Lemonade
Posted on September 1, 2017 Leave a Comment
When life give you lemons, make lemonade and drink up. Refresh your body and soul.
Reflection of Light vs Void of Color
Posted on September 1, 2017 Leave a Comment
The battle of black and white with a pop of red to brighten up the outfit.
The Making of a Dancer
Posted on August 31, 2017 Leave a Comment
The Making of DANCE, the finished painting of a dancer.
Female Mentality
Posted on August 27, 2017 Leave a Comment
That girl is dope, but too flashy
Who, her?
She isn’t all that sweetie
Not as dope as me, definitely
I mean,
Yeah, she can sing, but she’s too ugly
Yeah, she can spit, but she looks sloppy
Yeah, she can dance, but she dress trashy
Yeah, she has long hair, but she’s too dark
Yeah, she has a big butt, but her waist too tiny
Yeah, she has big breasts, but no personality
Yeah, she got a man, but her box fishy
Yeah, she graduated college, but isn’t making big money
Yeah, she has her own car, but that shit cheap
Yeah, she bad, but she looks slutty
Yeah, she has nice legs, but she’s too skinny
Yeah, she pretty, but her stomach too flabby
Yeah, she has perfect skin, but her forehead too shiny
Prime examples of female mentality
As women, we are each other’s worst enemy
We see faults in many
Compliments each other rarely
Blinded by the jealousy
Walking around angry
Because this girl or that girl has plenty
Of that we perceive as a necessity
But in reality
We constantly drive ourselves crazy
Trying to keep up with what we see on TV
And on magazine covers constantly
Seeing this and that celebrity
Dictating to us the standard of beauty
Turning us into a zombie
Blindly throwing away our money
At this and that cosmetic company
Instead of focusing our energy
On what makes us a specialty
And uplifting each other with positivity
We dwell on the unneccessary
Living a life of misery
Never satisfied with any
We become extremely greedy
As we grow more needy
To have that “life changing” surgery
What a catastrophe
That girl is dope, but too flashy
Who, her?
She isn’t all that sweetie
Not as dope as me, definitely
So we start acting shady
Aren’t we so petty
Prime examples of female mentality
Take your aim
Posted on August 27, 2017 Leave a Comment
Take your aim
Shame my name
Make your claim to fame
As you defame my name
Keep in mind you came for me
When I didn’t call for you name
Slow your roll, remain tame
Warning! This is only the pregame
But remember
Me and you, lame
We aren’t the same
Engulf the flame
While you still can
Keep burning out during the pregame
I came prepared for the real game
Shame, shame, shame
Shame on you
Now watch me
Watch me aim
Not at your name
Or your weak aim
But the throne of fame
A beast, I became
Victory I proclaim
As I reclaim my name
Suddenly, you want to play the blame game
I bet next time you will think twice
Before you take your aim
First time performing at open mic
Posted on August 11, 2017 Leave a Comment
Feeling nervous and timid, I stepped up to the mic to perform for the first time.
How did I do it?
I mentally prepared myself for weeks and chickened out the day before.
That’s right! I had my mind set on performing my first open mic on Wednesday, August 9th at a venue on Franklin Ave. I arrived an hour and a half early and waited outside, walked around a few blocks, and went back to the location to wait some more for the place to open. When the place finally opened, I sat quietly by the door, trying to talk myself into signing up to perform. Two hours later I left the venue with some awesome memories of great performers doing their thing without performing.
On my way home, instead of feeling down or disappointed, I felt a sense of uplifting power and decided I would get myself settled and put on a brave face to perform the next day. It’s as if the performers planted a seed of encouragement in me that was pushing me to be brave.
Just like that, I opened up my instagram page and found another open mic taking place on Thursday, August 10th at Word Up Cafe. I added the information to my calendar and told myself, I will perform.
Indeed, I made my way to the cafe after work arriving 15 minutes early. Once I sat down, I started mentally preparing myself while feeling nervous. As the sign in sheet went around, I jotted my name down and there was no turning back from there.
Then the time came for me to perform and deliver.
I felt very nervous when I walked to the mic and started off by saying. “Hi Everyone, I’m Woodlynn. Bare with me, I’m a little nervous, this is my first time doing poetry live”. Someone in the audience asked, “At Word Up Cafe?”. I replied, “No, first time ever”. Everyone in the crowd clapped and gave me words of encouragement letting me know it will be fine and I’ll do great.
