"Whatever you needed to hear when you were growing up, you can tell yourself that now."In this final episode of Season 3, host Satya Nelms is in the garden by herself, reflecting on some of the themes that have come up in the third season of Our Mothers' Gardens. This is 30th episode of the podcast, which premiered for the first time in March 2020. Satya takes some time to share her thoughts at the end of each season, and this time she is talking about self-mothering, and the way we show up for ourselves and our children.Our Mothers’ Gardens is a Honeybunch of Stinkweed Production and features music produced by Ptah. Our Mothers’ Gardens is made possible in part by the generous donations of patrons Emmett Swan, James McCarthy, and Courtney Tracewski.

“It was important to both my mom and my second mom, that I knew I had what I needed. That I didn’t need to go looking for it outside the home. I didn’t need someone else to tell me I was beautiful or smart. Those were things I was raised knowing.” Patrice King was born and raised in St.Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. She moved to the Northeast to attend Wesleyan University where she double majored in Psychology and Sociology. Patrice then pursued her Masters in Organizational Psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University in NYC. Patrice is passionate about the intersection of education, technology and the development of life-long learners. In her first career, she consulted with educators, nonprofits and co-founded a gaming company to develop spaces for deep learning, inquiry, collaboration and creation. In 2018, she pivoted her focus to interior design, architecture and self-sufficient living. She’s led the construction of a tiny home retreat and is currently developing a small farm in upstate New York.

“I think there’s something so beautiful about the ways in which Black moms have a very clear focus on the future because we’re not willing to accept the circumstance as it is right now, and this is why so much freedom work and organizing has been inspired by Black mothers. It’s this vision of what’s possible, and the potential for the world, and with that we’re constantly creating new futures and passing on this transformative, liberatory knowledge, not only through our bodies but through our teaching.” In this episode we are in the garden with Anna Malaika Tubbs. Anna is the author of the critically acclaimed book The Three Mothers: How the Mothers of MLK Jr., Malcolm X, and James Balwdin Shaped a Nation. She is also a Cambridge Ph.D. candidate in Sociology and a Bill and Melinda Gates Cambridge Scholar. After graduating Phi Beta Kappa from Stanford University with a BA in Anthropology, Anna received a Master’s from the University of Cambridge in Multidisciplinary Gender Studies. Outside of the academy she is an educator and DEI consultant. She lives with her husband, Michael Tubbs, and their son Michael Malakai.

“You have to be not only willing to pour a lot of love into someone, but also be creative about how you pour in that love.” In this episode we are in the garden with Carrington Kernodle. Carrington is a Libra Sun, Aries Moon, and Gemini Rising. She has been living in Virginia, USA her entire life, first growing up in the rural countryside of Danville and then moving to Charlottesville for college. She graduated from the University of Virginia double majoring in Philosophy and in African American & African Studies. She has been practicing yoga for 10 years and is now a 200hr certified yoga teacher. She teaches to uplift people so that they feel loved, seen & important on or off the mat. From yoga she learned about ahimsa- non violence and that has been the guiding principle in her life. It lead her to her become Vegan and she has been for over 4 years now. Being vegan speaks to her love for the Earth and all living things. She has a green thumb and cares for about 20 houseplants. She's very close with her family & happily lives with her lover. Some of the things she absolutely adores are cows, crystals, the Moon, Thai food, creating, mountains, soft textures, hip openers, candles, mushrooms, hugs, coffee, soil in her hands, meditation & sweater weather.

“Mothering is a long haul. And there’s so many seasons when you feel like it's so hard. And it’s not something you can escape. But with every difficulty comes some ease. And you’re strengthened through that process.” In this episode we are in the garden with Shahidah Al-Amin. Shahidah is a retired hairstylist/salon owner turned homemaker, home educator & community builder. As a wife of 15 years and mother to four children, she takes pride in nurturing her home & her people. She is co-founder of BOSSMOM Nation, a brand and community inspired by the experiences of black motherhood. Shahidah’s ultimate goal is to make the best use of her time while being a light of inspiration and service to others.

“Self-love is this really sacred gift that we give our community, because if we love ourselves, and we know what we’re worth, and we trust that we are deserving, and that we are worthy of joy, and all the things we would tell our children, it manifests and resonates differently.” In this episode we are in the garden with Alex Elle. Alex is an author & writing to heal facilitator living in Maryland with her husband and children. Writing came into her life by way of therapy and the exploration of healing through journaling. Quarterly, Alex teaches workshops and retreats centered around assisting others in finding their voices through storytelling rooted in truth without shame. Her mission is to build community & self-care practices through literature & language. She is currently an author at Chronicle Books. Alex is the author of multiple books and journals, most recently After the Rain and the guided journal, In Courage. She also hosts The Hey Girl Podcast.

“Every generation has been protecting us the best that they could. Doing the best that they could with what they had, with what they saw, and what they believed we were capable of -- what they believed we were responsible for. And sometimes everybody’s best wasn’t good enough. Some of us are healing from folks best. And some folks weren’t trying their best. All of that is true.” Today we are in the garden with Sara Makeba Daise. Sara is a Griot. Shaper. Shape-shifter. Infinite space & time traveller. Daughter of the South. As an Afrofuturist, Cultural History Interpreter, Public Historian, and writer, Sara Makeba’s (she/her/hers) work connects past, present, and future in accessible, healing, and liberating ways. Her research and praxis include Gullah Geechee folk, Hoodoo, Womanism, Black Feminism, speculative fiction, queerness, sexual freedom, pleasure, magic, healing, Black affirmations, and the power to imagine and manifest better worlds. A former tour guide at McLeod Plantation Historic Site, and a living historian with the Slave Dwelling Project, Sara Makeba’s Sankofa Shadow Work brings her to many sacred, painful spaces. She finds joy and restoration in her ancestors, plants, water, words, laughter, music and Black folk.

“Being a mother is really layered. For me it’s being a nurturer. It’s constantly thinking about the mothers before me. The mothers who mothered me.” In this episode we are in the garden with Brandy Wells. Brandy is an independently licensed social worker in Columbus, Ohio. Her specialty is skills and education regarding early childhood mental health prevention and intervention. She encourages caregivers to stop generational cycles of trauma by healing their own trauma and curses they are holding onto. Outside of her professional role she is a mommy blogger. She created My Motherhood Magic which provides practical parenting skills online to caregivers around the world who are invested in raising mentally healthy children. Her inspiration comes from her 3 beautiful daughters who she is raising with her husband. Her goal is always to be a vessel of the education and training she received.

“There is a role that I play in the current dynamic with my mother that I can continue playing… or I can model the care that I need and be an open invitation for her to show up with me.” In this episode we are in the garden with Kayla Jackson. Kayla is an ex-social worker turned coach/owner of her business: A Place for Audre. She believes everyone can access ease in their home and life without feeling guilty. She is a lover of liberation, Black feminism, and astrology, and is based in the Bay Area.

“Like sisterhood, motherhood is an opportunity for a sacred relationship.” In this episode we are in the garden with Jeannine Cook. Jeannine is a proud educator, mother, and the owner of Harriett’s Bookshop (and the upcoming Ida’s Bookshop). Harriett’s is names for the historical heroine Harriet Tubman, and their mission is to celebrate women authors, women artists and women activists. Jeannine holds a Master’s degree from The University of the Arts and is also a Leeway Art & Transformation grantee and winner of the South Philly Review Difference Maker Award. Her work has been recognized by several news outlets including the New York Times, CNN, Ebony, BET, Barcroft TV and the Daily Mail.