My Grandmother’s Light

Almost 7 years ago, I had just finished packing up the car to head to Gainesville, FL to begin a new chapter and walked into my grandmother’s room to let her know I was about to leave. “Alright, Granny, I’m ’bout to go.” She immediately hopped up and retrieved this red lantern that sat in […]

Looking Forward to 2020

I would be lying to you if I told you 2019 wasn’t Sugar Honey Iced Tea. From personal and familial medical issues to the isolating nature of pursuing a PhD to the mediocre stipend that lassos me to my apartment, 2019 hasn’t been all that pleasant. But, as a sat reflecting on the year, the serenity prayer came […]

In Search of History: Part 2

Took a DNA test turns out…I’m black. Ancestry finally sent me my DNA results back, and I’m 37% Nigerian, 31% Cameroonian, Congolese, and Southern Bantuan, 14% Malian, 4% Sengalese, 4% English, 4% Benin, 3% Ghanaian, 1% in Norwegian, 1% Germanic, and 1% Indigenous American. Although, these are estimates, I think it’s safe to say that […]

In Search of History: Part 1

Recently I began a quest to trace my family history with the help of Ancestry. I started off just using the website to build out my family tree, but the further I got the harder it got. So, I decided to proceed with an AncestryDNA test, and I should get my results back in 6-8 […]

I Miss Syllabus Week.

Every college student know that the first week of classes is usually reserved for going over course syllabi. Expectations are usually low for the week. Most times all you have to do is show up and get a copy of the syllabus. Sometimes, you don’t even need to show up, because professors will post their […]

It’s A Wrap!

My first year in my PhD program has officially come to an end. It wasn’t as difficult as I imagined it would be, or at least, not in the way I thought it would be. Besides mustering up the mental stamina to get through a week or an assignment, the actual work that I had […]

On Friendships

Out of the blue, about a couple weeks ago, one of my friends from college called our group Snapchat (like, what?), and for the first time in over a year, I had a “face to face” conversation with a couple friends and saw another friend that lives a couple miles from me. And it was […]

Lessons Learned from My First Semester As a PhD Student

Yesterday, I turned in my last paper, officially ending my first semester as a PhD student. Let me tell ya, this semester was a doozy. Tired would be an understatement. Sleep has been notified that they’ll be working double for a few weeks. And Microsoft Word, iCollege, and Panthermail have been notified that I don’t […]

Somewhere Between Week 5 & Week 17 Update

The title should tell you all you need to know, but I’ll explain. “How’s your semester going so far?” That is the one question that never seems to allude me. But, I’ll tell ya. . .things have been a bit of a blur. Although, the blur was briefly counteracted with a Sunday of laughs, tapas […]

Weeks 2 & 3: Still Here

I’m still here. Leaning on the everlasting on. . . For the first week or so, people were constantly asking me how the program was going. Every time I would respond, “Things are good. Nothing has been due, yet.” And boy was I right. Weeks 2 and 3 were filled with reading. Lots of reading. […]