Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child

On a recent episode of Fix My Life, Iyanla Vanzant was trying to repair the relationship of a mother and daughter torn by years of alcohol abuse and neglect. The mother was trying to regain the daughter’s trust, and the daughter was trying to feel and trust again. Before delving into a painful and dysfunctional history that troubled the both of them, Iyanla Vanzant begins to sing the words of an African American Spiritual, “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child…A Long Way from Home”. In times of slavery, Frederick Douglass describes his motherless experience with this expression, “My mother and I were separated when I was but an infant-- before I knew her as my mother.” He knew the implications of being a Motherless Child like so many of his era. Not having this special and developmental relationship tore at his heart and soul. This old spiritual resonates at the core because there were children and adults in this world who felt motherless then, and even today, there are children and adults who still feel motherless now. Long live African American Spirituals…these soulful songs will transcend time forever. Helen H. Kimbrough Author of My Soul/African American Spirituals: Embracing the Journey AK Classics PO Box 77203 Charlotte, NC 28271 www.akclassicstories.com