Caroline James
Welcome to “The Notes Of A Sojourner!
Here, I offer the world,
the artistic byproducts
of my soul’s r(evolutions).
My name is Caroline James.
​
And I
am a soul
that will not negotiate
​
anyone
in humanity;
​
that list includes myself
and my ancestors.
And trust me,
them words ain’t cheap;
​
my convictions
are hard-earned.
​
For example,
when I turned 30,
my life immediately
and irrevocably
changed.
Just
a year earlier,
I’d made history.
Through their foundation,
Bill and Melinda Gates
​
were fully funding
my graduate education
to the University of Cambridge;
​
they'd even paid
for my flight
to England
​
I was
the second student
in The University of Alabama’s history
to win this prestigious scholarship.
And I was
the first one
who wasn't a white man.
Pretty good
for a kid
who taught herself
how to read.
Yes, indeed,
this was the peak
of my academic career,
​
and the ending
of life
as I knew it.
After graduating
with a distinguished award
for my dissertation,
​
I promptly embarked
on a multi-year journey
of hospitalization.
I was trying to kill myself.
​
Despite my achievements,
my inner-world
was one of great suffering.
​
As a passionate activist,
​
I was carrying
the unresolved
ancestral traumas
of humanity.
As a member
of a dysfunctional
family,
​
I was carrying
the unresolved
generational traumas
of my kin-folk.
And as
the cherry on top,
​
I was carrying
my own traumas;
​
the types of traumas
that cause a child,
born in a rich country,
to need to teach
themselves how to read.
So trust me,
my words ain’t cheap;
these convictions are expensive.
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To save
and love my life,
​
I have gone
into the dark night;
​
I have fought every demon
hell sent my way.
And for
the Garden of Eden,
that I call my soul,
it has all been worth it.
I've fucked the storm
and birthed a refuge.
​
Welcome, to
"The Notes Of A Sojourner;"
​
through my art,
you enter the world
of my soul.
This is world
where the traumas of humanity
are faced
with indestructible,
love, faith, and truth.
When I create,
I leave blood on the stage;
​
I'm da mammy
and pappy
of my own R(evolutions.)
​
Put my Midas touch
to my Trauma-
In da Bank,
I am poor,
but in my soul
I am filthy
fucking rich.
​
Hence,
though angry with humanity,
I believe in us!
​
I believe in all of us.
​
It is from personal experience,
that I have discovered
our infinite capacity
​
to face traumatic truths,
to love,
to heal
and to transform.
​​
Ever in Love and Solidarity,
Caroline James
The Sojourner
​​
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