state of the union

I'm really beginning to understand the value of community.
Because it is something to be a black minority out
and about, as millions of people around the world,
& ones right next to you, just shared a video of another black
male or black female getting killed by the police, publicly, legally, celebrated even.

How do i carry myself as a black woman,
someone who loves herself,
and her culture,
someone who recognizes the inhumane injustice,
this country and its citizens plagued black life with?
How do i carry myself around everyone else?
Should i act like it's all good...it's not.
Should i act of anger, or fear?

There is a war on the black community.
We are really seeing who believes what,
and how that may be detrimental for me as a black american.
How can i be okay when white women and men are constantly inspired by black life,
and profit off it commercially,
when black kids aren't realistically allowed to dream of creating their own business,
or to be a leader in their industry,
to write for the latest sitcom,
or be on zara's design team,
or direct fashion runway shows.
I’m totes not okay with that.
Also, while not being celebrated and motivated,
black kids are also denied sufficient health care,
and healthy resources. Who is caring about their
education and mental health?

This has been happening for decades,
so when you retort with their 'insufficient parents'
they were those same kids once,
who grew into 'adults' and had kids.
Nothing insufficient about black people,
except the lack of representation and value we receive from our country.

America and the rest of the world needs to open their eyes,
Black people aren’t going anywhere,
and we're all stronger together, so don't be mad about it.
Stop strategically and purposefully trying to put us down,
Just let us fxxking live. Properly.
With a reasonable and decent chance of success.

I live in a world,
where everybody knows how everybody really feels
about black people.

clueless

whoa nellie, that's how i'm feeling right now.
this post is going to be topical. meaning focused on a specific topic. lol.

there are some things i have to experience,
before i truly understand them,
or understand an age-old concept about them.

it's bazaar that some truths remain truths forever.
characteristics of people, or certain traits attributed to men or women.
old history and old text constantly confirm,
people were bazaar and self-harm inflicting then, & they are now as well.
this can be taken in a serious perspective,
but it can also be taken in a humorous one.

i never actually thought i would be the dumb girl,
in the old rom-com movies i watched as a child, and a teen.
all the game i had spotted growing up,
was sure to keep me from getting played.
but it's nothing like actually being there.
experiencing the feelings and thoughts that drive undesirable situations into existence.
women and men have been feeling and thinking those things for centuries.

some things have become cliches,
because they are nearly inevitably true.
not everyone is the same, there are exceptions, always, that's a gift,
but, it can be said, that a lot of women have relatable experiences with one another,
because the problematic man/woman scenario has existed also, for centuries.
& the women's submissive status has been perverted by men in every part of the world.

i say that to say, i thought it was kind of funny,
that at the current moment, i can look at my 'romantic' life,
and spot so many fxxking cliches. lol.
'rebounds' especially sorely stick out,
and how dumb you can be when experiencing them.
not realizing that you have all of these open and active emotions,
from your past relationship, that are pouring into and clouding your
judgement with this new dude.
& you're just sitting there wondering,
'why do i have all the feels for this guy,
is this God', no bxtch, it's you, being reckless.
impatient and ignorant.
but look,
i wouldn't know if i didn't do it. lol.
sometimes i have to be stupid that way.
not condoning this,
just being transparent.

i felt all those 90 and early 2000 movies flooding into my memory,
about how guys are deuschbags, and girls are too feel-y, too fast.
& then even some of the super ratchet ones, where i could make a decision,
'was i going to be about that life, or not' (crying face emoji here)
nah, not over here. at least not right now, & hopefully not ever.
i had a taste & i'm not with the shxts.
& guys, will take you out of your character,
dangling fake love in front of your face,
as if that's not corny.
special place in hell for you bro,
you better repent.
open your fxxkin eyes.

anyway, the world keeps turning.
i'm just going to get a better handle on that shxt.

love's risk

i want to step back, 

look at me, my actions, my thoughts, 

all objectively. 

i think i'm acting inappropriately, 

i think i'm assuming and jumping to conclusions. 

two reasons. 

one due to my own guilt. 

second, because the devil doesn't want me to have this. 

he's making it easy for me, 

to settle in selfishness and near sightedness, 

making it hard to act from appreciation, 

instead acting from suspicion and coldness. 

sometimes i lose my frame of reference, for the worst. 

and i consider and evaluate circumstances that aren't real, 

or haven't happened. 

