God, Make Me So Uncomfortable That I Will Do The Very Thing I Fear.

Please be mindful of the “spiritual” posts and advice you see on social media and platforms like this ones, even if you aren’t a Christian. A lot of the beliefs that are promoted on here are quite harmful and dangerous to practice, I know that from personal experience. I’m always asked why I don’t believe or subscribe to things like astrology and other new age beliefs, but I was once someone who partook in those things and I experienced first hand the damage that it can have on someone’s psyche and overall well-being. A lot of people are depressed and suicidal these days because they want to cling onto something to get meaning out of, something “spiritual”, so they start making idols of these new ages beliefs: the position of the planets, seeing themselves as the gods of their own reality, etc. 

The most disturbing thing I see promoted on here is flat out witchcraft and the use of spells to get things out of life. Understand that not everything that appears of light is of light. Yes, you may get some things by practicing occult rituals, but at what cost? Trust that sooner or later those things will come back to haunt you. You don’t know what or who you are inviting into your life.

I don’t know who needed to hear this but my spirit compelled me to write this. It’s coming from a place of love and not judgement. If you guys want to dive on these types of subjects and my opinions on it let me know through my inbox. 

haha me to buddy. Me too.. Dont we all? :-D

https://vine.co/v/MpJVKzEK1PU/embed/simple?audio=1

I like black women. Damn! I love them.

I've read some.

Hoping to read some more.

80 Young Adult Books by Black Authors

Supporting Black authors is something that I definitely need to start doing more, so I’ve compiled a list of 80 YA books by Black authors. I’m putting the ones that I’ve read at the top in bold, and the rest will be books that I have looked up and have put on my list to read. I can’t do much to change what’s going on in our world right now, but I can do my part to support the Black community in any way that I can. These are in no particular order and please feel free to add more!

On The Come Up by Angie Thomas

With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi

Calling My Name by Liara Tamani

Dear Martin by Nic Stone

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds

The Sun is Also a Star by Nicola Yoon

Let’s Talk About Love by Claire Kann

Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson

Odd One Out by Nic Stone

Jackpot by Nic Stone

Dear Justyce by Nic Stone - coming out 9/29/20

Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi

Oh My Gods by Alexandra Sheppard

Black Enough: Stories of Being Young and Black in America edited by Ibi Zoboi

Love Me or Miss Me: Hot Girl, Bad Boy by Dream Jordan

Spin by Lamar Giles

Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James

Watch Us Rise by Renee Watson and Ellen Hagan

Opposite of Always by Justin A. Reynolds

The Belles Series by Dhonielle Clayton

The Weight of the Stars by K. Ancrum

Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams

Let Me Hear a Rhyme by Tiffany D. Jackson

The Voice in My Head by Dana L. Davis

I Wanna Be Where You Are by Kristina Forest

The Black Flamingo by Dean Atta

The Evolution of Birdie Randolph by Brandy Colbert

Dear Haiti, Love Alaine by Maika and Maritza Moulite

Kingdom of Souls by Rena Barron

A Blade So Black by L.L. McKinney

A Dream So Dark by L.L. McKinney

Full Disclosure by Camryn Garrett

The Forgotten Girl by India Hill Brown

Tyler Johnson Was Here by Jay Coles

Piecing Me Together by Renee Watson

Solo by Kwame Alexander

A Song Below Water by Bethany C. Morrow

By Any Means Necessary by Candid Montgomery

War Girls by Tochi Onyebuchi

Light It Up by Kekla Magoon

Who Put This Song On? by Morgan Parker

Monday’s Not Coming by Tiffany D. Jackson

Finding Yvonne by Brandy Colbert

Learning to Breathe by Janice Lynn Mather

I am Alfonso Jones by Tony Medina

The Stars Beneath Our Feet by David Barclay Moore

Ghost by Jason Reynolds

X: A Novel by Ilyasah Shabazz

The Boy in the Black Suit by Jason Reynolds

How It Went Down by Kekla Magoon

Dread Nation by Justina Ireland

Deathless Divide by Justina Ireland

Not So Pure and Simple by Lamar Giles

The Field Guide to the North American Teenager by Ben Philippe

Monster by Walter Dean Myers

Pride by Ibi Zoboi

Opposite Of Always by Justin A. Reynolds

Buried Beneath The Baobab Tree by Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani

