Don't Quit

“Mother to Son” by Langston Hughes 

Well, son, I’ll tell you:

Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.

It’s had tacks in it,

And splinters,

And boards torn up,

And places with no carpet on the floor—

Bare.

But all the time

I’se been a-climbin’ on,

And reachin’ landin’s,

And turnin’ corners,

And sometimes goin’ in the dark

Where there ain’t been no light.

So boy, don’t you turn back.

Don’t you set down on the steps

’Cause you finds it’s kinder hard.

Don’t you fall now—

For I’se still goin’, honey,

I’se still climbin’,

And life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.

When I was a little girl, my mother introduced me to the poem above. As was her custom, she asked me what I thought the subject was saying. I responded, “ Don’t quit.” “Yes, CeCe, that’s right! Things will get hard sometimes, but don’t you quit!” Isn’t it amazing that a poem written in 1922 is still relevant?

Throughout my life, I have had to tap into the courage to “keep climbing.” That is actually how I discovered ACPE. I was at a REM Invitational, crying my eyes out because I had been denied a position as an S.I.T. One of the Elders, Carlos Bell, saw me. The support that he and numerous others have given me over the past 27 years has brought me to places of service that I would never have imagined. In ACPE, I have experienced a depth of caring that I had only experienced in my family and at Church. And I have learned to offer that caring to others whoever and wherever they may be.

As we individually and collectively deepen our commitment to see and respect all others, our Association’s impact on the good of all humanity expands. Many things are going on all around us that are hard, but we can’t sit down…  we have the responsibility to help the world see the sacred value, dignity, and worth of all human beings. To that end, I would like to remind you that the Racial Ethnic Multi-Cultural Community of Practice invites you to join the 2025 REM Invitational from February 27 – March 1, 2025. The subject for this gathering is Re-Imagining Restorative Justice for Health & Well-Being. It will offer a space for honest and respectful engagement for all. My hope for us is that it will be a sacred and transformative space that will renew and re-invigorate us for whatever comes next.

Blessings Always and in All Ways,

Cecelia