Saturday, March 13, 2010

Speaking Truth to Power

Last week I went to a luncheon where Beverly Jenkins was the keynote speaker. As soon as she saw me, she gave me a large hug and was genuinely pleased I was there. She called me a surprise. Now, I went in expecting her to be surprised and pleased to see me, but the genuine happiness with which she’d greeted me took me aback in a good way. I told her that I was working on my self-esteem, giving up the low variety for Lent (and beyond). That I cannot move forward professionally until I face the personal issues because those issues affect how much I’m able to put myself out there to accomplish the goals I’ve set for myself. Speaking this revelation out to her brought tears to my eyes and I almost started crying. She told me she was glad I came to that place and to remember “God doesn’t make mistakes” and that I’m not a mistake. She continued with some professional tips I should do and then the program started.

Knowing is half the battle, as the cliché goes. The rest of that cliché should be “it’s also the easiest part of the battle.” The doing is harder. It’s much harder, and because I’m so afraid of failing I’m afraid of the doing. Last week I fell back onto some counterproductive habits—dulling my own shine, cracking jokes to hide what’s really going down, minimizing just how terrified I am to go into this new territory of my life—of healing. I’m afraid to heal because I’ve gotten so used to this brokenness, I’ve figured out how to become comfortable on those cutting fragments. But that’s not really what it is, and only now can I admit it.

Healing means telling everyone I’ve been lying.

My laughter and my jokes were so I didn’t start crying about how unhappy I was—even though I had all these things going for me. They hid the guilt I had for feeling the way I did. They hid the shame I had for not using these gifts to the fullest. This world is very competitive, and when I went to Harvard especially, all I saw were people who had “better” gifts or knew what to do with the gifts better than I did. I remember freshman year, right at the beginning, and we were asking each other where we got in other than Harvard. When it was my turn I remember looking down and mumbling the places I’d gotten acceptances: Columbia, Duke, Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, Yale (and Duke was my “safety school”). Those were the only places I’d applied to as well. They all looked surprised and impressed and I shrugged it off like it wasn’t a big thing because it wasn’t “a big thing” in my house. If I hadn’t gotten into those schools I would’ve been a failure. I’d messed up. It’s only now, actually, that I own that moment. Hell, yeah, I was kickass academically and all these schools knew it. And then I found this choir that became my family, and I remember asking my dad was it okay that this choir felt like more my family than my actual family, and he said that was the family I’d chosen, not the family given to me. They give you what you need and there’s nothing wrong with that. I became a leader, and the more I became a leader, the more I felt unworthy for it. Bobby McFerrin came to do a brief residency and my choir sang with him. McFerrin was so impressed he invited us to sing with him at a music festival in Germany. The director said he was only going to choose the best voices to go with him, so I automatically assumed I wasn’t going to go even though I’d auditioned for the small subsection of the group and made it—the only freshman to make it. And not only that, the women in the group were apparently concerned about me, but the director said he saw something in me, the way I interpreted the songs, and his vote of confidence got me in. That “vote of confidence” actually shook me even more because I felt as if I’d only gotten in because the director said so, not because they wanted me.

I withdrew, and it continued. I was getting frustrated because the choir was changing and not in a way I thought it should, and that it was becoming a popularity contest and that even though I was one of the leaders, I didn’t consider myself popular. Basically, without Kuumba, Lord only knows what would’ve happened to me at Harvard. That school requires a healthy sense of self-possession and esteem. Without it, you don’t make it.

Such is life.

Part of my declaration to be a writer isn’t this lofty sense of “this is what I was born to do” but as an “F-U” to my fam who said the likelihood of my success was small. And when the prediction, as logical as it was, started panning out, that really beat my already fragile self-esteem. Rejection after rejection came in. I’d submit to contests and some of the judges would determine I had no talent. For years I didn’t say I was a writer. That was a secret. Even here on LJ and other places where I posted up my work (whether fic or otherwise), I didn’t get many comments whereas someone else would have hundreds or even thousands. I took that to mean no one was reading, although I can say I’d rather get no comment than a “this is garbage”! Even after Being Plumville came out, I still didn’t mention my work because I’d self-published it. I’d done it myself, and if I didn’t do it the “traditional” way, it doesn’t count. This notion is underscored by the fact the publishing industry still considers self-published works as stepchildren. It doesn’t help that many self-published works are low in quality and high in price, but I knew mine wasn’t that…even if it took me a week to actually open the box of books I’d gotten right after the book was finished. March is the three-year anniversary of Being Plumville and I’m proud of that story. I’m not ashamed of it as I had been—I can admit that now. I’m proud and I stay I’m a writer and that I have seven published works. I see the “wow” on people’s faces when I say that. I used to joke that I had no life and the characters came in and took me over. And while part of that it’s true, it was more I could escape there and have everything work out. I had control (even if I were under my characters’ whims; I knew they wouldn’t steer me wrong). I had no such control in real life. Things happened that I couldn’t control even despite my best efforts, and that scared me, so I withdrew. I also joke that writers are one of the few people who can say “I hear voices in my head” and not be considered crazy. But even with all those voices, the one that would always resonate the most was “You won’t win.”

