Waves of Change

Dear reader,

My name is Samihah (she/her) and I am working alongside Sarina and Alyx at Shapeshift Counselling this summer with joy and gratitude, as a part of my training in the Master of Social Work program with the University of Victoria.

In addition to graduate studies, I have the immense privilege of working with birthing families as a midwife. So much of what I hold dear as I am learning to pursue decolonial and anti-oppressive social work practice is rooted in what I have learned from birthing folks I have worked alongside. Joining the team at Shapeshift this semester, I feel a sense of nourishment and possibility as I envision work that supports collective healing and shared liberation for all.

As I introduce myself, I also reflect on what resonates for me in the beautifully chosen name Shapeshift. Lessons about shifting shape are ever-present in the processes of labour and birth, as they are in so many facets of the natural world. Thinking about this calls to mind the waves of contractions that birthers move through during labour. Bearing witness to this has often reminded me of the cyclical transformations each of us experience throughout our lifetimes.

At a recent Eid gathering with family and friends, I heard a poem that continues to sit with me. In the poem “Bismillah,” Rumi writes: “The ocean takes care of each wave until it gets to shore.”

What a powerful teacher the ocean is, sharing this reminder of what it means to be ever in motion and always in connection through those waves of change that are a fundamental part of life’s journey. This line of Rumi’s poem inspires me to remember a sense of trust and openness to receiving support and being held by networks of care through these shifts and transformations that are innate to each of our journeys.

In my work, I feel an ongoing sense of curiosity about how relationships with land, our lineages, ourselves, and one another can foster healing and wellness through seasons of transition, grief, and growth. I hope to meet each wave of change in my time with Shapeshift with this same sense of curiosity and with the trust that I am continuously learning to hold.

With deep care,

Samihah