Category: Junior Literary

If you’ve talked to me recently about college or future work, you’d know that I have a keen interest in going into medicine! For a long time I was throwing around law, social work, teaching, and a whole bunch of other things. I never wanted to go into culinary like my mom and brother, and medicine just seemed super intimidating. Then I started this show called The Pitt. I was never someone to watch medical dramas, they didn’t make sense and stressed me out. I also was not in a house that watched shows like that, they either made my dad queasy or were just medically inaccurate. 

After watching the first season of the Pitt, genuinely it made me realize what I wanted to do with my future. My main goal was “helping people’ through maybe tough times, family law, or anything of the sort. I wanted to have a direct impact in a positive way. In being a doctor I would be able to accomplish that! Also, I’d be able to have more guidance through school because of all the doctors and nurses in my family. 

Because of my interest, I started looking into colleges, medical schools, and going more into my future more than I ever have. All of this, because of… DA PITT??? Ridiculous, really. Noah Wyle your kind smile and beautiful brown eyes have captivated me.

If I’m just talking about The Pitt, then why did I say “Medical ShowS” you may be wondering (I know you’re not, just stick with it please). Well, after finishing the second episode of season two of The Pitt, I realized that…. uh oh I’m bored I need my fix. I then realized that Noah Wyle was somewhat known for medical shows. That being in an ER was his bread and butter. ER…. er….. the show ER!!! I’m on the second episode and it’s really good so far! If you have an interest in the Pitt, you should also watch ER. Peak I tell you.

Side tangent, but they really don’t take promo pictures like they used to. I get that The Pitt has a huge cast even in the first season, but can you please give me a shot of them making inquisitive eye contact with the camera? Enough with these action shots and behind the scenes out of character pictures! I need clear references of my favs from their promo material!! BOOOOOOO!!!!!! Okay, I think that’s all I have to say. ByeBye!!

It’s over. 

The final season finally came out.

! (Spoilers) !

I got to see the final episode in a theater near my home and it was pretty good. I’m glad I got to see it in a theatre. 

This season has been crazy but it definitely didn’t end how I thought it would end. My roommate and I before it came out came up with all these theories and what route they might take with ending the show but it definitely wasn’t what We thought. 

I did like the ending but I definitely was expecting more. I thought maybe they would go a more DnD route with the story but they didn’t. I also was hoping maybe El and Mike would have a happy ending but that didn’t happen. 

I did like the ending where Mike became a writer and wrote a DnD campaign around their story, I thought it added a nice touch. I also liked how sad and emotional the final episode was toward the VERY end. I liked how it was the end and I liked how it felt like the end of something. It had that sad emotion to it. It was also just kind of open though. 

In my opinion yes the story felt done and feels ended but at the same time not really. There is so much story that wasn’t told and wasn’t explained but played a huge role in the series. The ending felt done but not complete if that makes sense. Like why is it all connected to DnD and what happened to the storyline where Joyce, Hopper, and Henry all grew up together. They didn’t put an outfit together, they just picked clothing items. If that analogy makes any sense. 

But over all I think it was pretty good. I think the dialogue could’ve been written a bit better. I think it didn’t really feel like the Duffers wrote it. I also thought th sudden change in Will’s character was a bit odd. How they just made Will suddenly outgoing and it just made it awkward. I also didn’t understand bringing back El’s sister Kali. It just didn’t make much sense to bring her back for eight episodes just to kill her off. I think overall the  story could’ve ended in a much more cohesive way that wrapped everything up, but it was great nevertheless.  It made some sense and was an ending. That’s all it needed. 

And plus who knows if they’re planning on making more that explain it all better. 

And that’s a wrap on stranger things. 

One last adventure now complete. 

The end of beginnings. 

The wound in being held back doesn’t scar the age, but the mind and behavior.

I often find myself adrift to these emotions that come and go between fleets

Docked at the harbor, they’re sailboats with tied masts, whilst I drift further away. Perhaps I subconsciously let it happen or was it the confession that masks their willingness to converse with me? 

The bond broke two, yet only one was still tied. 

Mapping these seas, I’ve sailed for nearly thirteen years. Countless of times I have endured the aftermath, storm that follows rejection. Their looks, their quiet responses, the silent distance. 

But a bruised ship has a hardened hull.

The stronger titanium of change after every reckoning.

I do not simply wish to remain idle and expect a sudden sunshine and gusts of wind to blow them to my side.

I can dock, I can read the pools in their eyes, their otherworldly waters filled with unspoken words. 

I will not sink because of one measly iceberg when there had been three others just like it with the same proclamation. The same number of familiars and more.

Because through a storm comes warmer, newer waters, waters that some sails and hulls can’t bear unless put together. 

The white, beautiful sails of youth will be lost. So many holes and tears it has had in my lifetime.

By the date in April, when the clock strikes 12:01 a.m. The mark of the sixteenth day, I’ll raise my black sails and sail away to the new and unchartered waters in the night beneath the nose of others. 

