Welcome To The Blog
You’ve arrived at the Letters from a Young Black Woman blog. I’m excited to share my experiences and interest with you, and I hope that they leave you:
Comforted
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Refreshed
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Inspired
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Enriched
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Affirmed
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Comforted * Refreshed * Inspired * Enriched * Affirmed *
Series
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A unique assortment of personal anecdotes and reflections artfully presented through the medium of letters. Delve into the intricacies of life's myriad experiences, encompassing its highs, lows, and everything in between. Prepare for an engaging journey filled with contemplation, discoveries, and meaningful interactions.
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Come along as Allie dishes out her top-notch beauty secrets and fave products that have passed her beauty test. Buckle up to uncover handpicked tips and suggestions designed especially for your beauty needs!
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Dive into thrilling travel escapades and adventures. Rating the hidden gems and popular spots in every city or country she visits, providing recommendations for fellow globetrotters looking to embark on their own unforgettable journeys. So, fellow wanderlusters, take note as we serve up the crème de la crème of travel experiences from around the globe. Are you ready to embark on this exciting exploration?
So, fellow wonderlusters, take note as we serve up the crème de la crème of travel experiences from around the globe.
Explore
My Preference, My Choice
I could say I don’t understand our short-end-of-the-stick outcome, but it’s very clear. Black women aren’t supposed to be allowed the experiences of agency and choice. We’re supposed to be given what we’re offered, slap a smile on our faces, and go on our merry way. We aren’t allowed to complain or fight back because in everyone else's eyes, we’re here to support others, not be supported. Being authors of our own stories is shamed because we’re meant to be supporting characters in theirs.
I Don’t Want Any More Friends
I don’t think I want any more friends. I’m far too jaded. Building hope for long-lasting connection only to be met with disappointment. I’ve had men drive me to anger by their actions but when it came to friends it cut much deeper—leaving me heartbroken and confused. With each drive to the heart, I’ve learned more and more of what I can’t accept and yearn for from those surrounding me. And with each formed bond, I learn how shockingly affirming a once-upon-a-time stranger can be. So much so that they become woven into your daily existence. You develop gratitude for the shoulder to lean on and the joy they bring
That’s if it’s done right.
Letter 10: Dear Grad
I wish I could congratulate each of you in the graduating class of 2024. A class with many members who entered college during a time of so much uncertainty. Still, we made it out. However, the questions and obstacles don’t cease. I hope this letter can offer you some reassurance and comfort as we all make a transition from college student to college graduate.
An Intimate Grief
That all changed when the agony visited me more recently. The bereaved was hard to see, outline, or even define. It was more intimate than ever before. So close that I felt wrong that I dared to leave them behind.
Routine Stop
The concern of my grounding returns. I hope he doesn’t make me get out of the car. I hope he doesn’t mistake my umbrella or one of the frivolous items, in my car, as a gun. Most of all I just hope he doesn’t pull his.
Passion Fueled, Choice Driven
Writing feels so natural. I don’t say this to sound cocky. I just want you to understand how much I love it. I feel like I belong as a writer. I let my words flow from my thoughts to my pen to paper. And most days it’s as easy as that 3-step process.
The Uncomfortable Truths of 2023
Overall, I loved this year because I fell into my passion, learned, and healed. Any effort to bring me closer to the divine woman I’m destined to become is worth celebrating, even if it wasn’t a fun process.
Letter 08: Dear Comfort
You’d lay by side me for a while; cover me like a blanket. Then I’d turn over and you’d be gone. I never understood why. If I connected with you once why couldn’t you stay forever?
Complexities & Dualities
Each day can apply a new lens. With that, you create experiences that can be lessons throughout every stage.
I Quit My Passion: Addressing a Failure Mindset
The summer was 2022. I had rebuilt my stamina for a rebrand although I knew I wasn’t fully invested. But for some reason, I thought newfound graphic design skills were going to sell cakes in a market I had no familiarity with. I tried to convince myself that, if business was booming again I’d find my excitement for it again.
I Gave Up Social Media
I wasn’t prepared when my Social Media Marketing Professor mentioned a social media cleanse. My head jolted up and I began to question how well this would go. My job and personal projects require me to manage social media accounts and be alert to changing trends. How exactly was I supposed to detox from social media when it's the center of my world?
Letter 07: Dear 20
With every passing day, you brought new lessons that I was forced to accept. I didn’t always want to and sometimes I still mourn the inability to force my life into the journey I had planned. But everything happens for a reason…right? As I step into my 21st year, let me tell you everything you taught me.