The Effigies Series by Sarah Raughley

Well-Read Black Girl: Finding Our Stories, Discovering Ourselves by Glory Edim

Such A Fun Age by Kiley Reid

I Almost Forgot About You by Terry McMillan

Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours by Helen Oyeyemi

A Phoenix First Must Burn: Sixteen Stories of Black Girl Magic, Resistance, and Hope edited by Patrice Caldwell

This Is My America by Kim Johnson

Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam

If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson

Nightmare of the Clans by Pamela E. Cash

Black Boy, White School by Brian F. Walker

Behind You by Jacqueline Woodson

Hush by Jacqueline Woodson

Tiffany Sly Lives Here Now by Dana L. Davis

Grown by Tiffany D. Jackson

read this: When you feel as though God is distant, just remember that He is always near. God promises that when we draw near to Him, He draws near to us. No matter how many times we push Him away, He waits for us with open arms. Run to your Heavenly Father, The Constant One. The Maker of Heaven & Earth. 

Jeeez.

watercolor asks

zinc white; how are you really feeling today? no one-word answers please!

cadmium yellow; when you think of the word “happy” what’s the first thing that comes to mind?

lemon; what’s your comfort food?

hansa yellow; what’s your guilty pleasure song?

yellow ochre; name an artist/band whom you just discovered & can’t get enough of!

naples yellow; where do you feel most at home?

raw sienna; with whom do you feel most at home?

golden ochre; describe the relationship you have with your closest friend.

golden deep; what’s your favorite season?

cadmium orange; what do you like to do on your days off?

orange lake; do you have anyone you can turn to when you’re sad?

titans; do you prefer slow mornings or relaxing evenings?

shakhnazaryan red; are you currently binge-watching anything?

red ochre; are you more right-brained (creative) or left-brained (analytical)?

burnt sienna; is there a painting that brings you peace when you look at it?

english red; what animal do you relate to most?

vermilion; what’s your favorite accent?

cadmium red; do you have a “type” when it comes to a significant other?

scarlet; describe your current crush/es.

ruby; what does your ideal first date look like?

carmine; what does your ideal second date look like?

madder lake red; would you ever kiss someone (or accept a kiss) on a first date?

rose; what’s something really positive going on in your life right now?

quinacridone rose; what’s something you’re really looking forward to?

violet rose; what does your dream house look like?

violet; is there any place in particular you’d like to settle down?

blue lake; what would you like to do/accomplish before you settle down?

cobalt blue spectral; what is the most beautiful place you have ever been to?

ultramarine; when was the last time you were in a good mood? do you know/remember what sparked it?

blue; what’s the most recent dream you remember?

bright blue; what does your dream family look like? any kids or pets? how many of each?

blue cobalt; do you like your name? would you give yourself a different name if you could?

prussian azure; what’s your favorite scent?

azure blue; what’s your favorite type of tea, if any?

turquoise blue; if you could start a garden, what would you plant?

cerulean blue; if you were guaranteed to have a viewership, would you start a youtube vlog?

glauconite; describe your body without using any negative adjectives.

yellow green; picture yourself walking in a field. what do you see & hear in this scenario?

green light; are you in a comfortable place in life? if not, what do you think might make it better?

green; name three countries you want to visit; do you have any actual plans in place to visit any of them?

emerald green; do you speak any languages besides english? are there any additional languages you want to learn?

oxide of chromium; what’s your favorite book?

olive green; are you currently reading anything? how do you like it so far?

mars brown; what’s a movie that always puts a smile on your face/makes you laugh?

burnt umber; what’s something you plan to do before the day is over to take care of yourself?

umber; have you drank enough water today?

