We are more alike, my friends,than we are unalike 👭
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#WednesdayWisdom
"We are each other's harvest; we are each other's business; we are each other's magnitude and bond." — Gwendolyn Brooks
Morning Musings
Like many Americans, I remember exactly where I was the morning of Sept. 11, 2001. I was a sophomore at Mount de Sales Academy for Girls sitting in Mrs. Sora's religion class. Coincidentally, we'd been discussing how people turn to God in times of crisis when Sister Margaret Andrew walked in to inform us that the Twin Towers had been struck.
I thought for sure she'd been mistaken. I had just visited the World Trade Center with my family that spring. This had to be a mistake, but surely it was an accident or so my 14-year-old brain thought. I didn't even know what a terrorist attack was, so the thought never even crossed my mind.
That was then. This is now -- where I immediately get suspicious if a plane flies too low for my liking and I mentally plot my escape route every time I enter a public space with a large crowd.
And while 9/11 united us as Americans, I fear that our country -- much like our politics -- has become extremely divisive since then.
As many of you know, I work for a education nonprofit that is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion (also known as DEI). As such, my team has monthly DEI meetings to explore, unpack and interrogate what that commitment looks like in our work and everyday lives. They're conversations I've come to love and look forward to every month.
Back in November, our DEI call digressed into discussing the most recent election. Interestingly enough, one of the lead pastors at my church, Jeanne Stevens, had just preached about peace in polarizing times and what it would look like to lead with our ears.
And so I decided to reach across the proverbial aisle. I knew a colleague identified as conservative and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out I'm very much liberal, but we quickly discovered we had more in common than our so-called labels would have you believe.
On paper, we're not supposed to be friends. We're about as opposite as you can get. She's white. I'm Black. She's from the South. I'm from the Mid-Atlantic. She's Republican. I'm a Democrat. But we're both family women who identify as Christian and love rooting for our respective home teams.
Our friendship reminded me of the Maya Angelou poem, "Human Family." "We're more alike, my friends, than we are unlike," she wrote. And I couldn't agree more. Yes, we all have our differences.
But if we close the tabs, put down the phones and stop scrolling long enough to have an actual conversation with someone on the "opposing" side, we may discover we have more in common than we think.
Love,
L'Oreal
Cool Opps
Sept. 15: So You Think You Can Freelance? Learn how to jumpstart your freelance writing career with Javacia Harris Bowser of See Jane Write.
Sept. 19: Phenomenally We is hosting a FREE event in NYC!
Sept. 19 & Sept. 21: Salary Negotiation for Women: Get Your Coins, Sis! Hosted by career coach Latesha Byrd (p.s. She recently revamped my LinkedIn profile and it is gorgeous, if I do say so myself!)
Sept. 25: Homecoming: Back to the Hustle. Join me at the first fundraiser hosted by Prismatic's Associate Board. Use the promo code LOREAL5OFF to save $5. See you there!
Links I Love
Is Normani the Black Britney Spears? How Lizzo maintains that glow. A history of Black lesbians on TV. Pumpkin spice and everything nice.Want to spend less time on your phone? Read this. Idk who Caroline Calloway is, but the tea is piping hot with this one. Why brands keep selling "bullsh*t vaginal healthcare."
My Latest Obsession
I'm a big fan of personal and professional development books because let's be honest, the personal is political nowadays and lines between our personal and professional lives have been blurred anyway.
Now that we've gotten that out of the way, I've put my ever-growing list of library holds on pause to catch up on the books collecting dust on my bookshelf -- starting with No Hard Feelings: The Secret Power of Embracing Emotions at Work by work besties Liz Fosslien and Mollie West Duffy.
Listen y'all, I'm a Scorpio and as such, I'm a passionate person who feels things very deeply. So yes, I have cried on occasion at work and no, I don't think that makes me any less competent. You know what it does make me? Human. And, tbh, we could all stand to be a little more emotional and a little less rigid when it comes to work. Amirite? This book offers suggestions on how to do that and still get sh*t done, which is right up my alley.
Btw, their IG is super cute and totally relatable!
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