Pride Through Time: An LGBT+ Meditation Journey

Join me for an immersive guided meditation, taking you on a spiritual journey to connect with your queer and trans ancestors. Travel through time, feel your ancestors' resilience, courage, and wisdom, and affirm their humanity. In return, receive their timeless blessings and protection. This empowering meditation enriches your understanding of your identity and honors the sacredness and significance of your queerness and transness. Background music by Calm Shores

Transcript

I've always had a weird relationship with pride.

I didn't always see the importance of the moment.

But as we embark on this journey of pride,

It's essential to remember that our narratives are far richer than what is often portrayed.

Amongst the rainbow-colored floats and corporate sponsorships,

There's a depth and a legacy that can easily be forgotten.

Our queer and trans identities are not a recent phenomenon.

They are as old as time itself,

As elemental as the air we breathe.

Our ancestors walked the same earth we do now.

Their stories are etched into the fabric of our histories.

They are embedded in our DNA.

They struggled,

They fought,

And they loved fiercely,

All while nurturing their authenticity.

Their courage and resilience forged a path that we now walk.

We are not simply a byproduct of this era.

We are not a conspiracy or an agenda.

But we are a beautiful ancestral continuation of the natural progression of our people.

May this meditation serve as a bridge connecting us to those who came before us.

It is a journey through time,

A heart-to-heart conversation with our ancestors,

And a reminder of our sacredness,

The divine beauty of our queer and trans identities.

Pride is so much more than a month-long celebration.

It is a living,

Breathing testament to the human spirit,

To our ability to love,

To exist,

And to thrive against the odds.

May this meditation serve as a reminder of the seriousness and sacredness of your queerness or your transness.

Let it echo the truth that you are seen and that you are honored,

And that through time and space,

You are loved.

Now,

Let's start by deciding what position that you want to meditate in,

Whether you want to lie down or sit crisscross applesauce.

Get comfortable wherever you are and close your eyes.

And let's take a deep breath in through our nose,

And let's breathe out through our mouth.

Let's do it one more time,

Breathing in through our nose.

Let's breathe out through our mouth.

As you breathe,

I want you to imagine the sweet floral scent hitting your nose.

Your body feels warm and relaxed.

Feel your heart opening and your spirit becoming receptive to the wisdom of the queer and trans ancestors that came before us.

I want you to inhale slowly to the count of four,

Feeling your lungs with air,

Feeling your belly rise.

Hold this breath for four counts as well,

Soaking in the peaceful tranquility of the moment.

And then I want you to exhale gently to the count of four,

Releasing any tension or discomfort from your body.

And now pause for four counts,

Sinking deeper into the stillness of the moment.

Let's do this cycle.

Breathe in for one,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Hold your breath for one,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Breathe out for one,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Hold your breath for one,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Let's do it one more time,

Breathing in for one,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Hold your breath for one,

Two,

Three,

Four.

Breathe out for one,

Two,

Three,

Four.

And let your breathing return to normal.

As your breathing steadies,

The smell of flowers fills your nose.

The floral scent brings a calmness that starts from your head and extends all the way down to your toes.

In your mind's eye,

I want you to picture yourself standing alone on a cool summer night,

The stars and moon light up your surroundings.

It makes you feel safe and connected to the nature around you,

To the universe around you.

This profound sense of connectedness creates a portal in front of you.

Materializing in front of you is a portal that glows with the full spectrum of the rainbow,

Each color vibrating with a different energy.

The red is rich and deep as southern clay.

It gives you strength and courage.

The orange is bright and warm as a summer peach.

It gives you healing and kinship.

The yellow is vibrant as sunflowers.

It gives you joy and vitality.

The green,

Bright and lush like southern pine trees.

They aid your growth and bring a sense of harmony inside of you.

The blue is clear,

As expansive as the southern sky on a sunny day,

Bringing you tranquility and wisdom.

The indigo is mysterious as the night sky,

Channeling and deepening your intuition and understanding of the divineness of your identity.

