The Secret Of Life

H A R R I E T T U B M A N to V I O L A D A V I S

She made HISTORY. They made HISTORY. 

Constantly empowering us, coloured girls that we can be so much more than we were are told by society. That we all can be so much more.

Congratulations, Ms. Davis! 

WELCOME TO THE BLACK WOMEN MOVEMENT!

& 

HAPPPPPPPPPPPPPPY Sunday!

September In Pictures

02.09.1.5

04.09.15

05.09.15

07.09.15

12.09.15

20.09.15

26.09.15

PEACE ONE DAY! Sep. 21

Sorry, I haven't been posting regularly. School is getting hectic as it's my final year but I'll do my best to post regularly if I can.

Anyway, today is September, 21st. Thus stating that it's the UN's International Day of Peace.

You have no idea, how long I've been waiting for this day; like not only is it #virgoseason but Peace One Day falls within the Virgin. Obviously, you can tell how excited I am. 

I feel like in the world that we live in now, this is a crucial day. It's important that we take time to stop all the conflict that we are constantly partaking in for just one day. To appreciate all the good that we have accomplished and all that has yet to be accomplished. So many things happen on this one day than on any other day in the year. There's so much to celebrate, new friendships to form and new people to meet. 

At the moment, the world is seemingly a bad place to live in due to everything that's happening especially with the migrants and refugees.So here's a video to remind you all about the importance of today and why you should participate as it results in so many great things.

Peace One Day is a day where nothing negative grows because we all lay down our weapons. We say NO to violence, discrimination, hatred and everything that negative that flourishes in the pain of others. It's an opportunity for us to see the world that we are aspiring towards and to know that we will get there eventually is a tremendous sensation.

HAPPY PEACE ONE DAY, you gorgeous humans!


Click on the link and learn more about this influential day: http://www.peaceoneday.org/

"Words Mean Things" - The Read

On the 12th of September, my friend, Tyla took me to live talk show as a birthday present. However before I let you in about all the glorious details about what happened, I feel that it's only right that I present you with a little background of the show.

Firstly, it's not really a show; it's a podcast. The live talk show on Saturday was their first live talk show tour in London. It's a weekly one hour podcast based in New York hosted by "comedians" Kid Fury and Crissle. (I'm not putting in the quotations marks for banter, it's the way Kid Fury addressed himself and he used this specific gestures.)

So 2 days before the show, Tyla texted me and told me that before I received my present; I had to listen to it beforehand and make sure that I liked it and wanted to go. Apparently, I don't have the best facial expressions when it comes to being presented with a gift that I'm not too particularly proud of. However, as it so happened I LOVED this present. 

In a nutshell, the podcast analyses pop culture and current events. It has 3 sections: 

1. "Hot Topics" - selected by Kid Fury
2. "Listener Letters" - managed by Crissle and in this segment, they read questions sent in by listeners and talk about them. Consequently, due to Saturday being a live show; they took questions from the audience instead.
3. "The Read" - where both Kid Fury and Crissle "read" a person or a topic.

Describe the day in one word -> Phenomenal!!!! 

WE ALSO MET NYEMIAH!

There was so much that I thought I knew but didn't fully know or for that fact understand. Most of all, it had been so long since I'd been in a room with so many people of the same colour; the feeling was kind of mind-blowing, to be honest. Moreover, the fact that the show kind of criticises white people, it was lovely seeing some turn-up. Also, not only did I get to spend the day with one of my dear friend who I hadn't seen in months since sixth forms alerted us to our new lives; but I now have a new found love.

What I learnt -> that there are so many battles fought by women of colour, and while we rush to defend our black men; they don't necessary come to fight with or for us in our battles and the needs to change. There's so much that needs to change! 

Therefore, to conclude, I strongly encourage the girl that has dreams of setting up a space for people of colour ONLY to do it. IT'S NOT RACIST! Ignore those that say it is. They don't know your reasons behind the space. And frankly, you don't need to explain yourself to them!

Oh, I almost forgot. This was basically a BEYONCÉ fan meet-up! I'm pretty certain that everyone there was a major Queen Bey fan and I have PROOF! I also got inked by Tyla with Beyoncé's flash tattoos. I got a BEEEE obvs!  

