Hurricane Helene just tore through the country, leaving whole towns and counties completely devastated in its wake. As a resident of North Carolina, I have personally seen the effects that Helene has had on the western part of the state, mainly with Asheville and Buncombe County and the surrounding mountainous terrain. Helene rampaged through Florida, […]
Read moreComparison is the Thief of All Joy
We all do it, every single one of us. It’s almost like this type of human nature is ingrained in our brains where we have to see how we “measure up” in comparison with our peers. We tell ourselves that it doesn’t matter and that all of us have different journey’s and all take different […]
Read moreThe More I Learn, the Less I Know
I have never, in my 11 years of Jiu Jitsu, been surrounded by such a plethora of upper belts with a vast extensive subset of knowledge. Even as a black belt, I stayed at an Air B&B this past weekend, and was still the 3rd lowest rank in attendance. While there was one brown belt […]
Read moreCause I’d Rather Feel Pain Than Nothing at All
What happens when the pain just gets to be too much? Emotional, physical, whichever. It all hurts. Pain is such a universally relatable experience; something each person on planet earth understands. What we don’t always understand, however, are certain types of pain or how each person processes pain differently. Everyone assesses levels of pain uniquely, […]
Read moreUnbothered
I’ve never been super crazy about New Year’s resolutions, because I feel like it puts too much pressure and strictness to adhere to a certain timeline. Instead, I have always been in favor of choosing a simple word or phrase and specifying certain goals for the year, some exceptionally doable and others a bit more […]
Read moreObladi, Oblada, Life Goes On Brah
Sometimes those who’ve had a less fortunate experience in social settings such as in school or clubs/teams amongst their peers, harbor so much ill will and resentment toward others who have been more successful in those situations. Maybe because they themselves struggled at one point making friends or ever felt ostracized in anyway way, feel […]
Read more‘Tis the Season, of Understanding
Family. It’s that time of year again, where there are so many pictures cropping up online of people with their families, enjoying spending some quality time together over the holidays. As fortunate as I feel to be able to have family around and close by in order to do this with, I also truly empathize […]
Read moreDo Not Mistake Kindness for Weakness
The world is so full of negativity, and terrible things happening everywhere in places far and wide, that we should all welcome when there exists a person in our life who goes above and beyond for others, a ray of light in ever-dimming universe. This is something I, myself have tried to work on over […]
Read moreLet Them
There are people out there who choose to make you a villain in the story so that they come off a little better, and as much as it may sting to not have your side heard, sometimes you just gotta let people talk until their throat becomes raw with the amount of lies they spew […]
Read moreWhat’s Real Anymore?
What’s real anymore? In a world full of A.I., photoshops, and deep fakes, can we even be so sure of what we physically lay sight on, even when we “see things with our own two eyes”? Sometimes, I am doubtful of the things I see, and even more-so questioning the things I read. I’m going […]
Read more