“So ahead of my time
Even when I rhyme about the future I be reminiscing.”So this is probably no surprise to you, I’m a little…strange. A little off. A little different. I would dare say peculiar. So are you. I may not know you personally, or even by name, but I know you. I am very familiar with the spirit that brought you here. The spirit that makes you open these emails every day. The spirit of daring. Of belief. Of uniqueness. And ba-by (in my New Orleans accent) being special can take a toll.
Yesterday, I took some big hits early on. Rejection. Of course, I’m no stranger to this. Neither are you. We know all too well that most people don’t get it. When I was little, I was the African booty scratcher, the girl who was so black you couldn’t see her when the lights were turned off. These taunts used to sting, but they never pierced. I would look in the mirror and think, “I am pretty. They just can’t see it yet.” Fast forward to now, the world is woke and my skin draws the first compliment.
So when rejection came in a form I could not have braced myself for, I did whatI used to. I let the hurt wash over me. I got very still within myself and observed the emotion. I cried. I hugged my knees to my chest and then I looked in the mirror. “No one writes like me. No one. No one is as honest. No one blends high and low so seamlessly. No one’s syntax matches the pattern of today’s speech like mine. They just can’t see it yet.”
There’s a woman on this list named Bethany. Bethany is strange, off, different, peculiar. She speaks Spanish and dances bachata and actually listens when others speak. She’s white, but she doesn’t fuck with white people and no, she’s not trying to be Latina. She’s just trying to be. So much so that she’s currently teaching in DR and may never return to the States. See Bethany has followed peace. She is free.
Banke Awopetu
Word Goddess
P.S. Today’s quote comes from J.Cole’s “Fire Squad.” Another Aquarius, he’s my go-to when the world tries to knock me down for being ahead of them.
P.P.S. Okay, time for our daily task! Write a pep talk letter to yourself. Remember that list we made on Saturday with our top ten accomplishments? Use it to now. Thank yourself for all that you have done. For not giving up. For having the gonads to be your full self. For being kind. Get in hype man mode, like imagine DJ Khalid screaming out your accolades, your attributes. Read this letter as often as you need. I definitely opened mine yesterday.
P.P.P.S. Click here to pre-order New Black before they sell out.
P.P.P.P.S. Presales are going great!!! Y’all really fuck with me, huh? Weirdos unite! Lol.
P.P.P.P.P.S Even when I was snot-nose crying yesterday, I thought, “This is great material for The List.” Lol. I love y’all so much!
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