Building Communities Like Nature Does
Liberation Lessons: Actionable Advice for Radical Change A Weekly Paid Subscriber Bonus
Opening Reflection
This conversation is courtesy of the wasp’s nest I discovered near the corner of my back door. Initially, my instinct was to find the spray and get rid of it (That’s the conditioning talking, the voice of control, fear, eradication), but then I paused and I got curious. I looked at the intricacies of it all, and I remembered last year how we saved an old wasp nest to truly appreciate its beauty.
Being as woo as I am, I started to dig into the spiritual meaning of wasp nests. Here’s what surfaced:
Hoodoo / African American Conjure traditions: Wasps and their nests are powerful tools of protection and domination work.
Slavic / Eastern European folk beliefs: A protective blessing — a nest near the door means the home is filled with good energy.
English / East Anglian folklore: Wasps as warders against evil spirits.
Indigenous & Animist traditions: Wasps as guardians and protectors; nests as symbols of harmony with the environment.
Metaphysical traditions: A nest at the threshold = liminal space energy — the edge of transformation.
Curiosity opened the door to (re)membering
Nature has always been our teacher. She shows us that survival is not about dominance or independence, but about reciprocity, diversity, and interdependence. Supremacy culture tells us the opposite, that you must stand alone, compete, hoard, and produce endlessly. But nature whispers back: survival is collective, balance is sacred, and thriving requires community.
If we want to dismantle oppressive systems and build intentional, sustainable spaces, we need to pay attention to how the earth has always done it.
In that moment (and now this one as well) the nest became a mirror, the reminder that nature has always been our teacher, but supremacy culture has taught us to fear, dominate, and destroy what we don’t control.
How often does the latter show up in your life?
Nature as Teacher, Supremacy as Thief
Biomimicry tells us that every human innovation already exists in nature. Communities, too, can be built by mirroring ecosystems. Yet supremacy culture has stolen us from this wisdom, teaching us that domination is natural, that hierarchy is inevitable, that extraction is progress.
But look at the wasp’s nest:
A collective built it, each member with a role.
It exists because of cooperation, not individualism.
It protects its own but also plays a role in pollination and balance.
It will be abandoned and broken down, returning nutrients to the earth, a cycle of renewal.
Supremacy culture erases these truths.
It tells us to control instead of cooperate, to fear instead of honor, to build systems of extraction instead of reciprocity.
Does this sound like your job, your home, your schools?
Reconnecting with earth medicine means rejecting those lies and (re)membering what our ancestors already knew: survival is collective, balance is sacred, thriving requires interdependence.
The Wasp Nest through the lens of the LIBERTATE Framework™
The nest by my door carried a message. If we are to build liberated communities, we must:
Learn from nature’s blueprints: reciprocity, diversity, and balance.
Integrate earth wisdom into daily living, not just theory.
Build structures that honor interdependence instead of isolation.
Empower each member of the community as essential.
Reclaim the earth medicine that supremacy told us to fear or forget.
Act with reciprocity, not extraction.
Transform how we see power, from domination to collaboration.
Keep reading as a paid subscriber to explore:
The 5 lessons nature teaches us about community and liberation
How to apply the LIBERATE Framework™ in your daily life
Guided reflection prompts to move from theory to practice
Concrete Practice Your Praxis examples for Self, Home, and Work
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Before you go OR hopefully carry on in this lesson, I have an ask:
A Barn Raising for Healing Work
Part of walking this path is deepening my capacity to hold healing spaces for you and for our collective. I am seeking support to join the Psychosomatic Practitioner™ Training through the Integrative Psych Institute. This certification is the next step in aligning the somatic healing and nervous system regulation I already bring into my work through IFS (Internal Family Systems), Gottman, and my liberation-centered frameworks.
Level 1 & 2 costs: $3,950 in total (we have $1700 so far)
Deadline to apply: September 1
Training begins: September 15
This training will allow me to serve more expansively by helping folks move from trauma responses into growth, healing, and liberation. Each time I invest in myself, I bring those tools right back to the circles, sessions, and spaces I hold for you.
How to Support:
PayPal: paypal.me/seleniteandsage
Venmo: venmo.com/u/DBStephens
CashApp: $DesireeBStephens20
Reciprocity
This is mutual aid, you pour into me, and I pour back into you and the communities I serve. Here’s how I will give back upon completion:
$10–$25 → Nervous system reflection + grounding prompts for daily practice
$50 → Access to an online mini-workshop on somatic care + decolonization
$100 → Liberation Toolkit (digital resources + practices for self, family, or community)
$250 → A small-group healing circle where we practice somatic tools together
$500 → A private 1:1 session with me (somatic, reflective coaching, or applying decolonization frameworks to your life/work)
Anything you can contribute brings me closer to this training and to pouring those tools back into our liberation journey. Thank you in advance
