Category: Junior Literary

Well people, it’s like a week away from Thanksgiving. That means 3 things. One, auditions for MSA have reopened(wow, it’s full circle). In other words, get busy on your application if you are an aspiring MSA student. Two, we get a whole week away from school(that I will probably get bored of, and end up spending my time doing school work). Three, it’s time for a blog post about what I’m thankful for(woooo). So here we go:

1. My dog: Wow, I miss my dog so much. Her name is Luna and she’s a mix of a Yorkie/Shih Tzu/Pomeranian. She is so freaking fluffy, and I can’t wait to see her this weekend. When I first got her, she was so sleepy all the time. Then she became extremely hyper, but now she has mellowed out. She makes me happy.
2. Mellow Mushroom: I cannot express how grateful I am for your vegan cheese option for pizzas. Whenever I go back home, I always want to eat there. I am hoping I can go again this Thanksgiving Break. Speaking of food, I’ll throw Apron Strings in there too because it’s a lovely vegan bakery. I’m hungry, can you tell?
3. Music: Oh, how I love you. Music is such a comfort throughout my day. It’s ever-changing, and helps my mood. It’s just a wonderful thing that has always been there for me.
4. My friends: Aw, I love you guys. You have helped me discover who I am, and have supported me along the way. When I am upset, you guys always tend to cheer me up every time. 
5. My mom: First of all, thank you. Thank you for allowing me to be me. Thank you for encouraging me to go after my passions. Thank you for supporting me in every aspect. Thank you for the hugs on rough days. Thank you for voicemails/calls asking how I am. Just, thank you for being who you are. 
6. For the end of this semester: Ew, I am so ready to be out of these classes. Although, next semester’s classes are going to be awful. So really, it’s a lose lose situation. I’m just thankful that I made it through almost to the end. Also, the end of the semester means Experience MSA Day. I look forward to that.

Of course I have many other things I am thankful for, but that will take forever to name. So for now, these are the things that are on my mind. I encourage you to also think about what you are thankful for. Perhaps, even comment someone/thing you would like to thank. Have a Happy Thanksgiving 🙂

 

The post I so vaguely told you guys in my last post isn’t ready. I sort of put it on paused simply because I need to be in a certain mindset and environment  to write it. It doesn’t make sense now, but please bare with me.  I often have trouble writing things when I’m not in the mindset to write it. I have to be in a specific mood or environment. In this case, I need to be in both. I’ve been so worried about school and grades that I haven’t had a chance to sit and write this post for you all. I want it to be good and not rushed, so I will leave you guys with a piece of mine. I wrote this one day out of boredom. It hasn’t been touched or workshopped ever. I have only seen this piece, but now you guys will see it too! I promise to have the long-awaited post in after thanksgiving! If I don’t I owe you a dollar! Enjoy!

(Let me know if I should workshop this piece! Any suggestions or comments LEAVE BELOW!)

 

Welcome to the party

The blood pumping through my veins have a pulsating rhythm
A steady tempo with the occasional crescendo as the music runs through my ears
The sweat pours down my face and pools around my neck
I furiously wipe my forehead as I jump faster in tune with the beat of the music
The hot, sweaty bodies continue to merge closer and closer as the fluorescent lights cut on
The laser lights spread across my face giving me a shiny red cast on my body
I sway my hips and move my lips to the lyrics of the music

Free.

The beats get slower and more sensual
I look around and see the obvious couples stare at each other with lust in their eyes
The energy in the room grows as gravity pulls us together
Is it lust in his eyes? Desire?
I sway my hips a little bit faster now
We’re close now
His glazed eyes take me in as he raises an eager hand to my hips
We start to move in sync
The music starts to get slower and slower
The rest of the room fades into oblivion
It’s just us now
I’m his now

Captured.

My heart beats faster as we get closer
His grip gets tighter on my waist as if he doesn’t want to let me go
I don’t want him to let me go
My body responds quickly to his
I get hotter and hotter but there’s no sweat anymore
The beats fill my body and it fills him too
I feel every inch of him as he feels every inch of me
We are one

His.

