Hey, this is you had me at Black. I'm Martina Abraham Zalunga.

Last week was really tough for me, and I know it was for y'all too. I had a hard time sleeping. My anxiety

was through the roof. I couldn't focus, I couldn't concentrate, my mind was constantly racing at a hundred miles per hour

I'm feeling a lot better now thankfully but I hope that in the midst of your pain and in the midst of your fight and during this very real pandemic

you are taking care of yourselves finding times to get your emotions out, taking time to rest,

and just allowing space for pockets of joy

in your days and in your weeks.

The great Audra Lord said it best.

Caring for myself is not self-indulgence.

It is self-preservation.

And that is an act of political warfare.

If you're new to you had me at Black, welcome.

This show is a love letter to us.

It's a love letter to our stories.

We live off of the proverb, those who tell stories of to our to walk boldly in our own. We happen to be in the middle of a special series called

at the house. You can probably guess what inspired it, but this series is a

collaboration with the podcast,

Wild Black, and it's structured a little differently

from our traditional episodes.

Each week, we invite y'all to submit stories

about a particular topic, and we publish them here. Then over on

while Black they follow up with an enlightening conversation with an expert

...