A Definitive Ranking of One Direction Albums According To Me

Absolutely no one asked for this, but I made it anyway because it's a quarantine and I felt like it.  (source) #5: MITAM- It came out at the same time as Purpose and it was after Zayn left so it gets last because I got bored listening to it, and I think I was still …

Turning from Christ

Moving from anger, to forgiveness, to growth. When I was a child, I once asked my mom, "If God is Jesus' father, who was God's father?" My mom simply looked at her curious, inquisitive child and told me to ask my devoutly Catholic grandma, who would probably know the answer. When I was older, I …

Love Hangover: A Post V-Day Reflective

As a teenager in high school, I was deeply insecure. Of course, if anyone's read past blog posts, this isn't new information. But seventeen year old Naja had been going through it, all year long. I was the walking dead, and I hid that fact well from my friends. Enter February 14th, 2011. From the …

Update: Hey!

Dear readers, Hey! So, now that I'm out of school and thinking a bit more towards the future, I'm considering revamping this blog either elsewhere or on WordPress. I'd really like to become a serious journalist in the future, and I think the best course of action would be to broaden my topics and maybe …

Online Dating While Bi & Black

"Hello my little Mocha Chocalata ya ya. Are you into guys or girls more?"  If you're like me, or millions of other people in the 21st century, you've tried your hand at online dating. While I'm sure that it's worked for plenty of people (and I know, by observation, that it has), I have a bit …

Dear Doubter of My Desired Degree

Dear Doubter of My Desired Degree, You aren't the first to tell me that there is no place in the world for English majors. During my Freshman year of college, I spoke to my then-history professor about my ideal career and college goals. Upon learning that I wanted to declare a major in English, the …

22 Things I’ve Learned by 22

As of now, it is currently 12:52 in Paris, France. Thus, it's officially my birthday and I've been feeling incredibly reflective these last few months. Being in Paris has made me come to terms with a lot of things, and thus I've been able to break down how much I've learned about myself and what …

To The Matriarchs I’ll Never Meet

To the ones who came before me, I honor your resilience. I think of the thousands of women who came before me, beating the odds and choosing to continue on when the moments were too much to bear. My heart breaks when I think about all of the abuse and turmoil you were forced to live …

She

In the moments when She Looked to the brilliant violet sky Searching to find replacements For the stars snatched from her eyes And Crushed in the center of a powerful Palm She; Consistently hardening In a world that denies her softness Accusations of submissiveness Torn between Aggression and Servitude She; Earning space Both invisible and Not invisble enough. …

The Diversity Myth: It’s complex and necessary.

As  person with a strong desire to go into publishing (specifically YA) in the future, I'm aware of how often the topic of diversity rears its head. There are always questions of "if I include this character who isn't white, is it diverse enough?" or "if all of my characters are Latino, that qualifies as …