His light brown eyes lock with mine as the people fade back into our view
His lips move but I can’t see or hear the words he is saying
The feel of his smooth, dark skin suddenly isn’t on my body anymore
As I slowly walked away from him, he starts to disappear slowly allowing me to take in every part of him until the last thing I see is his eyes staring back at me
He’s gone

Awakened

I sit up drenched in sweat
My heart beat imitates the beat of a marching band
I look around confused and in a daze
He wasn’t real
As I lay back down, I remember the look in his eyes before he faded away
He wasn’t real⸺but it felt so real
I close my eyes and try to remember every detail about him
I slowly drift back into a dreamless sleep
When I awaken the next morning I can’t remember him
He wasn’t real.

this is one of my absolute favorite pieces by Rupi Kaur. you can find it in her book “milk and honey”.

to do list (after the breakup):

1. take refuge in your bed.
2. cry. till the tears stop (this will take a few days).
3. don’t listen to slow songs.
4. delete their number from your phone even though it is memorized on your fingertips.
5. don’t look at old photos.
6. find the closest ice cream shop and treat yourself to two scoops of mint chocolate chip. the mint will calm your heart. you deserve the chocolate.
7. buy new bed sheets.
8. collect all the gifts, t-shirts, and everything with their smell on it and drop it off at a donation center.
9. plan a trip.
10. perfect the art of smiling and nodding when someone brings their name up in conversation.
11. start a new project.
12. whatever you do. do not call.
13. do not beg for what does not want to stay.
14. stop crying at some point.
15. allow yourself to feel foolish for believing you could’ve built the rest of your life in someone else’s stomach.
16. breathe.

this piece really spoke to me during a difficult and confusing time in my life. maybe you’re not going through a break- up, but a hard time in your life. some of these still apply to you. I love the simplicity and how focused it is on recovery and healing.

should i start doing stuff like this more often? i feel like my blogs are all over the place honestly, lol. everyone else has a theme to theirs but mine is super sporadic and random. send help. i literally never know what to write about until i get this super random idea from pinterest or instagram.

peace out girl scout 🙂

Here it is… the moment you’ve all been waiting for: the continuation of my fashion series 🙂

Due scheduling complications, I could not get Emmie Legget, but I found another style icon’s closet to dive into: Stephyne Weathersby. I met up with Weathersby and asked her to tell her inspiration behind the clothing she wears in some of her iconic Instagram photos.

“That outfit, actually, I was supposed to wear that to school then I missed my bus, and so, I just took some Instagram pictures. Um, the pair of pants are thrifted… I was in Biloxi and I got them from a thrift store… Goodwill, I think. And they were actually, like, 3 times my size, so I had to alter my pants.”

Similar to my fashion, Weathersby thrifts and upcycles a lot of her clothes, as well. Except, she can sew. She explained to me that many of her clothes are too big, but she takes them in or alters them to fit her body. Personally, I’d love to  go thrifting with her. I would really love to see what her process is when thrifting and upcycling her clothes to create these bomb ensembles.

She continues debunking her outfit saying, “That shirt is *NSYNC… I got that from Forever 21, that actually was a plus size shirt, so I just took it in. I don’t know, I just love big clothes on me. I didn’t really have inspiration, but, um, the color scheme, actually, you see like how… the navy blue fits with the white and now, I know you can’t really see it, but like, the shirt has blue writing, y’know. The color scheme just fit a theme.

“That was when I went to Jamaica, and I really wanted to go for a little island girl type style, so that’s why I paired the tube top, which I got from Romwe, and my, um, flair pants, which I got from Old Navy, I believe. I really wanted to feel native to the land, even though I really wasn’t. I didn’t look like nobody there, but y’know, I just really felt comfortable wearing it. My inspiration was just an island girl and free like the wind.”

