Antoinette Lakey

My inspiration was my childhood. I did not have a good childhood, and when I went to my high school English teacher, she knew and understood the situation that I was in, and her words were 'write, baby girl write.' So I used my writing in order to survive. That teacher's encouragement helped me discover that writing and storytelling could be my path forward, and I've carried that with me throughout my entire 30-year career. I've learned that my biggest education has been being out in the community and learning from my peers and my mentors, those that are older than me. The wisdom and stories from the older generation have been priceless in shaping who I am today.

The best advice I ever received was from my high school English teacher who told me 'write, baby girl write' when she understood the difficult situation I was in. That simple but powerful advice became my survival tool and shaped my entire career. I also carry with me the wisdom my grandmother used to tell me all the time, which made no sense until I was an adult: 'As long as you can cook, clean, and sell, you will never go hungry.' What that means is as long as you have a side hustle and can do the basics, you're good to go. That wisdom has carried me through my entire career.

Share your stories and listen to the stories. They may not make sense at first, but eventually they will. Everyone replays some stories that they've heard from their grandparents or their parents, and later on down the line, it'll be like 'oh wow, now that makes sense.' That's the way it was with me. What the older generation will teach you is just priceless. My grandmother used to tell me all the time things that made no sense until I was an adult, like 'as long as you can cook, clean, and sell, you will never go hungry.' What that means is as long as you have a side hustle and can do the basics, you're good to go. That wisdom will carry you through.

The biggest challenge and opportunity is storytelling to children. This generation is different from the generation I grew up in. We listened to stories, we didn't know what those stories meant at the time, but then we went back and thought about what those stories meant as adults. If we spent more time telling children our stories, or telling people our stories, children and adults period, and had time to share those stories, we would not be where we are today. History repeats itself, and if more people were able to share their stories, history would not come back the way it is. We need to bridge that gap and help this generation understand the value of listening to and learning from the stories of those who came before them.