After all, the life of an adult is much colder…

 

 

 

 

Hello everyone, welcome back to my blog. This week, I would like to talk about my plans to integrate dance back into my life. For thirteen years of my life, I danced at Natchez Ballet Academy.  I started ballet when I was three years old. In the beginning, I hated it, and over time, I grew to love it. I quit last year to go to school at MSA. I had the opportunity to audition for the dance discipline, and I did not take it. I didn’t audition because I didn’t believe I would get in. My dancing abilities were not as honed as some of my peers. This is no one’s fault but my own. Had I put more effort and time into dance when I had the chance, maybe I would have been confident enough to audition for dance. But the past is in the past, and now I have the chance to try again. This time, I will try harder and push myself further than I ever did before. I know I have the potential to be a great dancer; anyone does. Being a great dancer is a matter of dedication. I didn’t have that before, but I do now. My time away from dance showed me how much it truly means to me. The saying “You don’t know what you have until it’s gone” is a saying for a reason. Last week, I wrote an article for the newspaper Rise about the Alice in Wonderland dance production and the Spring show auditions, which I will be attending. I encourage anyone interested to go and give it a shot. The worst that can happen is you’re turned away. It’s a fear many people have, me included, but I made the mistake of letting fear hold me back once. It won’t happen again. Embarrassment is fleeting; it will go away. Rejection only shows someone what isn’t meant for them. My mother once told me what’s meant for you will never pass you by. I think dance, in some way or another, is meant for me. Want, desire, whatever you choose to call it, is there for a reason. I desire to dance again, and I will. So, the overall message of this post is do not let fear hold you back, go after what you want. Otherwise, you will regret it, and who knows, maybe you won’t be as lucky as I was and get a second chance.

You can run from your shadow,

Can’t hide from yourself.

MAC MILLER

Mac Miller… Sound familiar? I mean it should, seeing as Mac Miller is one of the most influential rap artists out there. Many of his songs have blown up on various social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, and X (formally, and forever in my heart known as Twitter.) 

If you are interested in pop culture, you may know him as Ariana Grandes ex-boyfriend. After he passed, she called him around 900 times just to hear his voicemail. She then went on to mention him in her popular song “Thank u, Next.”

“Wish I could say thank you to Malcolm, ‘Cause he was an angel.”

Mac Miller’s real name is Malcolm James McCormick. He was born January 19, 1992, in Pittsburg. At the age of 15 he released his first mixtape, “But My Mackin’ Ain’t Easy.”  By the age of 6 he was already learning piano, guitar, bass, and drums. Following this came many albums and one big lawsuit threat. 

Buckle in guys… This one’s about politics. 

Mac miller released a song called Donald Trump in 2011. This song blew UP! At the time Trump was just a game show host and real estate developer, but he was extremely wealthy. He glamorized a rich lifestyle which is why Mac picked him. While Mac Miller is NOT a Trump supporter, Trump made a YouTube video for Mac congratulating him on his song getting millions of views on his song. He called him “The New Eminem.”

Mac was not very happy about this. 

“I think he’s a —-. When he started running for president I was like, ‘Oh, —-—this is horrible, I have a —-song with this dude’s name and now he’s being such a douchebag.’ The thing that bothers me the most is that he always says things like, ’75 million views on the song ‘Donald Trump,’ Mac Miller you’re welcome.’ I could have said, ‘Take over the world when I’m on my Bill Gates —-.’ It doesn’t [matter].” 

Over time, this admiration that Trump found for Mac’s song, turned into anger. He began threatening Mac with a Lawsuit. Trump claims that he illegally used his name. Instead of sending Trump the money he was demanding, Malcolm sent Trump his plaque for the song. This led to a hilarious thread of tweets. 

 

After a LONG, and never settled feud, and a whole lotta hating Trump on twitter he didn’t end up getting a lawsuit. Just a few years later, he would unfortunately go on to pass away due to a drug overdose. Mac Miller is, in my opinion, one of the best singer/rappers to this day.

Lowkey this blog is basically a filler episode. Do you have songs that you feel like the artist is just screaming in your ear every time you play it? no? ok then do you have a song that makes Monday go by just a tad bit easier? no? ok well do you have a song that makes you feel euphoric?

 

this blog is going to be about my favorite 5 songs and my interpretation on what each of them means how they make me feel!!!! I bet your pretty excited huh? 

OK were going to start of strong and pull an absolute trump card really quick.

 

number 1. ivy- frank ocean 

Ok let me just start by saying frank ocean need to come back! his reasons for leaving are completely valid he recently loss his brother and is grieving. he’s been dropping hints as to when his next album is coming out but who knows?

ivy is one of those songs that makes you reflect on your life especially with lines like “we were kids, we had time to kill back then ” and ” we will never be those kids again” it helps you reflect on the times when you were still growing and changing in multiple ways and how there’s so many things that you would change if you could and growing apart. in short, this song is about reflecting on our past. 

