There’s a lot of work to do besides sitting around and being hot.
Last month didn’t really feel like summer but now it’s officially in full affect. This week it’s going to get up to 100 degrees and I’ve already gotten into fights with my roommate, best friend and even my boyfriend. With all the heat it only makes me more hot tempered and aggressive. Of course, I like my alone time in front of the fan at my apartment but I also love spending time with my friends outdoors.
My hot girl summer consists of being a nice girl, my spirit hasn’t been the nicest lately. I’m really homesick, my mom had to give my dog away, sad about the dynamic of my family and I’m trying to swim at work instead of doggy-paddling.
My first packages in college were almost never a walk in the park. I would cry, I wouldn’t sleep and the stories would just eat me alive. I’m still battling with this today. Of course I knew my career in journalism would be challenging but this toll is almost never ending: children dying in ICE custody, seeing the officer who shot Eric Garner not get charged and watching President Trump tell congresswomen “to go back to where they came from”, WHILE studying cases of wrongful convictions and young missing women isn’t easy. How can anyone be nice in such a rough time in American society? I’m thankful for my coworkers who I can talk to about all of this because they understand and are also going through it. They are the ones who remind me to smile, say good morning and ask how someone else is doing. I know I am strong and I am working on not crying after every little thing. I am blessed and thankful I’m not missing, dead or behind bars. I’ve taken my life and the people I love for granted and mistreated them too many times. It ends now…
I want 2019 to be about loving more, growing and moving forward. This year started off rough but I’m going to keep learning to love and take care of myself. That means: getting the right amount of sleep, saying no to friends, taking off my chipped nail polish (quick), being on time to work, writing more, smiling more, drinking more tea, lighting candles to relax, paying to get my hair done, going to church more, not drinking as much, taking on more responsibility at work, keeping my room clean, and the list goes on…
I’m proud of myself and happy with who I am becoming. I know when someone and something is wrong and I never want it to build and turn into something unnecessary. When nipping conflict in the bud my challenge is to learn how to speak to someone I’m upset with without offending them. This world has to change but it starts with me and I hope I can achieve it and leave others better than I found them. It gets tiresome always being the bigger person but I won’t be treated any other way than respectfully by anyone.
On a more positive note this year has been an amazing year so far. I’ve got to give 2019 and God some credit I’ve been blessed to go to Chicago, Miami and Connecticut for the first time. I’ve got my passport now and a family trip to Hawaii is planned for later this year. Hopefully I’ll also take another summer trip to Atlanta or Texas in the next few weeks.
Lauren Turner Dunn — Portfolio 