When Danai Gurira continues to give me goosebumps

Have you ever just liked someone from a distance and knew that there was something that connected the two of you together? Is it possible to just love or fall in love with a person’s mind and way of thinking as well as success and literally just have goosebumps all over. The fact that I am asking means it is possible, right? For me that woman would have to be the amazing Danai Gurira.

A while back I blogged about this phenomenal Zimbabwean sister of mine and her success to date. At that time I just felt that she was underrated even in Hollywood as well as my home country Zimbabwe and just wanted to shed the spotlight on a  sister, not that she needed it but as a way of just inspiring anyone especially my followers and here she is today doing the DAMN things in #BlackPanther and as a young black woman being proud to be black and Shona.

So a few weeks back I also shared on social media how as Zimbabweans we needed to be proud of our own and celebrate them in every possible way, shape, form and platform so our people can see and be reminded of their own beauty and greatness. God knows how much we need it. Many said they did not know Danai or identify with her as being Shona or Zimbabwean because they felt that she barely spoke the language of even shared that she was from Zimbabwe with her peers which unfortunately was not true. How true is this with many other Zimbabweans who are excelling at home and internationally? How do we bring this community together? How do we ensure that more good stories are shared rather than poverty and other socio -economic stories that are on our timelines on a daily basis.

My post made me realize the gap in the media and the lack of spaces online or home were our people are celebrated and introduced to each other. If the spaces exist they are definitely not reaching our people and there is a gap, a big one I think. It made also realize we still have a long way to go as a people. I am a few years younger than Danai and it freaks me out how even when I was growing up I was dark and did not feel beautiful at all , infact it was something you were always reminded of.

So her moment with the Essence Editor in Chief Susan L Taylor as mentioned in her speech never came for me while growing up. I am grateful that once I reached high school and made my own mistakes I started to own my journey and realized my own outstanding beauty as a woman and a black woman and from then on I have just continued to be me and the best of me. There was no celebration of women then , they were not visible enough for me as a black child who dared to dream neither were they appreciated for their beauty and their excellence. Infact it was a norm to hear how intelligence and our hard working ethos was all we had, as if that is ALL we are and can be.

So pardon me for being excited. Pardon me for filling up my timeline with black magical women. It is time. Infact this is way overdue. In Danai’s words “We’ve been lied to and our youth are struggling with those lies, drowning in them. Being denied their greatness because there are so many lies standing between them and their true selves. We have to repel, dispel the lies.” 

We have to allow ourselves to shine and believe in our greatness with such power, faith and tenacity. So I hope you shine, you reach out to a young person and let them see excellence in you and through YOU so they know they have a bright tomorrow which starts TODAY! Thank you Danai. It is my hope that one day we meet and we do something out of this world together. God bless you. Ndichakuona kana nguva yasvika, mwari vabvuma.