Making Waves

“Shooting your shot” is a phrase often used in reference to someone pursuing someone else they’re interested in. After being on the initiating and receiving end of this exchange, I’ve found it to be equal parts flattering, risky, and a bit of a rush. It’s flattering getting approached. It’s a risk to put yourself out there to pursue someone you want to know a little better and being open to doing so. And shooting your shot can also usher in a rush of all kinds of feelings. However, things can get super awkward and embarrassing if there’s little to no interest between the person shooting their shot and the intended recipient. Awhile back, I spotted a cute guy I’d been interested in for quite some time. He seemed chill, so I thought I’d shoot my shot. And guess what? When I did, he ignored me. More than once. I promise you that I wasn’t being aggressive or thirsty. I just reached out a few times and I was able to take a hint when he didn’t communicate with me. Believe it or not, this has...

In the late ‘90s, a dark teen-comedy named   Jawbreaker   released. It was a film about three popular teenagers who accidentally murdered their best friend on her birthday. Each year, this group of teen queens played birthday pranks on each other. The idea for their friend, Elizabeth “Liz” Purr’s, (affectionally referred to in the film as the “cat’s meow”) birthday was to kidnap her as a joke, have her consume a ton of carbs for breakfast, and then tie her up to their school’s flagpole in her bra and underwear. The only problem was that the prank went horrifically wrong when one of the cruelest of the three friends, Courtney Shayne, gagged Liz with a Jawbreaker and then with the help of her friends, stuffed Liz in the trunk of her car during the kidnapping. When the girls opened the trunk outside the diner they parked at, they froze as they saw Liz’s cold and deceased body, as well as the jawbreaker, stuck in her throat. Although these girls were all friends, at the beginning ...

Like many careers, the teaching profession has its pros and cons. There’s rewarding and purposeful work, the opportunity to inspire and change the lives of students, and you’re always learning something new. I have yet to meet an educator who has “mastered” the field. Many of the ones I’ve met have let me know how much they’re continually learning something new about the work they do. Then there are the challenges. Things like adjusting to in-person and virtual learning while trying to navigate living and learning during a global pandemic, overcoming communication barriers with parents, ensuring students are socially, emotionally, and academically set, and making sure that as an educator, I’m prioritizing my well-being while juggling a career that involves a lot of planning, structure, and time management.   As a first-year educator, I’m still finding my rhythm and learning the importance of having balance. I’m fully aware of what’s expected of me on a professional level, and I’m g...

One Sunday evening as I was lying in bed, my phone rang. I saw my realtor’s number across the screen, then I sat up and immediately answered. “Guess what?” she said. “What?” I replied while smiling. “They accepted your offer.” I tried to stay calm, but it was hard to contain my excitement. A long-time goal that I’d been working on and praying about was finally coming true. I was officially becoming a homeowner! This was a goal I started working on last year but when the pandemic hit, I was nervous about moving forward. So I put things on pause… until some of my confidants asked me why I wasn’t moving forward anymore. I came up with a handful of excuses: the pandemic, the timing, and more praying and fasting (which was honestly me procrastinating from a place of fear – God had already given me His approval). I even started having dreams that I was already in a new home. The more I stalled, the more I felt something on the inside of me saying,  it’s time.  And as I proceeded, I ...

I’ll never forget the day when a former colleague and I connected over a shared experience that we both tried to dissect and understand as Black women. Our experience revolved around trying to thrive and survive as Black professionals who have had to endure shade and far too many microaggressions ( is that your real hair, you should straighten your hair, I don’t see color, do you live in a house, how can you afford that house/car/designer dress, like, oh my gosh, you’re so smart, you’re not like other Black people … just to point out a handful.) Please, feel free to take your pick – they’ve all come from prejudice and sometimes oblivious non-Black people who have felt threatened and intimidated by us. We also unpacked the same treatment we’ve received from those within our race, who have felt equally if not more threatened and intimidated and have made stupid jokes and assumptions about who they t hink   we are as opposed to who we really are. This kind of stuff might sound crazy, ...