I wanted my first post to reflect what I want for black women. Our potential with God’s grace is limitless. In order for our potential to be unlocked we need to focus on our physical health, emotional health, financial health and most importantly our spiritual health.
It was important to me to begin this blog with an example of a woman that exudes strength and courage, someone whose spirit is infectious and enduring. That woman is our First Lady Michelle Obama. There are many adjectives I can use to describe Mrs. Obama, some that come to mind are intelligent, poise, gracious, beautiful, confident, funny, passionate and spirited. The list is endless.
Our First Lady juggles many hats, but she is the first to tell you she is “Mom In Chief” first and foremost. Outside of her family obligations as wife and mother, she spear heads many initiatives such as the “Let’s Move” campaign which seeks to combat the epidemic of childhood obesity and her “Reach Higher” campaign which encourages young people to complete an education beyond high school. These are just two of many initiatives that she is passionate about and we can all agree that her load is heavy but through it all she seems to maintain a balance and finds time to make her health a priority. If she can do it I know we all can too.
We are not all going to be on the national stage like Michelle Obama, but I think we can all be the best we can be and be the best we can be where we are. Let’s start by making a difference in our own health.
This past past April, Mrs. Obama initiated the “Gimme Five” challenge which asked Americans to engage in five new moves to make them healthy, such as trying five new vegetables, or adding five repetitions of an exercise into a daily routine. Her challenge went viral and celebreties such as Beyonce, Michael Strahan and Hugh Jackman to name a few uploaded videos to the internet in support of the movement.
I couldn’t think of a better way to kick off the spirit of my blog but with Michelle Obama’s “Gimme Five” video.
by Marjorie Binette, MD