The Closed Door

We all know the feeling of having a door slammed in our face. It's not a good feeling at all. Actually, it really sucks. Most of us sit in front of that closed door, trying to figure out ways to make it open. We may knock on it repeatedly and if that doesn't work, we'll begin banging on it. We'll twist the handle franticly trying to get in. Little do we realize, we're wasting our time trying to make the closed door open instead of looking for another door that's already open.

Instead of dwelling in the disappointment of an opportunity that didn't go as planned, you should redirect your focus and effort into finding another one! Don't be so tunnel visioned that you ignore the other possibilities that are presented in front of you!

If you didn't get accepted into a school you really wanted to attend or if you didn't get selected for a job position, don't beat yourself up about it! Although it may seem difficult, you just have to accept it and move on. You may discover something even better! But, you'll never know until you go out and look.

Being stuck behind a closed door may leave you feeling defeated, but you must continue to hold your head up high and walk away from it. Go out look for better opportunities and know that you will find it. Also, always remember that, "God never shuts one door without opening another."

Team Dark skin vs. Team Light Skin

You know, I just can’t wrap my mind around that fact that its 2014 and African-Americans still feel as if it is okay to classify themselves as “Team Dark Skin” or “Team Light Skin”. Why can’t they just simply say “I’m African-American”? It doesn’t matter if you’re light-skinned or dark- skinned; you’re still BLACK!

People who classify themselves as #TeamDarkSkin or #TeamLightSkin on social sites are simply ignorant and are clearly unaware of THEIR history! Well, I’m here to give you all a quick history lesson. After all, one of main goals is to give insight to the Black community.

Now, as early as the 1600s, the enslavement of Africans began here in the United States. Our people had no rights at all and were treated like animals. They were chained and beaten for petty and minute offenses. They were even killed. Our people were auctioned off and sold as property to white Americans. Once sold, these white Americans became white slave owners or slave masters.

There may have been a point in time where a slave would be sold to a relatively “nice” slave owner. But for the most part, slave masters treated their slaves horribly to say the least! Black women were raped and impregnated by their slave masters. Now, when a white American and a Black American reproduce, their child will most likely be a lighter color than a child who has two Black parents.

 These lighter colored slaves soon became known as the House Slaves and the darker colored slaves became known as the field slaves. House slaves were able to stay in the master’s house. They cooked, cleaned and received better treatment than the field slaves. Field slaves had to work outside and pick cotton. They were given the bare minumum.  Don’t you see? #TeamDarkSkin and #TeamLightSkin are just modernized categorizations of the House Slave and the Field Slave.

I’m tired of seeing people claim one shade of blackness over the other. Why are we dividing our race based of off color? We’re segregating ourselves within our own race! It’s senseless! We all need to stand together! It doesn’t matter if you’re light-skinned or dark-skinned. We don’t need to classify ourselves as light or dark skinned. So, please stop with the #TeamDarkSkin and #TeamLightSkin! We shouldn’t have to compete with ourselves. All Black is beautiful! 

Fight for your Dreams!

When travelling on the road to success, many obstacles may get in your way. Some will be easier to overcome, while others may leave you stagnant. However, don’t allow this to detour you from your dreams. The quest to success is a rough and long journey. There may be times when you feel defeated, lost and confused. There may be times when you feel like you just want to give up, but before you give up, think about why you began initially.

There is no greater feeling than succeeding and reflecting on the journey that led you to it. You will receive great satisfaction knowing that you overcame every hurdle and interference you encountered. Knowing that you were able to beat the odds is such a great feeling, but you will never experience that feeling if you give up so easily.

 If your dreams and goals are really important to you then fight for them! Know that achievement won’t come easy, but you must persevere! Know that you can do anything that you set your mind to. Eliminate those negative thoughts and fill your mind with positive ones! “I AM a winner!” “I CAN do it!” “I WILL succeed!” “I will NOT fail!” Continue to motivate and encourage yourself! 

Give your all; 110%! Nothing will come easy. Anything worth having is worth fighting for. Always remember to never give up on your goals and dreams, but most importantly never, ever give up on yourself.

Chemical X

Sugar. Spice. And Everything nice. These were the ingredients chosen to create perfect little girls. But then SOCIETY added an extra ingredient to the concoction…Chemical X.

This generation is lost. Morals have changed, standards have lowered and shame seems to be nonexistent. All I can do is shake my head when I see young girls acting like grown women. Who is to blame for these unfortunate situations? Society is to blame. They have poisoned the minds of young girls. Society has glorified drinking, smoking, sex and the new phenomenon, twerking. They make it seem cool to participate in these senseless activities, which tends to appeal to the younger generations.