“My birthday outfit, yeah. Actually, I wanted to go for, like, a little different style. I wanted to go for, like, really delicate and kinda a goddess, type thing, but like— not goddess, that’s the wrong thing. Just really delicate and sweet and soft, y’know. That’s why I paired the bell bottoms with the crop, the cropped shirt. That was my inspiration. And y’know, then with the YSL, because I knew I was not gonna be wearing the same purse for my seventeenth birthday.”

“Oh, yeah. I was on a cruise ship at a captain’s dinner, so we had to dress formally. I just liked how it paired together. It’s a two piece, and my inspiration was just that we had to look nice. We had to show out. I wanted to pop out, but not be too much.”

---

I hope that you guys are enjoying this fashion as much as I’m having fun creating it. Have a safe, happy, and blessed Thanksgiving!

 

Society has a lot of unfair expectations. From the way we should look, to the things we should do, and to the way we should dress and act. It’s almost impossible to be confident with everything telling you “you’re doing it all wrong. ” I’m dressing wrong. I’m not acting the way I should. I don’t agree with the things I should agree with. It’s exhausting trying to meet all the expectations people have in order to feel accepted. I used to find it so difficult to find happiness in myself because the constant weight of the worlds idea for ‘wrong’ was holding me back from finding who I wanted to be.  Or how I wanted to dress, look, act, and in general, just live my life.

This past coffee house, I was on program and I wrote a poem for the theme “Metaphysicality.” The way it was described to me was: something somewhere it doesn’t belong.  I chose to write about perfection in reality, because these expectations of being perfect or having a perfect life are so unrealistic and the truth is, perfection will never belong in a world such as this one. And that’s a beautiful thing to me because personally, I don’t find perfection beautiful– I find it delusional. Anyways, here’s my poem:

They live with unconditional happiness everyday. 

Looking around at their life, 

and not one thing is wrong. 

Bright smiles presented all around them-

Even on the ones they love. 

Their family all sleeps in the same caring house,

Saying “goodnight”, and “I love you”,

Before they rest their eyes 

That have never shed a tear.  

And every peaceful morning, they wake up 

To the sun shining

In their room that only holds 

Good memories of better times that 

Keep getting better as they live their perfect life. 

 

But eventually, their smiles fade

Into sadness that pours out of their eyes. 

And their family stops caring 

And saying “goodnight”

Before they turn off the pointless lights

That can’t keep them out of darkness. 

And as they live their perfect life, 

It becomes less perfect. 

Because perfection doesn’t belong in reality. 

 

I used to wish that I looked perfect. That I had no flaws. I used to hope to have a perfect life. I used to be so blinded by my hope for something that doesn’t exist, that I never found beauty in what does. Luckily, I stopped looking for perfection in things and started loving things the way they are.

Have a good day:)

 

 The Oxford Dictionary definition of the word success is the fact that you have achieved something that you want and have been trying to do or get; the fact of becoming rich or famous or of getting a high social position.

So we are in November now and I have been at the Mississippi School of the Arts for almost a full semester. I have accomplished already so many of the goals that I set prior to being here. That makes me very ecstatic because one of my main reasons for going here was to grow, and every day I see myself growing and changing. I can only hope it is for the better.

I recently had a conversation with some friends of mine, Kailey Butler and Jericala’keisha Brown both dancers at MSA.

Kailey posed the question, “If you were able to see in the future on a device, would you?”

At first, my immediate answer was, “no, because I wouldn’t want to know my future if I can’t change it. What would be the reason?”

Now, looking back on the question, I have become really curious about how my future is going to turn out. I mean every since I was a young girl I thought about my future and I knew I wanted to be successful. But what really is success? Is it abstract or concrete? Can we reach out and grab success or is it only a feeling we store in our brain? Is success determine by how much money is in our bank account or how many people we impact in our lifetime? Is success having your name screamed and admired by thousands as you walk across a stage or is being knowledge for your work in your local community? Is success measured on how many awards you received or how many likes and comments you can get on an Instagram post?