voronezhskaya black; what or who is your go-to outlet for when you need to vent?

sepia; name five things that always make you happy.

indigo; what’s the best/sweetest compliment you have ever received?

payne’s gray; describe your aesthetic?

black; post a selfie because you are so beautiful!

superblyghostlyfox:

kushandwizdom:

x3elizabeth:

requiredchaos:

stevensweatshirt:

relitseleirda:

jellyphile:

cas-hellodean:

poeticdarkbeauty:

youngblackandvegan:

and that’s why you don’t go around fixing people

and that’s why you don’t give up pieces of yourself to make someone else whole

We do this more than we think. Sometimes we reject those who have helped us the most. Other times, we help those who allow their egos to hide their humilities.

someONE FUCKING MAKE THAT TEDDY BEAR HAPPY BEFORE I CHOKE BECAUSE I HAVE TEARS BRIMMING MY EYES HELP ME

it may take time but there is someone waiting to hold your hand

My tears

I’ve reblogged this already but I love it.

The best post i’ve ever seen. Wow.

I’m actually crying so hard right now… This is my life explained DX 

Why is this speaking to me so much?

tbh for a long time i really resented the advice "pick a partner that you would want to raise kids with" because i don't want kids and i hated that all relationships had to come from this place of procreation-first. what about toxic friendships, after all.

it took me a really long time to realize it's a bastardization of good advice.

many of us are recovering from being raised by parents/caregivers that were in toxic relationships or were toxic themselves. we learned behaviors, thoughts, and patterns from these people, and we spend our adult lives untangling and dismantling the harm done to us.

the advice should be - is this the person you'd want a child to emulate? is this a person you'd want a child even around? is this a person you can trust alone with a kid - any kid, mind you - and know that the child is safe, looked after, loved? is the relationship you're in one you'd want children to see and repeat in their adult lives? or is the relationship one you hope they won't follow, after all?

to be honest, i knew when i was in a bad relationship. i'd tell people - i know, i know, i should break up with him. i know, i know. she's not actually a good friend. but the reality was that it's incredibly difficult to escape the-devil-you-know. it was easy enough to train myself to be okay with it; i have very little regard for the-self and the process of cutting people out was simply too threatening for my mental state.

but i wouldn't put a younger version of myself through the same thing. i'd picture her in the same situation. i would tell her, broody as she is - leave, you're happier outside of it, never let anyone talk to you like that, you're worth more than this. i'd tell her when you let him cross your boundaries, the fault is his, but you need to understand you're rewarding bad behavior if you don't do something about it. i would wish, fervently, i could restart the relationship and do it all differently, be-young-again.

and then i realized: i am the younger version of myself. a future version of myself is begging me to leave. to take my happiness seriously. i am a kid to fifty-year-old-me. and i need to take my own advice. it's okay if that sets me up to grieve.

pick a partner that you would trust a younger version of yourself with. pick friends you'd want your younger self to grow up alongside. pick love that makes you feel like you want everyone to experience in their life and feel with others, something magical and shareable and full of mist. pick a love that feels like you can grow in it. pick a love like: i will be proud of this.

favorite language learning resources

duolingo- a lot of language learners have issues with it but it’s good to get a base on the language and they’re always adding new languages!

memrise- good for vocabulary and memorizing, they have a wide list of languages

babbel- really effective if you want to learn how to communicate with people or get around, costs money for the full version but they have sales all the time

hellotalk- language exchange app, i’ve had really good experiences with this app, the only downside is that you have to pay to select more than one language you want to learn

tandem- similar to hellotalk, i like it slightly less but it allows you to choose as many languages as you want!

forvo- you can listen to native speakers pronounce things! it’s amazing!

ipachart- interactive chart with the international phonetic alphabet

wordreference- online dictionary for french, spanish, german, italian, portuguese, dutch, swedish, russian, polish, romanian, czech, greek, turkish, chinese, japanese, korean, and arabic

bab.la- another online dictionary with 24 languages

linguee- really great for learning phrases and seeing words in context

omniglot- encyclopedia of writing systems and languages, really great for learning new writing systems & also basic phrases! also has links to other resources!

