Little Sistah Week 15!

Just the other day I was going through my usual episode of depression, and I just had to pick up my favorite self-help book, "Letters To A Young Sister" by Hill Harper.  And coincidentally, the first page I read really helped me a lot.  The girl he was writing to asked him "what do people mean by having self-respect?"  He forwarded the e-mail to Alfre Woodard, a well known actress who starred in many movies, which include my two favorites, Love and Basketball and Something New.  In her e-mail to the girl, she said to the effect that even though we grow older, we still are a part of that little girl we once were.  So just like a regular child, we need to take care of her, feed her right, treat her right, and love her with all our heart.  Then that got me to thinking, and I've been pondering for a couple of days now.
As I passed by that picture of me on the wall when I was a couple weeks old, I had an epiphany: I still am that little baby, but I'm just a little bit taller, smarter, wiser, and more developed.  Still, this baby belongs to my mom and I need to take real good care of her and give her words of encouragement everyday.  So next week, I will make it my business to exercise more, eat better, take better care of myself, specifically my skin, and to be strong for myself.  I thought that I had self-respect just because I don't wear tight clothes and I don't act the way those other girls in my school act, but the one thing I was missing was just really taking care of myself the way that I should, and having confidence.
There was one thing that was bothering me though.  Earlier in the week, I learned that I was to do a powerpoint presentation on the history of technology after I was so excited to do a project on a famous African American.  So I decided that I would to Black technological innovations because our Black ancestors don't get all the credit that they deserve, and too many people don't know about their accomplishments.  So I was cool, then in the car, I told my mom that I wanted to make it Black, and that's when she said, "yeah  because that's the only color you see."  I playfully replied, "no I don't!"  On the inside, I was thinking, is that what other people think too?  I love diversity!  I live in Cleveland, and there is an area called University Circle and it's just beautiful.  The Cleveland Museum of Art is located there, the Botanical Gardens, the Western Reserve Historical Society, the Natural History Museum, the Cleveland Institutes of Art and Music, and lastly Case Western Reserve University--among a million other things.  There is so much diversity there because of Case, and I have to admit, I see more Asians there than anything else.  I don't know if this may sound crazy, but every time I see other cultures here in America, I tell myself, "wow.  Only in America can you see so many cultures together as one, and we don't look at it like it's strange."  I actually would choose a predominately white college over an HBCU because of the diversity!
Now, the reason why I try to incorporate Black history in most, if not everything I do because I feel like I'm the only one that's doing it in my school.  And these kids don't care to know about their history, so I force open their eyes to make them see it and trust me, I've made progress.  Truthfully, this is the only way I can feel like I'm fulfilling my destiny because I am not as involved in my community as I should be, and yeah I am in the NAACP, but they don't do as much in the community as they do within the organization and that kills me sometimes.  Still being in the NAACP is beneficial because you learn the skills needed to become a future leader in your community, which I am truly thankful for.
PEACE!
Love,
          Blackness