We all have different definitions that define our own interpretation of the word success. I believe that there are also different levels of success, and I’m sure you have your own opinion about that. So why as humans are we so worried about becoming successful, or making a name for ourselves. Why have we, the people of society, place so much pressure on ourselves to be “successful” when we truly don’t understand what that word means. I mean let me rephrase that.Why do I put so much pressure on myself to become successful when I don’t know what that world means for myself? Because in reality the only human I need please with my decisions I make in my life, is me. I believe knowing who you are and what you stand for is really detrimental in your development as a person. As the saying goes, “If you don’t stand for nothing, you can fall anything.”

So, I say this to you and myself because I want us to recognize who we truly are, and what kind of person we want to become. Also what kind of impact that we want to leave on this world as an artist. Even though times may get hard, and we may get discouraged just remember to keep your head up along the way. Life is not easy and your goals won’t be either but just keep in mind, success is what you make it.

Some motivational and feel good videos in case you get discourage because I know it happens.

Hi, this is a poem I wrote a few weeks ago! I hope you like it!

Hello, Old Friend. Do you remember me? 
You seem to have captured my thoughts recently.
Do you ever think of me?
Do you ever think of the nights spent dreaming and
Planning for a tomorrow?
Do you remember the songs we sang as the rain broke 
Through the window pane and kissed our cheeks?
I do.
 
You know, some nights I dream about you.
It’s nothing too crazy or wild, but I’ll dream of you.
We’ll be somewhere that I don’t remember but
Can’t forget and we’ll be doing something minute,
But there would be this free wind, this whisper of
The past, blowing through your hair. Your eyes would
Have that look in them that conveyed so much but
Said practically nothing. And you’d emit such a laugh
That could bring the world to a knee. 
 
But then I’d wake up. Those are the saddest, I think. 
The nights when everything you wanted visits
You with a resounding disappointment. 
We were so young and dumb and willing to forget
Our futures for something so fleeting.
If you could go back in time, would you?
Would you come with me to a time where our
Only concern was each other?
 
This might sound a bit selfish, but I see you every once
In a while. You’ll be with your wife and your daughter and
You’ll look so genuinely happy. And my heart shatters
With the thought that I, once upon a time, was the only
Person that knew how beautiful your smile truly was.
Now, she knows our secret. She knows the innermost
Parts of your soul that only revealed themselves after
Nights spent on rooftops and in quiet retreats into the night.
Now, she knows our secrets.
 
I’m sorry. I’ve bombarded you with overanalyzed
emotional secrets. How is your life going, Old Friend?
Are you happy? With her? Are you satisfied with the
Life that has chosen you? 
I hope you are.

Well, fancy seeing you here—come here often? (:

Now that we have that painful introduction out of the way, I want to say Happy Thanksgiving! If you do not celebrate, Happy Last Thursday of November! I encourage everyone to consume a larger portion of food than usual. If you normally drink one cup of coffee every morning, drink ten. If you drink ten cups of coffee every morning, drink twelve. And do not fret about the mathematics, also, because I am merely listing two examples sharing the basic arithmetic of this suggestion. But, all jokes aside, please eat something cool. I do not care if cough drops stand as your only sustenance; empty a whole bag at once.

Now I will speak of my own Thanksgiving traditions…I eat food at places with people. Ah, tradition! Sorry, I almost crossed a line there. I do not want to reveal too much about my personal life. I hope you guys understand. Imagine people knowing what food I eat, gasp…the audacity of me!

Anyway, I felt conflicted about the concept of this post. I considered having fun with an exercise exploring the stream of consciousness method. I also considered focusing my blog, in general, on food reviews. And I questioned the possibility of a second post ranting about music; but, have no fear, I decided not to plunge into that pool of questionable depth. So…drumroll…What did I decide to do?

…a post in which I write whatever.

Now, I also considered ranting about a theory I recently developed, but I will need to conduct research first. To provide a sneak-peek, however, it deals with shedding light on subtleties in decision-making.

(Hah, I sound so pretentious. For those of you who do not know me: This is the same person who wants a taco piñata for Christmas.)

