro-aggressions.  Non violence and self care consists of lettering quotes of encouragement as I survive yet another incident of implicit bias.  It has meant putting voice to paper as yet another Black man has been killed by the police. 

Self Care Project helped to develop a deeper sense of social justice and has been a consistent companion as I have navigated the roads that lead to action and change.  Being a Black woman in America is hard.  As if the color of my skin wasn’t “difficult” enough, I am constantly finding myself having to balance both of my identities as well as many others.  But, just because the world is violent to me, it doesn’t meant that I have to practice that same violence to myself.   

My hope is that through Self Care Project we will all begin to practice nonviolence to others–but most importantly ourselves.   

AHIMSA. 

Peace and love.  

Tasha J.

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