PERSONAL ESSAYS
Among the first: Being a first-generation student
Being the first isn’t easy; it can be scary. You are the guinea pig. You teach people what not to do through your mistakes. However, it is quite an honor. Much like when you are 5 years old and heading down the big slide at the playground for the first time. At the top of … Read moreAmong the first: Being a first-generation student
The Skinny Life
I can’t remember the last time I wasn’t skinny. Ever since I was a toddler, I’ve been scrawny for my size, with wrists like the branches of a sapling and a thin layer of skin and muscle just barely obscuring my ribs. Due in part to a natural pickiness, a preference for vegetables over meat, … Read moreThe Skinny Life
The Battle Against Social Media
Those of us who are currently in college have experienced life like no generation before us. For many of us, we spent our formative years running outside with our siblings and friends, watching cartoons, playing with toys, and trying to beat games on our Gameboys; this is especially true for me. However, as we reached … Read moreThe Battle Against Social Media
A New Outlook On Second Chances
They say miracles aren’t possible—that they’re a cliché only found in the movies. People may say that miracles aren’t attainable in real life, and if you believe in them then you’re oblivious to the real world. Although I was skeptical of those ideas for countless years, I had a realization. Miracles don’t manifest the ways we … Read moreA New Outlook On Second Chances
Who’s That Girl?
It would be impossible to count how many times my friends or I have said the words, “I don’t want to be that girl.” This is the unwritten rule among girls to avoid exhibiting certain qualities, specifically directed at boys. “That girl” is needy, clingy, demanding, whiny, and overdramatic. Guys supposedly hate her and girls … Read moreWho’s That Girl?
Ending the Road to Perfection
Growing up as a Disney watcher—as so many of us did—it was easy to catch onto so many clichés. Hannah Montana promised us that “nobody’s perfect,” and her Disney peer Selena Gomez offered a much different piece of advice with the familiar chorus of “Who says you’re not perfect.” For me, the conversation with perfection was much … Read moreEnding the Road to Perfection
The Importance of a Breakup Playlist
I recently went through a messy breakup. The details aren’t important, and you honestly don’t care. That’s how I felt about most breakup songs that I heard on the radio as well—I didn’t care. That was until I went through a breakup myself, and then it all made sense. I always found breakup songs to … Read moreThe Importance of a Breakup Playlist
Black Hair Culture is Different. Ask About It.
As a woman of mixed color, I have been subjected to countless instances of fetishization, ogling and ostracization that have made me feel marginalized and uncomfortable in public spaces. In college, I have learned to grow as a person and embrace my cultural differences from the predominate white society that rules in the United States. … Read moreBlack Hair Culture is Different. Ask About It.
How can we have meaningful, progressive conversations on social media?
We’ve all seen those politically charged posts on Facebook where the comments section is nothing but a brutal, unforgiving fight where no one really wins. I even experienced this when various people commented on my column for The Daily Iowan, arguing in the comments section and posting baseless statements for their perspectives. This single column racked … Read moreHow can we have meaningful, progressive conversations on social media?