Anyway, I shall now “begin.”

Prepare thyself for an onslaught of disorganization.

---

Fall has stood as my favorite season for quite some time, by the way. When it arrives, summer has lasted decades, and I hate the sun. But fall means the return of elements I adore: warm beverages, turtlenecks, comfortable weather, and Kleenexes (note: this is not a paid promotion). I love the colors and the overall texture of the season, and I write a good bit of poems based upon my love for fall. But, like everything, there are a lot of downsides to fall. It seems quite indecisive, among other things. The picture shown above was taken about a week ago. Shortly after, all of the leaves fell off in a single night. Ah, my favorite season.

---

We need to stop and pay attention to details more. The little moments in existence amount to so much. A somewhat controversial philosophical outlook I have is that the minor happenings in life surpass the major, characterizing life more densely. Yes, I do believe that grand moments contain such rich importance, but this is my general opinion. When asked to recall significant happenings, we may think of events concerning weighted topics like life or death. Why can’t a “significant happening” also be a smile? a word? a taco?

---

Do you harbor a discernible disliking of humans, primarily due to their means of communication (ex: shouting, laughing loudly, randomly dancing the Macarena)? Well, you are in luck! Befriend a plant today, free of emotional and physical charge!

(Warning: Serious emotions associated with grief may result after the death of a plant. Also, some plants have to be purchased with paper and circular metals.)

---

Wednesday’s Fun Fact:

2+2=5

Just kidding.

Brachiosaurus, named by Elmer Riggs, literally means “arm lizard”.

Have a nice Thanksgiving, peace out.

Hey guys, today I want to talk about something that has confused my brain for some time now. If you thought this was Haddaway’s “What is love?” I hate to disappoint. So keep on reading if you’re as puzzled as me.

---

You’ve seen those teenagers/kids that carelessly throw around the word love right? It goes something like this:

(2 weeks in a relationship): I love you, teehee. (okay it doesn’t go exactly like that, but you get the point).

I’ve even seen adults who do the same thing. It puts a bad taste in my mouth. I, for one, do not try to carelessly use such powerful words. It seems like “I love you’s”  have been simplified to this false sense of comfort people get when it is said to them. By the way, after a while it gets old if there was no substance to their words. When you hear those words, but don’t see the actions that are supposed to come with it, is it really love people?

Okay, maybe I’m getting ahead of myself. Some people don’t even know what love is. I’ve asked people before, and have got responses like, “Wow, that’s a deep question.” It seems so simple, but it’s really not. I mean, think about it. These characters representing sounds in speech come together to make some type of meaning created by someone’s feelings in the past. Someone thought the feeling in their heart was so important, that they had to do something to make the other person understand- now that sounds like love to me (it also sounds a bit cheesy, but…)

I personally, have been in love romantically before. I remember wanting them to be happy. I just wanted them to feel like they meant everything to me. Their losses were my losses, their wins were my wins. We struggled together, came out of our hard times together, and were each others support. Their needs came over my needs, and I remember crying many nights for their good. That they would see a purpose in life- I rooted for them. Even though we are not together anymore, I still wish the utmost best to them. 

So yes, I do believe I understand what love is, but perhaps this will help you understand:

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps not record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away”(1 Corinthians 13:4-8)

I found that this was a great example. Scientifically speaking, I found some great examples for keeping long term love:

1. They maintain a sense of “love blindness.”
2. They’re always trying new things together.
3. They avoid neediness by preserving their independence.
4. Their passion for life carries over into their relationship.
5. They see their relationship as a journey together towards self-fulfillment. 

Here’s the link to the article: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/psychology-of-lasting-love_n_5339457?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAEUr8YxKOtsh0fh4xAYnPaIoPtXVRqUoxyKPM9l1-U_dKP1YFIT29GzlU9lVf__L5Xa2jG8v9EZPrPpbox5ET9mEBG4lL3ggF97h4SlPJvpZ-fPbDnrgqDAKSbsWRCDKbYCAKbeCy33Ks6mf94kmdr2Dn2WOaSr1Nh24wict0D7V

I hope those reading have discovered something from this, even I have. Maybe now, you see love as a more permanent thing. Love isn’t easy, and takes work, but it is worth it.  

