21 PLEASURE PRINCIPLES | Day 9 | Mary McLeod Bethune

Pleasure Muse: Mary McLeod Bethune

Tantalizing Trivia  

Mary McLeod Bethune was not satisfied until Black girls were educated and free. 

Born in South Carolina to parents of enslaved Africans, she was the 15th of 17 children. She worked the cotton fields with her mother and each afternoon, walked 5 miles to school to learn to read. Even then, she said she knew there was a calling on her life, a divine mission. She said, “For I am my mother's daughter, and the drums of Africa still beat in my heart.”

She started early. She went to Bible school in Chicago, served in a Christian mission and started outreach to prisoners.  Of her mento there, she said, ““I was so impressed with her fearlessness, her amazing touch in every respect, an energy that seemed inexhaustible and her mighty power to command respect and admiration from her students and all who knew her. She handled her domain with the art of a master.” 

She moved to Florida to start a school. She raised money by making sweet potato pies, ice cream and fried fish and the students made ink for pens from elderberry juice and pencils from burned wood. That one room school house turned into Bethune-Cookman University, but she served as president for 20 years. She said, “I considered cash money as the smallest part of my resources. I had faith in a loving God, faith in myself, and a desire to serve." 

She rode that wave of victory to global prominence as “The First Lady” of the Black Planet; founded the National Council of Negro Women in 1935, established the “Black Cabinet” as national advisor to president Franklin D. Roosevelt and the only Black woman to help charter the United Nations

Unveiled in 1974, today, there is a 17 ft bronze statue of Bethune in a public park in Washington, D.C. It is the first monument to honor an African-American or a woman on the national mall. 

Affirmations

Inhale, satisfaction smells sweet; Exhale, everything is working for my good

I speak words that result in satisfactory experiences. 

I rest satisfied with what I can do now to make the world better. 

I live a life that is steeped in satisfying moments. 

I will follow my bliss and surf my satisfaction. I will notice when I feel the charge of alignment in my soul and I will say yes! More of this. 

Gratitude satisfies the soul. 

Mirror Work:

See yourself as a surfer. …waiting on your board for the next big wave. Your feet can’t touch the ground and you’re far from the shore. Relax. Play. Smile. Dangle your feet in the living water. Your wave is coming. Your purpose today is to catch it. …a surge of satisfaction. This is soul work. Who or what is inspiring you to pop up? Which wave is calling you today? Wait for it. Not that one. Not that one. Connect and feel. Not that one. Wait for it. That one!  Ride your own wave. The one that feels good and holds you steady. The wave of a good job, a rich experience, a nurturing relationship, a communal service.  Your wave is coming today. Ride it and feel the rapture of being fully alive and satisfied. 

Prayer for Pleasure

Dear God,

Call me. Make it clear which wave I should ride. I want to be satisfied with this one precious life. I want the exhilaration of being snatched up in satisfaction. Help me to see me as you see me.  Give me the faith of my foremothers that life is good. Light my feet with the fire of purpose so that I can experience the rapture of being alive. Let  me surrender to divine destiny and awesome alignment. 

Amen. 

Surf your satisfaction: A playlist

Self-Care Shopping List:

Buy a beautiful journal and pen. Put it by your bedside  Save the first page to write a Satisfaction List

“For I am my mother's daughter, and the drums of Africa still beat in my heart.” - Mary McLeod Bethune

Didn’t catch the live recording of today’s episode? We don’t want you to miss out on getting the full experience. Check out the opening and closing songs below.

Opening ⁠Song

Closing ⁠Song