 

This next one was showed to me by a friend and I grown to absolutely love it!!

les- by childish Gambino 

les is one of them songs you have to listen to a couple times to actually understand the meaning but once you complete that task you understand what the artist is really trying to convey.

les is about ego vs. security. you would think it’s about the night life and partying but it’s really about using social status as a sort of armor to wear around and brag to his insecurities. the beat is hypnotic and the lyrics feel almost bored in a sense that’s intentional he trying not to glorify the night life but expose it. 

 

this next one I found while watching euphoria. and it blew a hole through my head. 

 

 

All for us- Zendaya, labyrinth

This song is about pressure I think! and the struggle to survive whilst also sacrificing yourself. it sounds noble “all for us” but it’s actually tragic. it reflects the pain that one goes through and how you feel as if you must go through it or deserve to go through for sum odd reason.  

 

this one is about the queen of soul and spoken word herself Lauryn hill!

Lauryn hill is a very talented artist who absolutely need to make more songs before I go crazy! 

“Mystery of iniquity by Lauryn hill 

in this song she points out how laws are meant to benefit the few while harming many. she shows how most people are kept out of the loop because truth become harmful to those in power. and the songs draws heavy from biblical knowledge letting the spiritual warfare in her nature be known this is not just a physical battle but a spiritual one Aswell.in all she’s talking about how people in power profit from the inequalities in life. y’all should totally listen to it!

 

we cry together by – Kendrick Lamar is number 4!! 

this song holds no specific meaning to me but it’s a nice style and the lyric are really nice!!!

 

is a portrayal of a toxic couple and how unresolved trauma turns love into war.

this last song I’m going to do an insane pull and go 

love galore by – SZA

love galore is about wanting love from someone who gives attention but not commitment!  it’s about desire, vulnerability and self-commitment. it’s about one person giving emotion to the relationship and the other one giving moments…

 

what are some songs that get you through boring Mondays? 

do you have any song recommendations?

who is you “Lauryn hill”? 

 

Winter break has come and gone so what better thing to talk about. It has been a minute since my last blog but it hasn’t been boring-trust me. 

I did a lot of self reflection while on break, since we are starting a new year and all. Not to sound corny but definitely feel like my life is kind of pivoting right now. I am getting my creative spark back little by little. I am also learning guitar, by myself. Definitely is difficult but I’m not giving up on it because it feels like I fit there if that makes sense. Me and my guitar. I learned a few new chords over break and even a scale. I tried to learn a song but I decided I wasn’t ready for all of that just yet, but I will be one day soon. 

I also decided to write a song or two and see what that’s about. I will update y’all about that later but for the rest of the blog I would like to talk about the past year. 

This past year has been amazing. I have grown a lot and I can see it in my day to day life. I have made so many friends both here (at school) and during this past summer. I have done a lot. I also don’t acknowledge my achievements often but I think with the new year rolling around it’s good to look back and reflect. Yes I could have done a lot of things better but why focus on that when last year was such a great one.  

I mean I basically lived at church camp all summer and had so much fun. I learned so much and made a lot of good friends. I then directly after camp was over came here. I have made a lot of new friends here too and i have learned a lot as well. So over all this year has been great and I can’t wait for this upcoming year. It’s gonna be a great one. 

Hello everyone, welcome back to my blog. I’ve spent the last couple of weeks on Winter Break, so I figured I would talk about that. My Winter break was tame. I was sick the first week and on Christmas, which sucked, but it is what it is. I spent the Holidays at my grandmother’s house and visiting family. How did you all spend your break? Are you all excited about the New Year? Scared?

I can see people, at least in my age range, being scared. Each day that goes by, we get closer to becoming seniors, graduating, and going off into the world on our own. I wouldn’t say that I’m scared, maybe more so relieved. I understand that there are trials that come with adulthood, but adulthood offers me more freedom than being a child ever did. I’ll be free to make my own mistakes, pave my own path, and become someone other than someone’s daughter, grandbaby, or niece. I will simply be myself, Lela Reed, and in being an adult, I get to choose who “Lela Reed” is. Maybe she’s a lawyer, an engineer, a nurse, a businesswoman. Maybe she’s an author, or a famous actor or singer. I’m not sure yet who she is, but I do know I can’t wait to choose.

On another note, being back at school feels good, refreshing even, but I’m not going to lie, my writing skills feel a little rusty. Actually, a lot rusty. I haven’t written anything in a while, and nothing I wrote before my break has met my standards. I am someone who expects perfection from myself, which includes every piece of work I put out there. and that is something I do not see changing as time goes on. I just feel like I’ve hit a standstill in my writing and that I haven’t improved in my time here. Only those who have seen my work and critiqued it will be able to tell me for sure, but if someone were to tell me, I would appreciate honesty. I believe that being “nice” when it comes to important things gets you nowhere. How is someone meant to improve if you tell them they’re doing fine the way they are when they’re not? It’s a setup for failure.

Unfortunately, I don’t have much to say on this blog. So, I’ll wrap this up by saying I hope you all had a great Holiday, happy New Year, and have a wonderful day.