Top 3 reasons why I love my HBCU

VSU Homecoming 2016

This is a special post simply to acknowledge the past week of homecoming for the absolute best HBCU in the world! I am a proud Trojan of THE Virginia State University.

#VSUHC2K16 was just that and more!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Below you see me and my roomie posted up with the crew from the comedy show, some of which are from Wildin’ Out.I can honestly say that I was skeptical at first because I was not sure of who the comedians were (true sign of me growing wiser) but the show turned out to be hilariously funny.   

Kirk Franklin gave us a concert that was BLESSED!  

I had plenty moments of nostalgia throughout the weekend… FUN FACT: I was a band geek back in middle school, high school, and some of college. Can you spot me in the video?

 

The charlie horse in my calf was a reminder of me not being the same chick I was 5-6 years ago! #FitnessGoals

Over the years I’ve grown to love my HBCU in a way that will be a part of me for eternity!

Here are my Top 3 reasons why I love my HBCU:

MY HBCU has taught me soooo much about MYSELF as an African-American woman. *Cue Gin and Juice music* With so much drama in the U.S.A. it’s kinda hard bein’ B.L.A.C.K. LOL Ok yeah I had to do it… the thought came to me and I couldn’t let it pass me by.. Seriously though, it’s important to have an identity in a society that lacks luster for us Queens. Yes, I am African AND American AND a Woman. I may not have an accent, nor do I know exactly which country my family is from (we have an idea thanks to AfricanAncestry.com), but from the hue of my skin, the coil of my hair, and the depth of my Soul, I know that my ancestors are from the continent of Africa. I also know that I was raised as a little girl with a mixture of American and familial values. As a Woman, I know that some of my best qualities are my poise, dignity, and intuition. My HBCU has taken part in molding many facets of my personality through my interactions with professors, speakers, and clubs/organizations. I’ve had the chance to explore and connect with parts of myself in a way that I doubt I would have achieved with such zeal at another University. I am appreciative of my process and how my retrospective account has come to light.   

Also, our history as an HBCU is RICH. For me it took growth and a keen desire to truly understand the history of my HBCU and how important it is. I think that it is important to understand that there are multiple avenues to learning this history. What may resonate with one person, may not resonate with you. You have to find your “fountain of knowledge.” What part of the HBCU story do you love? How did you get there? I found my “fountain of knowledge” in the library. Someone else may find their “fountain of knowledge” in the campus minsitry or another club/organization, even a class.

Lastly, the bonds that I share from attending my HBCU. Understand this, no matter where I go in life, I will always remember the people I began college with. There was a small group of us who were a part of the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) Summer Program. We got the chance to obtain credits for school while also getting a head start on grabbing the collegiate experience. We will always share a nostalgic bond of having to navigate academic and social realms. It’s all poetry in motion if you ask me… our lives were extremely nuanced but similar all the same. There’s no other way to explain it. The same goes for friends that I’ve met throughout college as well. Our spirits will forever be one.

 Our matriculation has yielded an awareness that no person can divide. #HAILSTATE




Nika  

 

Check out these encouraging orgs…

www.ettrickumc.org www.alifelineforhope.org www.zipporahsangels.org

Welcome back!!

Sooo…

That “Welcome back” was for me… not you. Haha! But if this is your first time visiting… Welcome, welcome, welcome!

I began this blog about 3 years ago, right before life hooked me by the heart and sent me on an emotional rollercoaster. As I think back on my first blog post, I couldn’t have imagined all that I would have gone through in such a short amount of time.

I’ve toiled for the last few months on what topic I wanted to share…when I wanted to share it… and how I wanted to “craft” this masterpiece.  This only resulted in further procrastination of course…With that in mind, today’s post will be about Transitions.

I was blessed to have the chance to meet and hear a wonderful speaker by the name of Marcus Stanley. His message imposed a profound statement into my life. Loosely translated he said that “As humans, we expect for transitions to be the final step…”

In other words, we are always looking for that major obstacle or trial to be our LAST obstacle or trial. UnFORRRtunately (or fortunately – depends on how you look at it), LIFE doesn’t work that way.

 

Now back to me, for the last 3 years, I’ve been TRANSITIONING. Within those transitions, I’ve been given lifelong lessons, dreams, relationships, joys…and plenty of pains. But in the midst of these transitional moments, I gave the things that happened (good or bad) permission to control my attitude instead of mastering change.