Somewhere along the way, I began redefining what success was. I stopped looking at New York as the definition of success. It’s getting my book out there to as many people as possible. But beyond that, I started gaining confidence that I have something to say and that people are willing to listen. For so long, since I was young, I was told to be quiet, that I don’t have anything of worth to say, that I’m not making sense. When I first started singing in the choir, the leader of my subgroup was working with me on my first lead “Steal Away”. She couldn’t figure out what was wrong with how I was singing until she stopped, her eyes went wide, and she said “You don’t open your mouth when you sing!” Of course I looked at her as if she were crazy, but then she showed me how she wanted me to sing and she said “See!” and declared it much better. That’s what this writing journey has been—opening my mouth. And that’s what my personal journey has to be too. I’ve got to open my mouth and not just let faults and problems come out. If I can own the bad then I better learn to own the good. Own my awesome. Own that I have the right to accept the good things that are on the horizon for me, and that I shouldn’t feel guilty they’re coming for me. I should stop being surprised when someone says something nice about me and stop trying to deflect it. Accept the goodness this person has seen in me instead of trying to make things “normal” by pointing out the bad.

But mostly, stop lying to people. Stop giving them what I think they want and give them the genuine me. I can’t receive the blessings due to me if I don’t present “me” to receive them.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

"That’s what this writing journey has been—opening my mouth. And that’s what my personal journey has to be too. I’ve got to open my mouth and not just let faults and problems come out. If I can own the bad then I better learn to own the good."

WORD.

"But mostly, stop lying to people. Stop giving them what I think they want and give them the genuine me."

What they want is you, your style, your graceful cerebral turns, the way you make emotional lemonade of the sourest things. On the page as in life, your fans feel your glow. You need only turn that into a full light show for your sake.

Kramik said...

I read your post and I felt less lonely... All you've been writing is just so me. It's scary and reasuring at the same time.

I too began to reconsider the way I see myself and how I react to the people around me. I always felt inadequate, like I didn't have what it gets to be where I was. It's not easy and sometimes I get discouraged but in the end, it'll be worth it.

So thank you for writing about your feelings and good luck. You're on the right track and your post made me feel better about myself. So thanks a lot from the bottom of my heart.

Truly, you seem like an intelligent and considerate person. I'm sure your biggest obstacle is self-doubt and once you conquer it, it'll be your much-earned victory!

Anonymous said...

I read your post and thought... wow, she is in my head. I have that problem too and like you, I am just now learning to 'own my awesome.'

Anonymous said...

Savannah, I wish you the best of luck in your journey. when I read your words I was stunned because you don't come off the way that you describe but I don't know you personally. I think that you have made some huge contributions to this world and the fact that you went to Harvard and was able to graduate is huge. The fact that you have published several books is huge... As I write this I think about the words from Maya Angelou "Still I Rise". Hang in there as long as there is breath in the body then you can change the things that you want to. Stay Blessed.

Sharon better known as Divisionred

SarahRain22 said...

Hello Savannah,

I came across this by accident. I'm a member of your Google Group, and when I saw your hiatus message, I thought I'd come here and see what's wrong. I'm gonna agree with Sharon/DivisionRed in that you really don't come off as you describe now in this blog posting. I'm a little stunned to, but primarily because it feels like you were writing about me. How long have I been wrestling with the same things you write about in this post? For over 10 years.

I want to sit here and tell you about all of your accomplishments and all of your successes and hold them up to mine and prove to you that you are indeed the worthier and better person. If I had half of the success you've had it'd be enough. I am a complete and utter failure compared to you. I'm laughing as I write this, but it's true. Compared to many many many people in fact. Sometimes I question why I was even born. That my life is a waste, always has been and always will be.

But I have bright spots every now and then, I need to tell you. I have really good happy and hopeful moments sometimes, and you need to know some of those moments you've provided me with. Reading your books have been a source of brightness and sunshine in otherwise very cloudy days for me.

Reading about heroines that look like and talk like and think like me. Doing things I've only ever wished I could do. Living lives I dream of having. Being brave, and courageous and fun and sassy and strong. Don't you know how essential that is, at least for me? It helps to give me hope. It helps to let me understand that I'm not alone. It helps me know that I'm not a freak of nature, that there are other people like me.

And I needed you to know that. I needed you to know that I love your work. And that there isn't anything like it in the market now, and that makes it extremely special. I need you to know that I appreciate and love your work very much. You haven't released a book in awhile, and I was getting antsy, and that's the reason I came looking for you in the first place.

You are an amazing woman, Savannah. And don't let anyone, not those know nothing publishers who reject today and laud tomorrow, not your family, and especially not yourself take you away from you. Don't let them tear you down. Don't let them win.

Stay Blessed.

~Sarah-Ann
SarahRain1022

Bana said...

@BJ Yes ma'am! *hugs*

@Ikram Thank you for stopping by! I wish you well on your journey as well and I'm honored and humbled I was able to be an encouragement to you! *hugs*

@Anonymous We'll own it and hold tight to it! *hugs*

@Sharon Yeah...I learned how to fake the funk really well most times. We sang "Still I Rise" in my choir, & those words will definitely stick to me better. Thank you for your encouragement! *hugs*

@Sarah-Ann *big hugs* But let's be clear--I'm no more "worthier" than you. You are loved and you matter to someone, and I know me personally am grateful for you just for being someone who is willing to read what I have to offer. That's HUGE for me and, really, I'm so so grateful. I'm glad they've been able to be bright spots for you. I'm working on some new releases, but just know you have something to offer--I PROMISE you. You offer me support, and that matters, so thank you, thank you, thank you! *big hugs again*