joy is a daily choice // Truth Tribe interview: VersAnnette Blackman-Bosia
VersAnnette Blackman-Bosia knows that wild joy is possible, no matter what heartache or pain you've endured.
Trust me--she's been there, too, and still believes that "Joy is a daily choice."
VersAnnette ("Verse") is a force for healing, dedicated to transforming unbearable ache into wild joy. As an artist, writer, advocate, and healing arts practitioner, Verse shows that continual rebirth is possible for us all.
Verse has “a strong desire to nurture, enlighten, awaken, inspire, and empower people,” especially through her business, Soul Revival Healing Arts. She says, “Creativity can resuscitate, resurrect, and reignite hearts with fire and purpose and passion.”
As a survivor-turned-advocate, Verse has over ten years’ experience in trauma-informed facilitation, practiced in settings including domestic violence shelters and Chicago high schools. She also founded a nonprofit organization, H.E.M (Heal, Empower, Motivate), which serves women affected by domestic violence.
What a thrill to welcome Verse to our Truth Tribe with her interview in The Phoenix Soul: Wild Joy.
artwork by VersAnnette Blackman-Bosia
Verse and I talked about the healing power of creative expression, her advocacy for domestic abuse survivors (and why it's so personal), her poetry collection, why joy is her primary wish for 2017, and more.
“There is a beauty in brokenness. To be willing to say, ‘I’m hurt. I fell, and I don’t know if I can get back up,’ is a testament to how wide the reach of vulnerability is. Every time a wounded warrior gets back on her feet and reaches out for a lifeline, she is coming closer to the healing that we all deserve. And there is unlimited power in creativity; I cannot stress this enough. The most powerful art I’ve made is when I just couldn’t really function ’cause I was so depressed or in such deep emotional pain.”
artwork by VersAnnette Blackman-Bosia
I asked Verse about how joy is her primary wish for 2017. Here's her answer, in part:
“Joy is a daily choice. And I believe that what we choose to focus on grows. I’m a person who looks at what’s happening, and as opposed to venting–I tend to lean towards being in service of those who are hurting. How can I brighten up someone else’s day? What words of inspiration can I share that have kept me lifted? Despite circumstances, I can rest assured that trials are teaching me things like patience and wisdom, growing and stretching me along the way. To me, that is pure joy.”
Phoenix soul, what would happen if you chose joy today?
We'd love to explore wild joy with you. Will you join us?
with love & awe,
Amanda