The violet is royal and precious as a magnolia blossom,

Strengthening your connection to your spirit and ushering in transformation.

You walk towards this portal,

This rainbow-hued portal.

And as you walk in,

You find yourself turning back in time,

But you're safe.

You find yourself in the 1990s,

1997 to be specific.

You are in the middle of a city,

Resiliently fighting the AIDS epidemic.

In the background,

You hear the loud echoes of protesters,

Demanding recognition,

Demanding health care,

Demanding basic human rights.

The atmosphere vibrates with their calls for justice.

But under the vibrations is a gentle hum,

The hum of community solidarity.

To the right of you,

Beyond the protest,

You see a candlelight vigil,

The candles illuminating faces under the tender glow.

At this altar for those lost to the epidemic,

You find an ancestor,

An ancestor who has been fighting for dignity,

Fighting to be respected.

Their hands are worn,

But they are strong.

Their eyes,

They carry stories of courage,

Determination,

And loss.

I want you to picture yourself walking up to them,

And somehow they recognize you.

They know that you are family.

You look into their eyes,

And you tell them,

You are resilient.

You are beyond brave.

Your fight matters.

Your love matters.

I see you.

I honor you.

And I literally live because of you.

I want you to picture yourself hugging them.

And as you hug them,

You whisper sweet affirmations into their ear.

In this hug,

You transfer the knowledge of your existence,

Your fight,

And that their fight wasn't in vain,

And that because of their fight,

You are here today.

As the final affirmations leave your lips,

This portal emerges in front of you once again.

You stop your hug,

And you continue your journey.

The portal calls you to continue your walk through time through pride.

You take a few more steps,

And suddenly this portal transports you back even further in time.

Now you find yourself in the 1920s.

You're suddenly in an old church.

The sun shines through the stained glass windows.

You see a depiction of Jesus.

And next to the stained glass,

You see another ancestor rustling through a book of hymns.

You see them close their eyes in prayer.

You can hear them praying for change,

Praying to change the parts of themselves that make them who they are.

You see them praying for the people who make them holy and unique.

I want you to go and join them in their solitude.

Again,

They recognize you as family.

Your presence for them is a beacon of love and acceptance.

Picture yourself holding their hand,

Offering warmth and solidarity,

And to say,

You are not alone in your struggle.

God made you peculiar.

God made you just as you are,

And he made no mistakes.

So stop praying for him to edit what is already perfect.

Your truth is a testament to the beauty of your identity.

Thank you for living,

For praying,

For me.

As you grab their hand,

The knowledge of your time,

How far you have made it,

How far queer and trans people have made it.

Even our current struggles transfers into their being.

They learn not only of you,

But everyone that came after them and before you.

They recognize that from 1920,

Their struggle will not be in vain.

As the knowledge is passed back,

They pass forward their knowledge of survival,

Their knowledge of spirit,

Their knowledge of the earth,

Of resilience.

It is transferred back to you.

And you find yourself being whisked back away into this rainbow portal.

Take a deep,

Anchoring breath,

And breathing in through your nose,

Filling up your entire belly.

And as you breathe out,

You find yourself journeying back into a pre-colonial era.

Queer and trans people stand tall and revered as community leaders and wisdom keepers.

Healers.

And you stand among them.

You feel their strength,

Their wisdom,

And their profound influence.

These ancestors are farmers.

These ancestors are medicine people.

These ancestors are the wisest people in their villages,

In their communities.

One by one,

You find yourself in their comforting embrace.

They give you gentle hugs.

Their loving embrace felt through time.

Feel it on your skin.

They give you blessings and protections.

Their faces are illuminated with the warmth and the acceptance of this beautiful sun.

They lay their hands on your shoulders,

And they all start speaking at once.

They say to you,

You,

Dear one,

Are a testament to our resilience.

We see the strength that resides in you,

The flame of our courage that burns brightly within your heart.