Little girls these days want to grow up so fast. If they knew what I knew they would cherish their youth because there isn’t anything “fun” about adulthood. I wish that I could go back to the days when all I had to worry about was going to school, playing with toys and watching cartoons. I wish I could go back to the time where I had no worries. There was a time when little girls were just that. They didn’t care about sex, drinking and smoking. All they cared about was being a kid!

 Children imitate and learn from their observations. If a little girl constantly sees Mommy twerking, turning up day after day and dressing scandalous, she’s going to think it’s absolutely fabulous and she’s going to follow right in suit. But she’s just a child. Her focus should be on Barbie’s and dolls, but instead she's focusing on the negative aspects that surround her. She thinks they’re acceptable and that its proper behavior. It isn’t her fault because she can’t control her surroundings. This is where the parents are supposed to step in and monitor what their child is exposed to. But, it seems as if many just don’t care. They think it’s cute when their young daughter performs a twerking move or dresses like a 20 year old women. They laugh and whip out there phones and quickly record and capture it; eager to post it on a social site. Quite frankly, I’m tired of seeing videos and photos like that appear in my newsfeed and timelines. 

Like I stated earlier, morals and standards have all change. They have declined. You can’t even turn on the television or radio with seeing and hearing outrageous behavior! There’s no escaping it! These young girls are watching and imitating reality television thinking that it’s actually reality! Basketball Wives, Love & Hip-Hop and the Bad Girls Club are falsely advertising what reality actually is to these young girls. Music videos have immortalized video vixens to the point that little girls are attempting to act just like them. All I can do is shake my head! 

The Chemical X is spreading and it seems to be getting worse and worse. There are three things we can do in order to see a change in the Chemical X epidemic. First, we must become aware of the issue at hand. Second, we can no longer tolerate or ignore it and third, we must take action!  One day I’m hoping and praying that the innocence and purity of young girls won't be taken away from them due to the ignorant, improper and inappropriate behavior that seems to be all around us. I’m hoping that the Sugar, Spice and Everything nice will no longer be tainted by the Chemical X.

African-Americans and Education

Education is a key component of life and it is essential if you intend on being successful; especially if you are an African-American. African-Americans must always work over and beyond to prove that they are just as intelligent and sufficient as the next person.  It is unfortunate that in this day and age, black people are still stereotyped in such a demeaning manner, but that’s just the reality of it. Instead of complaining about the faulty accusations of Blacks, why not do something about it?  As a community what can we do to change these stereotypes? Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once stated “Intelligence plus character- that is the goal of true education”. As a race, we are constantly frowned upon for our style, vernacular, actions and our motives; especially when they are negative.
 In order to change the perception that African-Americans are ignorant, uneducated or inferior we must change and enhance or own individual character. But not only should we attempt to change our own character, we should also aid one another in the process of doing so. If we see a brother or sister doing wrong, we shouldn’t condone or ignore the absurd behavior. Instead, we should acknowledge it and help that person change for the better. 
I feel as if African-Americans have the same mentality as lobsters in a bucket. We pull one another down in an attempt to make it to the top. It isn’t enough to make it to the top yourself. A true successor brings someone along with them. We need to support and help one another. It just doesn’t make any sense to degrade and keep each other down. Why can’t we assist and uplift? As a community we need to stand together. If more of us were to reach out to others I could almost guarantee a positive change in the black community. Education is something that you have a right to obtain. Our ancestors fought for us to be able to sit in a classroom and learn. Don't let their sacrifices go in vain. It baffles me that many African-American don't take education seriously. Its perplexing to say the least. The way I see it, going to college, making good grades, helping others and earning a degree is satisfying. It's an accomplishment that everyone should want to achieve! I just can't seem to understand why some people just don't take education seriously. 
We fight for the wrong things. A few weeks ago I came across a video of black males in a shoe store fighting over Jordans. Why are we allowing materialistic aspects to consume us and make us act as if we're ignorant barbaric animals? That video really made me think. Why couldn't those same young men use that same passion, anger and drive to get an education? If we applied as much energy into our education as we apply to minute aspects change will arise in the black community.
 One day, I'm hoping that African-Americans will stand up and state that they are tired of being stereotyped and judged as a whole. I hope that more people will understand the importance of education. I'm hoping for people to help others succeed and I'm hoping that African-Americans will begin to take the necessary steps in order to change for the advancement of our people. Hopefully, this will occur sooner as opposed to later, but a great man once stated, “Rather late than never”.