The House of Psalm Mag

*2024 Archived Post: This post was written before The House of Psalm became The House of Psalm Magazine.*

Every Christmas (and all year around really), my daughter Psalm is blessed with books from my family and friends; she is a book lover and the entire village is nurturing this early on! One of the many books Psalm was gifted this past Christmas was from her PaPa (my daddy) and it is called Fearfully & Wonderfully Made by our cousin, Tejumade Ogunmokun. Fearfully & Wonderfully Made is a vibrant children’s book that reinforces the acceptance AND the celebration of the differences amongst us.

Taking place during the first day of class in a social studies classroom, Ms. Oshun has her new students go around and share about who they are, including a little about their cultural backgrounds. The students share about their uniqueness, learning about each other, and encountering intolerance along the way. Ms. Oshun addresses the intolerance, and she, with the help of the rest of the class, reinforces the fact that we are ALL perfect the way we are — because we are fearfully and wonderfully made, of course! The book is available here at Barnes and Noble.

Psalm loves this book, even at the young age of 3. I love the book and it’s message, too. I’ve shared a little about the book, but I want to focus more on the author and the woman behind the book. The House of Psalm is a women’s writing collective, amplifying and uplifting our stories. So, let’s get into Tejumade’s story. Check out our interview below.

Kiara: Hey cuz, let’s start with some basic background questions. Where are you from/ located? How do you pronounce your name? Tell us so people aren’t out there mispronouncing your name!

Tejumade: Well hello Cuz, thanks so much for having me! I’m originally from Long Island New York, and I’ve been in Richmond Virginia since middle school. My traditional background is Nigerian and that’s where I got my beautiful name which is pronounced Tej-U-Ma-Day. However, most people refer to me as Ronke’ Ron-Kay either or is fine.

Kiara: I always called you Ronke too! I guess it’s kind of like how in our family, everyone mostly knows me as Pumpkin and not Kiara. You know how families are with nicknames and shortened names! I love how in the book, Ms. Oshun really puts an emphasis on pronouncing everyone’s names correctly
(including hers). I always struggled with people mispronouncing my first name (and still do really). Have you dealt with that and if so, how do you deal with it?

Tejumade: Absolutely! That’s one of the reasons behind the book. Of course, as you see I have a long name and trust me people have mispronounced it many times. I’ve always taken time to correct people on how to properly say
my name.

Kiara: I struggled with correcting people mispronouncing my name when I was a young child. It can be intimidating especially if you didn’t have those struggles at home and around people you know. Now, it’s definitely a different story. Speaking of childhood, let’s talk a little bit about your childhood. Have you always wanted to be a writer? Which kind of books/stories did you gravitate to the most when you were younger? 

Tejumade: Oh my! Yes, as a child I really enjoyed writing. In fact, English & Art were two of my favorite subjects. I would say during my time you would see me reading books such as the Coldest Winter Ever, The Cat in the Hat or
Harold the Purple Crayon . I don’t want to give my age away, but these were some of my books in my elementary days.

Kiara: Those were some of my favorites too; now we’re both giving our ages away. It’s all good though! So much of what we’re required to read in school is chosen for us. Did you see yourself in what you read in school? If so, how did you see yourself in what you read? If not, what did you think about that?

Tejumade: That’s a good question and I will be honest with you. During my time I really didn’t see myself in what we read in school. I honestly feel there were some things in school we did not read that we should have read. If we did, it would have made a huge difference or impacted our lives growing up as a child you know?

Kiara: I totally agree. I didn’t see myself much in what we were required to read in school. That was definitely a catalyst for my writing and storytelling when I was a child. I was always writing stories and coloring my stick figures brown like me to improvise. It’s like the burden is often on Black kids and their families to make magic happen and make representation happen in our school experiences when it’s not there on its own.

Now, let’s focus on some of the themes in Fearfully & Wonderfully Made, a book full of cultural and racial representation. Celebrating uniqueness and
difference is one of the main themes I picked up on in the book right away. Have you ever been in a situation where you felt like your uniqueness was not accepted? How did you react?

Tejumade: Your 100% correct — that’s what “Fearfully & Wonderfully Made” is all about. I have been in many situations where I’ve felt like my uniqueness was not accepted. Absolutely, for one as a beautiful Black woman, sometimes people have been intimidated simply by my presence without taking the time to get to know me. Also, I’ve always been different from the crowd. A lot of that stems from my beautiful African name — it’s Nigerian to be exact — and also growing up in New York, my upbringing was very diverse, you see so many different cultures and I loved that. Moving from New York to Virginia as a child in middle school was a huge culture shock to me. I had to make many adjustments. It was really a challenge for me during that time in my life. This is one of the reasons why I wrote this book to help a child or many children very similar to me! It’s so important to embrace that and have someone tell you that you are more than enough. You are “Fearfully & Wonderfully Made” perfectly in the image God has created you!