giving time analyzing thoughts that have should have no real basis. 

it's disturbing. wasting life, while simultaneously ruining it. 

you can fall deeper into despairing thoughts, 

give in to them all, 

the ones about our love, 

ourselves, 

our worth. 

i don't want that cancer to live between us. 

i don't want to self-destruct, 

and kill off all the relationships around me. 

i don't want to be scared to love the hardest. 

i don't want to fear having to forgive.

i want to value you as a whole, 

not pick you apart. 

easier said than done. 

but here's the risk, 

because i'm going to try God here, 

all the time. 

i'm going to be a beacon of love, 

i'm going to let God use me, 

& i'm going to trust Him, not you, 

to always keep me safe, 

to always keep us safe. 

kanye west and me. the life of pablo.

i'm going to aim to keep this simple,
because i have a tendency, to over explain in detail.

the context of my life currently is that,
i feel like i'm growing into an adult
at a rapid rate. & i'm just trying to keep up.
& occasionally, get ahead.

the situations that arise, that smack me in the face,
are too many, and a lot of times,
require this shift in my perspective,
forcing me to grow, sometimes,
against my will.

kanye's drop is a work of art.
come on, even if you don't like it,
the arrangement, the choices,
seems like a glorious mix of kanye,
as life has been to him over the past years.
& it is lovely.

as a writer, a curator, a fan,
i relate to the words kanye says regarding those perspectives.
even as a believer in Christ, i relate. which is so powerful.
as a lover of detail, i love the choices he makes, regarding the creation of a song.
the human in me, loves his imperfection.
and his willingness & discipline to fight through it,
in the open, & still create majestic shxt.

in this album i find that he's bold,
raw and humorous,
a testament to the time we're in,
& reflective of how a lot of people are thinking and feeling.
kanye really is for the people.
he's a people pleaser.
it's so natural to him.
like, it's what he's meant for.

to circle back to the context of my life.
this kanye drop, at this time,
was blessed by God, lol.
& i say that because my purpose here
is to express the adoration and respect i have
for this piece of music. & how it will literally
define this period of my life, years from now.
you know when you remember history,
by remembering what song was out at the time.

this drop, along with some hard truths, people who care, are forcing me to hear.
with some wins i've accumulated,
& some progress, insight & clarity that i've been given,
shows me, i'm going in the right direction,
even if i'm the reason why, sometimes, my progress slows down.

it's amazing how music can play as a sign in your life.
how people who do music are connected to the same source we are,
so sometimes their thoughts, their preferences, their understanding,
is also like yours.

to have these moments with kanye,
this obviously isn't the first one,
it makes me so happy, lol.
like proof God loves me.
that i get to have kanye as inspiration.
right now, it's pretty fxxkin awesome.

so, this happened.

things happen that question, 

how we truly feel about a person.

someone who receives our devotion

& adoration, suddenly makes,

a truly human mistake, to you.

what do you do?!

if it were a stranger, it'd be easy. 

'hater. idgaf'

but this is your kin,

someone you've built your soul

up with, connected to your

eternal spirit. this is the 

farthest thing from a stranger,

this is a known, acknowledged,

piece of you. lol. what do you do.

WWJD.

forgiveness can be the most

bizarre thing. 

but I've known God in me,

for a long time now. 

& with my fragility, 

have solely depended on Him,

for my entire survival.

so when confronted with,

judgement & disregard,

partly out of ignorance,

partly out of arrogance,

my initial reaction was

shock, disappointment,

a little lostness, a bit broken.

out of all the things to expect,

a lack of doubt in my ability,

to live & navigate through my life,

from you?!

all those moments of 

transparency,

so that you can attempt 

to use them against me?!

talk about hating vulnerability.

but then Jesus reminds me,

how much we all are,

subject to human error.

stuck in our own thoughts,

thinking we're reading in between 

lines, but we're really just filling

in gaps, because we want to

think, we know it all.

when really,

you don't know shxt.

your own life could attest 

to that. no shade. 

& Jesus showed me, why

this may have been 

necessary. not only to show me

pieces of myself, where I've violated, 

as you have.

but for me to practice the 

beauty of forgiveness,

on an entirely new level.

therefor, i thank you for

these words, that you've

given me the opportunity 

to write. i actually thank you

for a lot more than that. you 

know. this only strengthens.

me, you, 🙈🙊🙉, us.