the great language game- game for testing listening comprehension to several dozen languages!

ba ba dum- fun vocabulary game

easy languages- youtube channel featuring native speakers speaking a variety of languages but mostly spanish, french, and german

wikitongues- youtube channel attempting to document every language in the world

languagepod101- offers podcasts and youtube videos in a wide variety of languages

verbix- verb conjugating website with a wide variety of languages

quizlet- flashcard website that’s great for compiling vocab lists

lingq- i’ve only used it a little but it seems helpful especially for beginners!

tunein- allows you to listen to radio in a variety of languages

wikipedia- they have thousands to millions of articles in various languages so it’s a great place to test your reading skills, and in addition you can read articles about the language you’re learning and get a grasp on the language’s structure and sound system

lyricstraining- allows you to learn languages using song lyrics, really helpful for comprehension

lang-8- you can post things and have native speakers correct them, and correct things from other people!

feel free to add!

AMEN!😊😊

I pray the person I end up with never loses their patience and gentleness with me.

““You should date a girl who reads. Date a girl who reads. Date a girl who spends her money on books instead of clothes, who has problems with closet space because she has too many books. Date a girl who has a list of books she wants to read, who has had a library card since she was twelve. Find a girl who reads. You’ll know that she does because she will always have an unread book in her bag. She’s the one lovingly looking over the shelves in the bookstore, the one who quietly cries out when she has found the book she wants. You see that weird chick sniffing the pages of an old book in a secondhand book shop? That’s the reader. They can never resist smelling the pages, especially when they are yellow and worn. She’s the girl reading while waiting in that coffee shop down the street. If you take a peek at her mug, the non-dairy creamer is floating on top because she’s kind of engrossed already. Lost in a world of the author’s making. Sit down. She might give you a glare, as most girls who read do not like to be interrupted. Ask her if she likes the book. Buy her another cup of coffee. Let her know what you really think of Murakami. See if she got through the first chapter of Fellowship. Understand that if she says she understood James Joyce’s Ulysses she’s just saying that to sound intelligent. Ask her if she loves Alice or she would like to be Alice. It’s easy to date a girl who reads. Give her books for her birthday, for Christmas, for anniversaries. Give her the gift of words, in poetry and in song. Give her Neruda, Pound, Sexton, Cummings. Let her know that you understand that words are love. Understand that she knows the difference between books and reality but by god, she’s going to try to make her life a little like her favorite book. It will never be your fault if she does. She has to give it a shot somehow. Lie to her. If she understands syntax, she will understand your need to lie. Behind words are other things: motivation, value, nuance, dialogue. It will not be the end of the world. Fail her. Because a girl who reads knows that failure always leads up to the climax. Because girls who read understand that all things must come to end, but that you can always write a sequel. That you can begin again and again and still be the hero. That life is meant to have a villain or two. Why be frightened of everything that you are not? Girls who read understand that people, like characters, develop. Except in the Twilight series. If you find a girl who reads, keep her close. When you find her up at 2 AM clutching a book to her chest and weeping, make her a cup of tea and hold her. You may lose her for a couple of hours but she will always come back to you. She’ll talk as if the characters in the book are real, because for a while, they always are. You will propose on a hot air balloon. Or during a rock concert. Or very casually next time she’s sick. Over Skype. You will smile so hard you will wonder why your heart hasn’t burst and bled out all over your chest yet. You will write the story of your lives, have kids with strange names and even stranger tastes. She will introduce your children to the Cat in the Hat and Aslan, maybe in the same day. You will walk the winters of your old age together and she will recite Keats under her breath while you shake the snow off your boots. Date a girl who reads because you deserve it. You deserve a girl who can give you the most colorful life imaginable. If you can only give her monotony, and stale hours and half-baked proposals, then you’re better off alone. If you want the world and the worlds beyond it, date a girl who reads. Or better yet, date a girl who writes.””

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