Join me and several other listeners: http://thisistheread.com/
Beyoncé flash tattoos: http://www.flashtat.com/beyonce-x-flash-tattoos

How To Love Yourself

More than anything in the world, I believe that the first thing that every child should be taught is SELF LOVE. They should be taught how to love themselves, before they offer themselves to someone else thinking that they will love them better than they can love themselves. 

If I should have a daughter/son, I will teach them self love before anything else. I will teach them that it is okay to love yourself before you love someone or anything else because when you have grasped the concept of self love; nothing will ever be big enough to tear you down. 

August Favourites

I realize that we are 9 days into the Virgo month but it's still not too late for this post. Here are some of my August time lovings including music, blogs, fashion, advice, etc

Recently, Pentatonix covered 'Cheerleader' by OMI and it's a FLAWLESS cover. No LIE! However, it wasn't the only thing the released as their single 'Can't Sleep Love' dropped. The video was beyond perfection. I just LOVED it all! I've been pretty much in heaven for these first few days of Virgo season. 

Cheerleader cover - Pentatonix

Can't Sleep Love - Pentatonix

I've been meaning to do a post about this as I've been late on this song for some weird reason. Like I didn't hear about this song until the VMAs. I mean, it's MEEEEE! Anyway, when I finally listened to the song, it was pretty much on repeat for a week.

This is my song of the YEAR! So thank you, Sean, Kanye, and John for this beautiful song.

One Man Can Change The World - Big Sean, Kanye West, and John Legend

This is a blog that I discovered on Snapchat. (weird, right?) But basically 'OneStep4Ward' was created by Johnny Ward in an office and it just grew from there. Johnny takes you into his past life and how he got to where he is now. 

 What I love most about this blog is that Johnny shares his secret on he achieved his dream and what country he's in at the moment. OneStep4Ward has become one of my favourite blogs as Johnny is inspiring me to finally pursuing my dream to travel.

Am I allowed to call this the best website ever? Can I? Should I? I am.

HighExistence has helped me become more aware of the world as it has no limitations. The goal of HighExistence is to boost consciousness. It educates me on things that schools don't teach. What's better than this?

These gorgeous Only Acid Wash Black Skinny Jeans. They are so comfy and the best kind of jeans...STRETCHY! I thought that it was about time for me to get a new pair of jeans as my last purchase was over 6 months ago. They were on sale on ASOS for £18, which was a bargain and I couldn't be happier!

My black loafers were first smart shoe purchase, I think in July. Before then, all I had known were trainers, boots, and heels. I'm still breaking them in as I have only ever worn the twice, so you can imagine the pain and the little new shoe cuts that you get. They are too cute, though!

I'm not one for make-up but when it come to mascara, I'm just not me. The Rimmel London ScandalEyes Xxtreme Black Mascara is INCREDIBLEEEE! It was £6.99 from Boots, which is a reasonable price. 

Due to my new healthy lifestyle, I decided to go in search for healthy drinks leading me to Venga. I truly love them! Like when I don't have time for breakfast, I can just grab one of them or they can break a snack in between breakfast and lunch. 

Wanna find out more: http://www.drinkvenga.de/en-us/home/

This was a picture from my 18th spent with some of my closest friends. 

Advice for the month. It's not only for designers because it appeals to everyone. Never think that just because some advice is delegated to one specific person, it doesn't mean that it won't help you out. 

18 Valuable Lessons I've Learned In My 18 Years Of Living

18 years ago, I was born on a Thursday on September 4th, 1997.

Today I've turned 18...

It's surprising and scary as hell because I have the idea of not ever wanting to grow up or maybe I've watched Peter Pan WAY TOO MUCH!

 It's a miracle to have survived these 18 long years, honestly. I don't really do much on my birthdays but this is a milestone and I have a few plans like paint-balling and of course; working on my beloved blog. And this makes me happy...

 So to celebrate my 18 years on this sphere called Earth, here are 18 things that life has taught me so far. These are the lessons I value most:

Happiness Is  A Decision:

One of my main goals in life is to be happy...and some people think that's impossible when I tell them but I beg to differ. I can recall most days when I sat in tutor time and my tutor as well as many of my teachers would tell us the importance of education; and I mean I do get that education is important. However when it came to school, I had a "I don't give a crap about school" attitude and it was true. I didn't.

I didn't give a crap about school because society is built on this false concept that in order to be happy; "you have to study to be happy. And then get a job, so that you can make money to make you happy." I believe otherwise. 

