What I Think About Cultural Appropriation
“Do you want a bindi?” The girl who asks me blinks with her synthetic rainbow falsies. I’m at a tapas bar in England, shimmying to reggaeton beneath a canopy of upside-down sombreros. “Sure!” I shout back. The girl—a white English girl—untacks a gemstone from her paper and presses it against my forehead. There. A bindi. Looking back, I wonder now: did she know what a … Continue reading What I Think About Cultural Appropriation
Why You Choose Your Home
“Aren’t you glad to be home?” I felt like I was being suffocated. I felt suffocated by the heavy heat which I was no longer used too and by the kind and curious faces surrounding me. I couldn’t answer their question. I was so excited beforehand, telling everyone that I knew back in England, I’m going back home to America! Then I went back. I … Continue reading Why You Choose Your Home
Losing My Memories of England
My friend is due here in twenty minutes to play tennis. I sit on the edge of my bed with my laptop perched on my knees. The email spreads before my eyes. Due to inactivity, Dropbox has deactivated your account… Oh crap. Let me back up. Six years ago, at the tender age of eighteen, I bundled up my belongings in a couple of suitcases … Continue reading Losing My Memories of England
What Everyone Needs
I wake up and start the day with my main resources. A filling breakfast full of natural sugars (juice is your best friend when you have low blood sugar). A shower with the scent and suds of your favourite soap. A put-together but comfortable outfit where I can get around easily. Most importantly, if I want to have a good day, I go to the … Continue reading What Everyone Needs
The Problem With Guy Friends
“Whoa, Rachel. You hang out with a lot of guys.” I snap my head around and glare at this person I just met. Who does he think he is? He doesn’t know me. I hang out with a lot of guys. He makes me sound like I’m weird. Girls who only hang out with guys are weird. It’s a known fact. Trust me, I read … Continue reading The Problem With Guy Friends
The Christian Way to Deal With Anger
I look up from my phone and smoke puffs out of my nostrils. Oh. No. He. Did. Not. I’m like, what is this feeling, so sudden and new? Ah. Anger. I feel anger. I won’t say why. Let’s just say something very unfair happened. I pocket my phone and gun the engine. Then I take my phone back out and pull up Spotify. Time for … Continue reading The Christian Way to Deal With Anger
Why Most of Your Growth is Not Visible
“I must tell you a great truth, Much-Afraid, which only a few understand. All of the fairest beauties in the human soul, its greatest victories, and its most splendid achievements are always those which no one else knows anything about, or can dimly guess at… Some of my servants have indeed won great visible victories and are rightly loved and reverenced by other men, but … Continue reading Why Most of Your Growth is Not Visible
Why I Used to Hate My Body
“Don’t worry. You’ll fill out.” I can’t remember who told me this, but I held onto it like a God-breathed promise. I wanted to feel full. Filled-out. Like a Build-a-Bear teddy. Freshly fluffed. I know this will make your eyes roll. But believe me when I say, in middle school, I felt—and was told—that I was too skinny. It didn’t matter that skinny girls thrived … Continue reading Why I Used to Hate My Body
How I Have Learned Joy
“Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say, rejoice!” -Philippians 4:4 What is the difference between joy and happiness? How can we have joy when we live in such a broken state of the world? How can we be joyful always, even when we are in pain? I posed these questions to the women at my Bible Study group, perhaps showing off my vulnerability but … Continue reading How I Have Learned Joy
Being Obsessed With You
All it took was one text message. Hey, she said. That thing you said on Monday… I look up from my phone. My mind jumps back. What did I say on Monday? Ah yes. I remember. I mentioned how 2018 was not my favorite year. (Why? Grab a coffee with me and I will probably not tell you.) I continue reading her text: Just wanted … Continue reading Being Obsessed With You
Savvy & Rachel 