 

I want to encourage you today, if you’re going through a transitional phase that does not feel so delightful… Keep pressing forward. You’ll build a tolerance for what I call BS… Bossy Stress… ;-) LOL

Choose to learn about yourself instead of loathing. What makes you tick? What makes you uncomfortable about that new job? Who can you talk to about these things? What does your spiritual compass look like???? Where are you in chronos vs. kairos time?  

Understanding that just because things look appealing this world is, your journey is yours to follow. Don’t become distracted by someone elses grass. And learn to appreciate the journey in the midst of the storm.

I can’t say that I’ve completely mastered change.. But because I know that transition is inevitable, I now have a better chance at mastering it.

Transition smooth… and Pack Light.

-          Nika  

P.S. We're all cranes sometimes! You aren't alone.

 

Be sure to check out Marcus Stanley at marcusstanley.com and on Facebook: Marcus Stanley.

Encouraging orgs that I swear by…

www.ettrickumc.org www.alifelineforhope.org www.zipporahsangels.org

Pardon me, but I'm Nu around here...

Welcome, Welcome, Welcome!

For those of you who know me personally and for those who do not, I would like to say welcome to my blog and thanks for stopping by! I truly hope that your experience here sets you in a place of tranquility after each and every visit. Throughout my blog I'll be speaking about not only life lessons but what it's like to successfully (and unsuccessfully) travel through life and its many facets while providing a description of the objectives and blessings that we all encounter on the way. 

Because of my recent transition into finding significance in the most near and dear sentiments of life my overall objective for this particular posting is to enlighten you to the significance of "NuBeauty" and to also provide to you a glimpse of the adventure that I experienced over the summer. 

The term "NuBeauty" stems from a nickname that was given to me back in the day (♬When I was young...♪). I was blessed to have a grandmother who was extremely LOVING and CREATIVE! I cannot begin to explain to you her vivid imagination and love for helping others. There are countless anecdotes that her family & friends can account for that have displayed her unconditional love and empathy that she had for PEOPLE. When I was a child, her creative wit and bubbling love harvested a name that still holds significance to me to this day and was the inspiration for my blog....  

My Summer at George Mason University...

This summer I participated in a social entrepreneurship summer program where I was introduced to a fellow cohort of 16 students from around the WORLD. Students resided in places such as China, Ghana, Nigeria, Hawaii, Louisiana, & Virginia. Going into the program, I knew fairly little about the business world but was open to the experience. The only thing that made things a little rough was the fact that I had to adjust & operate under strenuous conditions for 5 weeks. Five weeks doesn't seem like a long time right?? During my time in the program I collaborated with my team to ultimately complete 3 business projects, retain knowledge about business logistics, adjust to the multiple personalities of the cohort, and I often had feelings of being quite uncomfortable in some situations. With team work and a lot of determination, our projects were completed but the moral of this description is that this entire experience was NEW to me and at times I felt as if I could not handle it. 


If you would have caught me about a 7 months ago I would have told you that I was terrified of the thought. But within 5 weeks of participating in the business program I learned that to ever become BETTER at something or truly DEFINE your life, we have to become comfortable with being uncomfortable. 

This meant that I had to ENDURE the different personalities, ADJUST to the balancing act of understanding our business projects and LETTING GO of my differences that gave me the eerie feeling of being uncomfortable. <-- Seems simple?? NOPE!

The process of attaining "NuBeauty" and eventually "NuLife" is not a simple one at all. But this is what I had to do to become successful in the program and will continue to do throughout life. Accomplishing this mission takes time, personal reflection (introspection), patience, and HONESTY with yourself first, and then with the ones who surround you (Sn. Be careful of your surroundings...). 

All in all "NuBeauty" signifies a change that occurs within your mind, body and spirit. It's an awareness/state of consciousness that you have when you consistently and patiently overcome adverse situations whether small or large. Build your stamina by taking RISKS and strive to obtain NuBeauty for yourself. Search for knowledge and peace within the world and make a pact with yourself to do your best no matter how uncomfortable you feel because your triumph will be someone else's blessing. 

Challenge: Simply think about something that you were once new to, and think about how far you have/have not come to mastering or improving your skills in this thought. What can you do to improve? (i.e: attending college, getting a new job, transferring jobs/schools, starting a new relationship, rock climbing, eating a tarantula... maybe not eating a tarantula... ;-))

Lastly, pardon the length or static of this particular posting as I am quite "Nu" to the blogging world. I don't have the answers to everything, I'm just offering that we figure this thing out together.  

Remember, there is NuBeauty in you and me...

Peace & Blessings ❤❤

- Nika~Nu