a journal prompt popped up on my phone asking:

“I define independence as…”

my answer?…

“Being free of all the things that bind me.”

that could be many things to many people.

Debt
Mental health issues
The combination lock on the closet door
Unhealthy addictions and habits that hold us captive

in this supposed land of the free,
black folks are technically unchained but invisible chains still hold us tight.
whether it’s by the oppressive hands of “the man“,
the weight of generational curses,
or even the restraints placed by our own community.

so here’s the revelation: you need to be free for YOU.
freedom defined by our own terms.
it would be a dream to live in a state of kumbaya,
but if this past few years has taught us anything,
it’s that this ideal isn’t just around the corner.
it demands more work than we have time for.
not only that,
the hyenas and jackals of society are dead set in watching things burn.

So each morning,
rise and claim your life for yourself.
Do it by embracing your passions,
rejecting societal expectations,
and carving out a path that feels true to you.
Fuck all those who reject it and you.

that’s the essence of true independence as i see it.

happy 4th.