I believe that you don't necessary need to be in school to be happy and hell, most of people that have been to the best schools are miserable as well. Whenever I was asked: "What do you want to be when you grow up?" My answer was simple: "I want to be content with life." You can't tell me that I need to study how to be content with life when schools don't even educate us on the value of security, no bull sex ed, manners or how to set up bank accounts.

Happiness is a CHOICE. And the key to obtaining happiness is G  R A T I T U D E. 

Shit Happens:

This was my life mantra for a while and at times, it still is. 

We can't stop it from happening. It's how the world operates. In order for the world to balance, shit must occur. It doesn't matter who you are, where you're from or how determined you think you are, shit happens. 

It's inevitable. 

There will be days when you're knocked onto the ground so hard, you'll feel like giving up but you mustn't. The world won't end. So brace yourself for more crappy moments and keeping standing back up when you're knocked down.

Everyone Has A Mask:

There's not only single being in the world that doesn't wear a mask. We all do. Of course, all for different reasons. It's nothing to be ashamed of.

So next time you think of judging someone, remember that YOU'RE WEARING A MASK, yourself when you judge somebody. It doesn't matter if your friend or co-worker is always smiling. They maybe not who you think they are but that doesn't justify you to judge them. You're not who they think you are either.

You never know who's real or who isn't. It's why I've learnt not to expect too much.

Time Is A Valuable Thing:

The clock. Tick tock, tick tock. You..."I have plenty of time!" But you don't. What you hear is death slowly creeping through.

I'm a procrastinator. I sometimes have good reasons for procrastinating but most times, I don't. Now when I think of all the times I spent procrastinating when I could've done something useful. 

We haven't yet figured out how to rewind time yet, and it's not like we know where the sands of time lie. So learn to cherish all the moments. Capture them because you don't want any regrets. 

Self Doubt Might Result In Your Undoing:

When you feel like the whole world is doubting you...NEVER join them and start to doubt yourself because self doubt is Perilous thing.

Never wish to be anyone but yourself. You were created for a reason. So when you start thinking "Hmm...Umm..." Switch your brain off and begin again because there's no way you'll make it to the top if you're doubting yourself. 

You do you! You weren't molded to be a copy. 

You're Not A Cat, You Don't Have 9 Lives:

Unlike cats who have 9 lives, we unfortunately don't get that chance. So I utterly encourage that you grab every opportunity that is presented to you, and if none are presented then you go out and get them.

Not all of us are born with a silver spoon in our mouths. YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE! Haven't you had the Drake song? In the end, we're all going to die sadly, but that's the cycle of life and I don't want for one second to live like "I have enough to do this and that..." because I don't and neither do you.

Grab every opportunity granted. If  there isn't any, then create your own opportunity. If you believe in reincarnation, then maybe you can ask to come back as a cat, I guess.

Success Is The Best Revenge:

No. 1: Let's clear this up...revenge is not "evil", well sometimes it is but only if your intentions are bad. However you must admit that it taste pretty damn sweet when you dished it back to that assface that said "You couldn't".

Now I don't advice that you take it upon yourself to inflict physical revenge on them as that will result in a bad outcome proving them right. 

The best way to dish back good revenge is to become successful in whatever your haters  told you; you couldn't do. It may not be illegal but it sure does inflict some degree of pain and shame in them seeing you succeed.

Ready. Set. Go! Start planning your "non-illegal and pain-free revenge now!"

No One Gives A Crap TBH:

There are two types of people in this world. The Dreamers. And those The Don't Give A Single Bull about what others think. 

Now I know that at least at one point in life, we've all  been stopped from doing what we wanna do because we are afraid of what others might think or say. But to be honest, NO ONE GIVES A  DAMN! This is one of society's conventions that in order for you to be whoever or whatever you want; society has to like what you're doing. 

And if I'm honest, people only act like they care because you've got it in your mind that they need to care. They don't! And it's not to be mean or anything but it's only because everyone is too focused on their own lives to care about someone else's.

Plus the more you live your life without caring what people think, you'll realise that it's the best kind of life you can live. Free of a dependency of other's opinions but your own's. 

It's your BLOODY life. Live it how you wanna live it.

Believe In Something:

This for me is something major...something bigger than life itself, I'd say because "What's the point of living life when you don't have anything to believe in or die for?" 

