One holiday tradition my mom always wanted to do with us but never did is celebrate Kwanzaa. She did educate me on what it is and what everything means, but we never got around to ever doing it. But now that I’m starting my own family, I wanted to do celebrate this year (even if Baby won’t be around to see it.) That way we’ll be ready to celebrate it the way we should when Baby is bigger.
So, for 2020 I decided to celebrate Kwanzaa through literature. I’ll be listing the principles for each day along with a book that matches the principles. If you can think of other titles that match the principles, tell me, I’d love to discuss.
Day 2 is Kujichagulia. It means Self-Determination. The next candle that’s lit is the left most red one. The process is much of the same, the person who lights it recites a statement which is related to Self-Determination. My statement for self-determination is pretty simple. I always had in mind that I wanted to be a Collection Development Librarian. Well this year, a position opened up. In my head, they already had someone in mind for the position, but I went ahead and went for it anyway. And then low and behold, I got it. And in the most recent years, libraries around the country are popping up with something called a Diversity and Inclusion Collection Development Librarian. We didn’t have one in my library system, but since I had mentioned it in my interview, and I kept mentioning different things I could do with a position like that and more. I was determined to help them see what I did. That this was a position that was needed. And sure enough, they finalized it and I got the job of my dreams!
The book I thought about first that reminded me of the knowing ones self was:
I remember reading this book and seeing how determined she was to follow her own dreams and not let anyone hinder her with the expectations they have of her instead of letting her be the person she wants to be. She knew what she wanted. It took her awhile, but eventually, she went for it!
What about you? What books do you think of when you think of Kujichagulia or Self-Determination? Do you think of this one as well? Let me know in the comments!