 

I listen to a good bit of music, my taste even encompassing a lot of classical. But, most of all, I enjoy music from the eighties, specifically what falls under the new wave category. A lot of times people overlook these gems. When recalling this era of song, I feel that most fail to go past Journey, Queen, Michael Jackson, and Cyndi Lauper. I like the music of all of these artists, but so much more exists.

(Continue reading for 100% accurate reviews by a certified musicologist)

The only way I can characterize new wave music from the eighties—as well as similar music in like genres—is this: sad or dark lyrics guided by a plot and backed by upbeat synth and random instruments. Granted, a lot of songs with discernibly positive lyrics exist under this category, but that is my general observation. And, as for the instruments, I can only say that bands either consist of the following: four members playing synthesizers while singing, two guitarists singing with a drummer and a synth player, or a drummer backing two singers that play guitar, synth, and random objects. I would also like to add that violin, saxophone, xylophone, and other instruments accompany the traditional ones, often. And, of course, how could I forget a bass guitar played with a bow?

Although I can not accurately describe the sound any further, I would like to give lyric examples. Hopefully, after reading a few of them, you may understand how poetic and underrated they are. I also encourage you to listen to the songs themselves. The lyrics only tell part of the story, and they pair beautifully with the instrumental voices.

(I apologize in advance)

---

Tears For Fears:

You probably know “Mad World”, which, surprisingly many people have no idea they sing it. They also sing “Shout” and “Everybody Wants to Rule the World”, which are both recognizable classics.

(a few lyrics from “Everybody Wants to Rule the World”: 

“Welcome to your life/ There’s no turning back/ Even while we sleep/ we will find You/ acting on your best behavior/ Turn your back on mother nature/ Everybody wants to rule the world”)

Another well-known song they have is “Head Over Heels.”

(a few lyrics from “Head Over Heels”:

“But traditions I can trace against the child in your face/ Won’t escape my attention”)

---

Eurythmics:

They sing two familiar classics: “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” and “Here Comes the Rain Again”. The second is personally my favorite of the two.

(a few lyrics from “Here Comes the Rain Again”:

“Here comes the rain again/ Falling on my head like a memory/ Falling on my head like a new emotion/…Here comes the rain again/ Raining in my head like a tragedy/ Tearing me apart like a new emotion”)

---

The Cure:

Now, they sing a good bit of definite classics. Not only is their sound musical poetry itself, but, wow, the lyrics. Everyone should know at least three of their songs because these guys were a major influence on the music and culture during this era. Although they exceed new wave, you would have to have an interesting opinion to not consider them as one of the most notable figures of this genre. Well-known songs include the following: “Friday I’m in Love”, “Pictures of You”, “Lovesong”, “Boys Don’t Cry”, “A Forest”, and more. All of these songs consist of poetic lyrics, but I only have time for one.

(a few lyrics from “Pictures of You”:

“Remembering you fallen into my arms/ Crying for the death of your heart/ You were stone white/ So delicate/ Lost in the cold/ You were always so lost in the dark”)

---

To conclude this post, I would like to say a few words. I apologize for any errors in the lyrics, and I also apologize for grouping some late eighties and early nineties music with the rest. They still carry an “eighties air”, I guess—although some of them serve as significant precursors for the nineties, but I do not want to delve too much into that. Again, although I have my musicologist credentials, I am only 100% certified, so I hope you pardon my scattered interpretation of these songs. Anyway, thank you for reading this; have a nice day. I hope you will listen to at least one of these songs, as they deserve some appreciation. Peace out.

---

Wednesday’s Fun Fact:

In Spanish, two “l’s” together are pronounced like a “y” in English. It makes you question the pronunciation of the word llama, does it not?