BLACK COTTON
My journey of writing was embedded within my spirit long before I wrote my first sentence. Fascinated with the writings of various authors, I was afforded opportunities to vicariously travel to places beyond my wildest imagination. The works of others carried me through the earliest phases of growing up in the small community of Allendale, South Carolina. Not a lot to read, but what I read later sparked the fire I needed to tap into my creativity, to tell my story for others to read and relate to some aspect.
After spending over two and a half decades of teaching the various genres of reading and writing to middle schoolers, an early morning epiphany led me to write my first poem. After pouring my morning cup of coffee, I then poured my thoughts onto a journal I kept on the kitchen counter. I searched amongst the tons of poetry contest and was steered to The Colorism Healing Contest. My quick write was entered into the 2018 Colorism Healing Poetry Contest. The purpose of the Colorism Healing Writing Contest is to raise awareness about colorism among all people and to provide a productive, creative outlet for self-expression and healing. It raises awareness for shifting attitudes to take action to address the social marginalization and systemic oppression of people with darker skin tones and the privileging of people with lighter skin tones. -Dr. Sarah L. Webb
“Black Cotton,” the title of my first official poem won the author’s pick award. It was a poem that embodied the essence of wearing the naturalness of our exquisite hair. I was ecstatic about the acceptance of my poem worldwide. The impact it served for young ladies in India with dark skin.
Black Cotton
From the roots of my head sprang strands of gorgeous hair
Natural kinky and coiled together not straight and flat to the glare.
Years of growth without being tamed to the world’s cultural norms
Black Cotton has no shame and knows only her claim against conformity.
You top the crowns of many light and dark, young, and old
So many different textures glorious, majestic, natural, and bold.
Black Cotton sat in many churches with the joy of no stares
But entered classes, restaurants, movie theaters and held back tears.
Years before when my ancestors labored and picked fields of White Cotton
One never knew Black Cotton from their roots would never be forgotten.
Backs bent with heads hung low labored to carry the Master’s White Cotton load
Black Cotton’ style and statuaries grace changed to be my gratifying goal.
To go far beyond the restricted boundaries of White Cotton’s fields
Breaking glass ceilings, exploring uncharted airfields.
Black Cotton rises each day filled with positive energy, willing to give her all
Never thinking of those things from yesterday that are now befallen.
A role model to young and seasoned women not taught to be happy with the skin they are in
Black Cotton is a vision of strength, determination, and beauty; a proclamation to victory.
From my peripheral I feel your warmth as you try to figure out my strategies
Avoiding contact not concentrating on the Black Cotton on my head, but watching my anatomy.
In a world where beauty is straight from crown to toe
You prefer to look beyond my heritage, my grace, and my vibrant glow.
Years of loving Black Cotton crown as I watched it now turned to White Cotton. ~Bobbi Simmons
Two of my other pieces were featured in the 2020 Colorism Healing Writing Contest. In 2021 I volunteered to be a judge for the writings of other creatives that entered the contest.
Writing became the therapeutic method I used to write passionately about fictional and non-fictional scenarios. “Black Cotton’s” success ignited a flame that would propel me to finish and publish my first book in 2021, “Birdwild.”
Birdwild, is a heartwarming novella of General African American Fiction about the true meaning of family and the uncovering of the protagonist, Bree Breeze’s family’s skeletal enigmas from the past. Bree takes the reader through a rollercoaster ride on her journey of growing up amid shattering secrets. The family’s past has roots deeper that the tall pine trees that stand along the side of the country pastured fields of the Breeze farm.
Each character is deeply imagined with their individual flaws, strengths, and weaknesses, and are easy for the reader to create an attachment. The story also brings about reasons for the main character to persevere as she finds reservoirs of internal strength and eventually flight and freedom. Southern dialect throughout the story creates true authenticity and personality. This gratifying story about family is a true page turner filled with unexpected excitement.
Birdwild captivated the Indie Spotlight in the July 2021 edition of BookLife. July celebrated works of fiction about striking out for the unknown and poetry about love, loss, and identity. BookLife is a website from Publishers Weekly dedicated to indie authors.
Birdwild was archived and shelved on the shelf of my alma mater, South Carolina State University. The storyline references aspects of the school’s presence in the life of the main character. This was very special to say the least, truly humbling, and sentimental. The bookalso resides on the shelves of other libraries locally and where I grew up. Birdwild is the first of my trilogy books in this series.
In 2022 while doing what I love most, gardening, my fertile inventiveness presented a visualization. I felt because of the enduring happiness that gardening brought to me, it was the inspiration I needed to write a story for children on this topic. I immediately shared the idea with my husband, Thomas and he loved it. We collaborated on how to make this a reality. How to make it fun and exciting for children.
We drew upon the resourcefulness we already knew and both loved about gardening. The main idea of the story’s concept is to teach children to plant gardens and grow healthy foods to eat. To learn to savory the soul of Mother Earth and help others. My husband gave the book a truly delightful thematic adventure. By working together our first in a series of children’s books, Soil Sister’s Magical Garden Adventure was conceptualized.
I recently read an article entitled; “Why Telling Our Own Story Is So Powerful for Black Americans.” In the article Congressman John Lewis was quoted as saying, “The movement without storytelling, is like birds without wings.” Virginia Hamilton, an African American storyteller also said, “Storytelling was the first opportunity for Black Folks to represent themselves as anything other than property. Being a native of the South, I can attest to the richness of storytelling and the wealth of knowledge I have gained from my ancestors no longer here. I know that I will not live forever, but my greatest aspiration is to create and pass on a legacy of writing for future generations to embrace. I want my storytelling to be heard, and for the voices of those words to make a positive difference in the world.
Why Telling Our Own Story Is So Powerful for Black… (berkeley.edu)
Books:
Amazon.com: Birdwild: 9781734508383: Simmons, Bobbi: Books
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/57860726-birdwild?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=4YH4W3xg52&rank=1
Soil Sisters Magical Garden Adventure by Bobbi Simmons | Goodreads
Thank you to BLACK GOLD PUBLISHING
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