sussy santana

  Worshiping a woman came very naturally to us. After all, my family is a matriarcado—a matriarchy. My sister and I grew up in the Dominican Republic with our mother, Mami, a teacher who held multiple side jobs to make ends meet. She was smart, ambitious, and always with a plan: to do better, to make more money, to help other women. Perhaps she inherited this drive from my grandmother, Carmela, who worked as a seamstress and was known for feeding everyone in the neighborhood. I never met my grandmother—she died after giving birth to her ninth child, when my mother was only seven—but I knew her through Mami’s stories. My mother spoke of her kindness, her creativity, and her vibrant spirit. Making was her gift. I know she would have loved to see us creating too.   I’m sure mi abuela was all the things I heard growing up, but I often wonder what made her sad, what worried her. As I understand it, she had nine children by the age of thirty-three; I can only imagine the toll th...

1. Begin with the Call (Llamado) A community practice, for me, begins with a call to gather, to create space for voices, stories, and questions to rise. Make and respond to that call with intention and humility, listening to all voices. 2. Root in Relationship Strong community work is relational, not transactional. To build deep, trust-based connections, honor collaboration over competition. Let your practice be shaped by the people walking alongside you. We each carry wisdom rooted in our personal histories; every one of us is both teacher and student. Make intentional space to understand and honor the wisdom everyone brings.  3. Be Patient Relationships are not built overnight. A community practice is exactly that—a practice. It requires time, honesty, and consistent presence. 4. Follow Through Do what you say you are going to do. If circumstances change, be honest about it. 5. Make Space for What Surfaces We often arrive with a plan for how a gathering should go. Then s...