Finding Your Way Back: A Beginner’s Journey into Ancestor Veneration

🌿 Real Talk: Your Ancestors Been Walking With You

Truth be told, a lot of us been feelin' that tug lately.
That quiet hum deep in our bones tellin' us we ain’t walkin' this life alone.

Ancestor veneration ain’t about worshippin’ nobody — it’s about respect.
It's about reachin' back to pull forward.
It's about knowin’ you come from a line that prayed, fought, and survived for you to be here.

The Connection Was Always There

When we was kids, we thought we were just "helpin’ out" — passin’ things to Big Mama while she lit her candles, holdin’ our breath when we drove past graveyards, keepin’ old pictures on the wall because “you don’t forget your people.”

But now?
Now we know it ran deeper than tradition.
It was remembrance. It was protection. It was love in its purest form.

Even when they stripped everything else away, our ancestors held onto connection — hid it in plain sight.
They couldn’t always call the names out loud, but they kept ‘em alive in prayers, in recipes, in stories whispered over potlikker and collard greens.

You been doing it.
Your spirit been remembering.

How to Start Honoring Them — Without All the Extra

Forget the idea that you gotta have a thousand-dollar altar or know the "perfect" rituals.
Ancestor veneration starts in your heart.

Here's an easy, real way to start:

• Lay down a white cloth. Keep it simple. Clean towel, old shirt — whatever feels sacred to you.

• Set out a glass of water. Spirit recognizes water as a path.

• Say their names. Speak ‘em out loud. No script needed. Just you and them.

• Offer a prayer or a thank you. Whatever’s on your heart. However it wanna come out.

You don't gotta know all your people’s full history.
The fact that you exist is proof somebody before you chose to fight, to love, to hope.

Rooted Tip 🌱

"You don’t have to know the whole tree to be part of it.
Sometimes just sitting under it is enough."

Let’s Build Together

Think back for a second:
Was there somethin’ you did as a kid that felt normal... but now you realize had meaning?

Maybe it was the way you helped your grandma light a candle...
Maybe it was keeping old jewelry or Bibles in a special place without even questioning why...

✨ Share your story below.
You never know who’s gonna read it and feel a little less alone on their journey.

We’re building something sacred here. One memory at a time.