How to Move When Life Does Not Make Sense

This blog is a deeply personal reflection on grief, sense-making, and the cultural dimensions of loss. The author shares their experience of losing two maternal figures and explores how grief is both psychological and biological. They describe the shock of loss, the body's response to trauma, and the inadequacy of intellectualizing grief. Through cultural and historical context, the piece connects personal grief to the collective grief of Black Americans, who have historically faced systemic oppression and racialized violence.

The author underscores that grief is not just an emotional process but also a cultural and epistemological one. Different cultures interpret and process grief through varied sensory experiences. African and African American traditions emphasize embodied knowledge—where grief, speech, and memory live in the body, shaping how individuals and communities make sense of the world. The piece also highlights how systemic racial traumas are passed down through generations, influencing how Black women, in particular, perceive and navigate the world.

This essay is important because it challenges conventional, Eurocentric ways of understanding grief and knowledge. It calls attention to the overlooked wisdom in embodied, relational, and cultural sense-making, particularly among Black women. In a society that often dismisses non-Western ways of knowing, this piece asserts that grief, trauma, and resilience must be understood holistically. Ultimately, it urges a deeper integration of feeling and thinking, moving beyond intellectualization to fully experience and process life's inevitable transitions. Read the blog here.