I am utterly exhausted, angry, and filled with deep sorrow from having to constantly demand accountability and justice. I am overwhelmed from educating family, friends, and strangers about the never-ending acts of violence against my black and brown brothers, sisters, and siblings. Here's the thing, family, friends, and acquaintances: BEING NICE IS NOT THE SAME … Continue reading An Open Letter to Family, Friends, & Acquaintances about Anti-Racism
What I'm Thinking: Holy crap. This semester is going by fast. And I really need to catch up on my readings. And all of a sudden everything is due?! Hold the phone; when did this happen?! It's that time in the semester when assignments are in full force and the stress level is c r … Continue reading Words of Advice: Get You a Theme Song
With July steadily melting into August and a new school year slowly creeping around the corner, I can't help but reflect on the adventures of the past several months. As it turns out, this summer has been surprisingly intense. Summer of 2019, you have blown my mind with the copious amounts of plot twists and … Continue reading What Summer Taught Me About Love & Loss
During an impromptu visit home to Eastern North Carolina in April, one of my dearest friends (and seriously one of my favorite human-beings) asked me if I had been "Libbed Out" by my social work studies at UNC-Chapel Hill. Yup. "Libbed out". I assure you, I was just as confused by the statement as I … Continue reading “Libb-ed Out”
Four or so months ago, I was welcomed into the School of Social Work with a greeting that continues to deeply resonate with me: You. Belong. Here. We have all left our communities to come here. Yet, the thing is, often, the deeper our relationship with our communities, the heavier the burden. There are many … Continue reading Dissonance & Duality
Of all the people we have the most difficult time forgiving, the person who often stands to be the most difficult to forgive is none other than ourselves. Sometimes we go through experiences that we wish we could take back; circumstances that a restart button could solve immediately. We may even have memories that make us want … Continue reading Dear Me, I Forgive You
I get pretty nostalgic during January. I mean, can you blame me? 2017 and I spent 365 days together. That's 8,760 hours or 525,600 minutes! If you prefer to be even more pretentious, that's 31,536,000 seconds. (Please feel free to check my math, but do me a favor and keep it on the down-low if my numbers are … Continue reading Dear Future Me
This past weekend, I received a disturbing emergency alert message via text message. In all capital letters it read: BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL. On a chilly Saturday afternoon, a high school friend and I were grabbing lunch and catching up. Two local girls who grew … Continue reading A Sobering Farewell: How The Hawaii Ballistic Missile Mishap Impacted Two North Carolinians
A few years ago, a friend of mine shared that every year, in place of a New Year's resolution, he chooses one personally meaningful word (a theme in essence) to help direct the 365 days ahead of him. I loved the idea and so, followed suit. "Go", "Forgive", "Fearless", and "Stay", are a few of … Continue reading Thoughts on Mindfulness
CLICK HERE TO WATCH "STAY" VIDEO Today is World Suicide Prevention Day. According to the International Association for Suicide Prevention and the World Health Organization, "[m]ore than 800,000 individuals die by suicide each year and up to 25 times as many make a suicide attempt." That is 15, 385 lives gone every week. That is … Continue reading Remind Us to Stay
A Fish Out of Water 