I smile and went on to perform two pieces, Black Woman, and Black Man.
The crowd was very warm and encouraging which I loved.
I can proudly say, I did it and I feel great!
I want you reading this to put on your brave face, go out there, and conquer your fears. Do not let your dreams and passion fall by the wayside because of fear. DON’T DO IT!
Try Again
Posted on August 8, 2017 2 Comments
A failure, or two, or more is not the end of the world. Just like a light drizzle, a down pour, or a storm is not the end of sunshine. Rest assured, after the storm, the sun will shine again. Thus, after a failure, you will get back up and grind again.
Never allow yourself to fall down and stay down. GET BACK UP!
Mid-year Reflection
Posted on August 4, 2017 Leave a Comment
I am thankful!
That’s right! I’m thankful for all I have accomplished so far this year.
Three months ago, I wrote this post titled Close to mid-year reflection to reflect back on all of my accomplishments in the year 2016. Three months later, I have added many more great accomplishments to my list of success stories. With great delight, I have kept up the momentum and I couldn’t be any more happier.
As a highlight, here are a small snippet of my proud moments for the year 2017. First off, I completed a 10 months service year as an AmeriCorps member. The program introduced me to many great life and personal experiences that I will cherish forever. Along with the many skills I learned as a member of the program, I also learned a lot more about myself in both personal and professional realms. I learned how to work with others to develop stronger connections. Even better, I connected and made friends with a large group of individuals from all ages and cultures. From that experience, I’m learning to tailor my introverted personality in a way that will allow me to share and connect with others to learn more and about the world and fascinating people in my neighborhood, my local group, my local organizations, in New York City, etc. I learned to put myself out there even more without letting fear hold me back.
That’s not to say that the year has been all peachy with good news only. I did experience a few setbacks here and there throughout the year. I had my mind somewhat set on attending graduate school this year, but I received a decline letter from my school of choice. I set out to achieve a certain level in my fitness goal, but instead I went backwards and experienced many plateaus along the way. I attempted to make connections at work which did not bare any fruitful results. But, I survived them all.
Even better, I used all of the setbacks to my advantage. With the realization that graduate school is not an option for this year, I used the extra time that I now have available to get my business off the ground. I have been putting it on the back burner while slowly putting all of the pieces together. But, I figured, why not start now and put it out there. It’s early in the game for me, I will start making the mistakes now to save me the trouble later. I don’t have much to lose by learning that way. In going towards that direction, I picked up on two new mediums as part of the learning process. I tried my hands at both oil and watercolor paints and made some beautiful artwork which are now up for sale. Again, I used the free time I now had available to me to put in work towards my business.
About, two and a half weeks ago, on July 19th, I attended a drawing event at BRIC where I was both the artist and the subject of an artist. In a room full of artists, I met many creative people who share the same passion as me. It was a pleasure to see the many different techniques and styles of artists that exists. Moreover, I also learned about myself as an artist in terms of my technique, artistic style, and preference.
Speaking of July, I had some of the most memorable and exciting first experiences during that month. I celebrated my birthday in the beginning of the month which included my first boat ride and roof top dinner at a Mexican restaurant. I attended my first festival at Panorama, where I met the amazing Frank Ocean, as well as Tyler the Creator and Solange. I also met my favorite artist of all time, Alan Cave, at my cousin’s wedding which I couldn’t believe even happened.
For having experienced so many new experiences and accomplishing many goals, I feel grateful. I look forward to what the second half of the year has in store for me.
To you reading this, I certainly believe, you too have amazing experiences to share. It might not seem so at times based on the obstacles and setbacks you are either going through or had to overcome. But, I dare you to look back five years and reflect on where you were then to where you are now. You will see progress. Sometimes, as your own worst critique, we focus more on the achievements that others can see on the outside. All the while, we forget the small and personal yet difficult and long lasting changes accomplishments in our life.
If you overcame procrastination, upgraded your personality for the better, removed yourself from a toxic relationship, adopted a healthier lifestyle, changed your sleeping habits, improved your financial situation, learned a new skill, shifted your pessimism into optimism, let go of a grudge which was causing you stress, you have made tremendous progress and big achievements in your life. Inner changes matter more than what people can see on the outside.
I encourage you to take the time to reflect back and write down some of the moments you felt most proud of yourself, big or small. You, my friend will see the changes. Let that be your little pick-me-up.
Please do leave a comment and share your story. I want to read your journey and cheer you on.
Now, go be AMAZING!
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