Kiara: It’s such a valuable early life lesson — to learn to be comfortable sticking out in the crowd and not being like everyone else — especially when everything around you is encouraging the opposite! It’s much easier said than done, as you know. On that note, another major theme in the book is confidence. Ms. Oshun acts as the students’ cheerleader as she encourages each of them to get up in front of the classroom and introduce themselves to the class. As a boy mom,
how do you encourage your son to be confident? As a busy mom juggling so much (as we moms do), how were you able to carve out the time and the space to write and publish this beautiful book?

Tejumade: Wow! Thank you! Ms. Oshun was a great cheerleader you know and yes, we need cheerleaders in our households, our relationships — especially in our schools, it’s so important. I am my son’s biggest cheerleader. In fact,
everyday, I’m giving him positive words of encouragement & letting him see and know how loved he is. And if he wants to do something I am always supportive & cheerful!

Kiara: And that support is going to mean more than you’ll ever know to him! My parents did and they still are my biggest cheerleaders even as a grown woman. I think you nailed it when you said you let him “see and know” how much he is loved. It’s not just words — it’s about the actions too.

So shifting back to you, as someone with a beauty brand (Touched by Tejumade), what do you do on the days you aren’t feeling like your most confident best self? It happens to us all; what advice can you give the woman
reading this who may not be feeling the best about herself in this particular moment? What should she do?

Tejumade: That’s a great question! And yes you’re right, we all have those days when we’re not feeling as confident; as humans, it’s only natural. For me, what has helped me is a having a strong relationship with God! First and foremost, prayer really works and has done a great deal for me. I read Psalms daily before I go to sleep and when I wake up. Also, daily affirmations are so important to have and listen to. Going to church or just simply having a good conversation with a loved one or friend. Most importantly, taking time to treat yourself. As a woman and as a mom, self-care is very important. I don’t care if it’s a morning cup of tea or something as small as a facial. Taking time to do something that you love to do for at least 1 hour out of the day is extremely important. You know? You can’t care for everybody and not take care of yourself. So, taking that time to go for a walk or see your favorite movie or get your hair done. Just do it.

Kiara: I’m sure you know the Psalms are my favorite part of the Bible. The Psalms are so life-giving and refreshing! I agree with you, it’s so important for us to affirm ourselves in whatever way works best for us. We are up against so many things in our day-to-day lives as women both externally and internally. And in particular, for the women reading this interview who are contemplating writing a book or sharing their story in some way, but who may not feel qualified to do so, what would you tell them ? What ultimately inspired or
pushed you to share your story, this story, with the world at-large?

Tejumade: I would tell them to go for it! What are you waiting for? Just start journaling, that’s what I did. Trust and believe I have plenty of journals lol and guess what? Those journals turn into books. My main inspiration behind this
book is helping someone. We have a voice in this world, and we can use it in different ways to encourage others or to influence. My goal is to inspire and uplift by sharing my gift or story.

Kiara: “Just start!” Yes! So much happens between the moment before we decide to start, when we do finally give ourselves permission to start writing and the moment we initially put pen to paper. The process is just beautiful to me.

Last but not least, many of us can’t help but think of Psalm 139:14 when we hear “fearfully and wonderfully made.” When you hear that bible verse or simply, when you hear those words, what comes to mind for you? What
does it mean to you to be fearfully and wonderfully made?

Tejumade: Yes, thank you for asking me this! When I hear the bible verse: “For I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvellous are thy works,” it allows me to realize that God made us perfectly in the image He created us to be. We are all unique in our own right. It’s a very powerful scripture and it’s actually one of my favorites.

I’m so thankful for the opportunity to talk with my cousin, Tejumade, and to share her work and her story with The House of Psalm! You can find her on social media here:

IG: @touchedbytejumade
Facebook: facebook.com/rogunmokun
Email: BooksbyTejumade@gmail.com

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Whether you’re a writer, a painter, an actress, or if you don’t consider any fancy titles for yourself – you are a creative in my eyes. No matter who you are, to some degree, we all create and we all need space to take care of every part of ourselves. I hope this space inspires you to take good care.

With Love and Light,

Dr. Kiara Shanay Lee

IG: @thehouseofpsalm @kiaraleewrites 
Consulting Inquiries: kiara@thehouseofpsalm.com