May you always find strength to stand tall against adversities,

To stand proud in your truth.

We affirm your courage,

Your strength,

And your resilience.

We embless you with our enduring love,

A love that transcends time,

Space,

Judgment,

And oppression.

Love is your birthright.

It is the essence of who you are.

May your heart remain open,

Allowing you to give love freely and receive love abundantly.

We affirm your courage,

Your strength,

And your resilience.

We affirm your capacity to be loved and to love,

For it is boundless.

We bestow upon you our wisdom.

We survived and thrived in times of strife and joy,

And our lessons are within you.

May you trust in your intuition,

Lean on your wisdom when times are tough,

And celebrate your victories with humility.

We affirm your wisdom and your ability to make the decisions that honor your identity.

We bless you with authenticity.

Your journey,

Like ours,

Is a tapestry of our experiences that make you unique.

May you always live your truth unapologetically.

May you always live your truth unapologetically,

Fiercely.

We bestow upon you our protections.

From our place beyond time,

We watch over you,

Wrapping you into the energy of our love and protection.

And you always feel safe to express who you are.

We affirm your safety and your freedom to live your life on your own terms.

And finally,

We bless you with unity.

Know that you are never alone.

We are a part of you,

As you are a part of us.

May you always feel connected to your community and us,

Your queer and trans ancestors.

We affirm your belonging,

Your community,

And your place within our lineage.

As the echoes of their voices fade,

You feel their blessings and affirmations seep into your spirit,

Seep into your bones.

All the way from back then to this moment in the present,

Their blessings hit your spirit,

Leaving you feel loved,

Affirmed,

Protected,

And most importantly,

Deeply connected to your queer and trans ancestors,

Deeply connected to the truth that you have been here before and that you will be here long after you pass away,

Long after I pass away.

As you return to the present carrying the wisdom and blessings in your heart,

Let us close this journey with a prayer.

Benevolent ancestors,

Known and unknown,

Seen and unseen,

I thank you for your wisdom,

Your protection,

Your love.

May your guidance stay with me.

May your knowledge come back to me.

May your resilience live within me,

Echoing across time and space.

I pray for your continued wisdom to light my path.

May I honor you by being true to myself,

By living authentically,

And by creating a safer,

More understanding world for people like me.

May your courage flow deep within me so that I can make the hard decision,

So I can make the easy decision to love myself,

To center myself,

To be myself.

May your blessings,

Your wisdoms,

And your love guide my path.

I honor you by living my truth.

And I affirm that I am strengthened by our connectedness across time and space.

I thank you.

You pray.

Amen and Ashe.

Open your eyes whenever you're ready.

And remember this journey.

Remember the vast queer and trans lineage that you are a part of.

Let these affirmations live deep within you because they are the truth.

No matter what comes at us,

No matter what legislation comes down,

And no matter what violence comes against our community,

May it never take our eyes away from the fact that we are holy,

That we are divine,

And that we are loving,

And that we are deserving of peace,

That we are deserving of safety,

That we are deserving of our needs being met.

Happy Pride,

Y'all.

I hope you got what you needed,

And I hope that it is a great,

Great month for you,

And that you feel connected to those that love you the most.

I'm Desi,

And this has been Meditations with Desi.

Reviews

Wooow this was so affirming. Thank you so much for sharing ❤️🥹🙏🏿

This beautiful meditation had a profound effect on me. Thank you for reminding me to pray for and think of our ancestors. This has been a blessing.

Absolutely amazing! They almost had me in tears with the diallogue; it was soothing, proud, and powerful! I would absolutely recommend to any meditating queers!

I really like your voice and loved the opportunity of going back to my ancestors🙏
I was challenged by the volume of the music - wonderful music, just competing, sometimes over your voice.

This was wonderful meditation. I love it.
Thank you.

Thank you so much for this amazing meditation! As June comes to an end, finding this meditation has brought me so much pride and joy as a queer person and I cannot wait to share this with so many others 🤍