You know it doesn't even have to be a religion because all religions are corrupt. But I beg you...find something that's got to be worth dying for because if you can't then you've gotta ask yourself "Where are you really headed and what are you living for?"  

Only then will you truly discover yourself and maybe you'll be able to answer this: "Why are you fighting to live, if you're just living to fight. Why are you dying to live, if you're living to die?" - Tupac

Dreaming Does Jack Shit, Do Something About It:

I believe that one of life's biggest flaws is to possess that ability to dream. Yes, dreams are incredible but that's all they'll ever be if you don't act upon them. 

Don't Just Dream. Take Action!

You'll never get to where you wanna get in life until you stop feeling sorry for yourself. What I'm telling you is that "It's okay to be a dreamer. In fact, be the biggest dreamer of them all but you've gotta realise that; it's all you'll ever be until you do something about it." 

Take Many Risks, Make Some Mistakes:

What life are you living that's so perfect that's without risks or mistakes!?! How are evolving?

Stop staying in your comfort zones! There's gonna be no one for you to sit around with because we are all gonna be to busy living life. Yes, risks are DANGEROUS...but that's the fun of them! That's why people find the whole risk taking scene so exhilarating.

You can choose to be an ordinary person. Or, you can be the one that's always looking to take one new risks because from what I've learnt being ordinary sucks! You may not always succeed but you won't always fail either. This is what true learning is. Consider yourself lucky when you fail because then you know where you went wrong.

The whole point of mistakes is so that you know what not to do the next time around. Take more risks, make more mistakes and most important of all...G R O W!

Find 3 Hobbies You Love:

I found this advice on Tumblr and I just had to steal it because truly, I think that everyone needs to read or be taught this.

If you want to be successful or survive life; these are 3 hobbies that you are going to want to adapt to your lifestyles. When I was reading the post, I realised that I had already done as it instructed and concluded that I wasn't so much fussed about life that I was before I had these 3 hobbies.

Hobby 1 -> A hobby to make you money

You don't need to be rich! You just don't! However some people feel that they need to be in order for them to display how successful they've become or what there success has amounted to and that's okay.

What I think they mean by 'finding a hobby to make you money' is to find some kind of career that will keep you and whatever your needs are afloat. You won't have to worry about having little money; you'll have just enough for everything that you need. That's my end goal.

I don't want a lot of money. I don't want to be rich. Having enough money to provide for my friends, family, even strangers and I would make me content.

Hobby 2 -> One to keep you in shape

What you do to your body is your choice. No one has power over your body except you.

So when your body gets all saggy when you're older; you're to blame no one else. All the smoking that you do is your fault. No one else is. Develop a habit of exercising twice a week to keep you in shape and everything that needs to be toned, TONED.

It will be painful but it will also be worth it in the end. Make it fun for yourself. Don't do it because someone's told you to do it so. We've only got one body. Our body is a temple that should be looked after.

Hobby 3 -> One to keep you creative

To keep you sane. To keep you out of trouble.

This is why I write. It's why I listen to music and play music. It's why I play sports. It's kept me out a lot of mischievous acts. It's given and taught me so much in return.

I'm My Own Destiny Maker:

There are people right out there in the world that strongly believe in destiny and that's grand! But then again, it's not grand because if you that you have a DESTINY; then you are less likely to make something of yourself. I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but darling, You make your own luck. That's what I believe.

That whatever you accomplish and where you end up in the future is within your own right because that will be the results of your actions. While luck doesn't work, HOPE does. 

After all, it was the only thing left in Pandora's box...

Live In The Present:

I have a lot to regret about the past and I'm a worrier, so I'm always worrying about the future. I forget to live in the present most times because I spend too much time in my head constantly overturning things. I don't know why...but I do.

So ARE YOU JUST EXISTING JUST FOR THE SAKE OF EXISTING? ARE YOU LIVING IN THE PRESENT?

It's the high time now. I...WE need to learn to live in the present. Learn to enjoy the little things. Don't forget to breathe. 

My Mother Deserves The World:

I don't do idols or anything like that but if I had to...I'd choose my mumma because lord knows that she's sacrificed so much for us, five kids in order to give us the life that we have right now. There aren't enough words to describe her. 

My mother deserves the world because she's been the rock in this family for so many years. Being a single mother is definitely not easy as I see that every single day.

I know that no matter how hard I try I will never be able to fully thank her for all that she's done but the best that I can do is try.

You Are Your Biggest Enemy:

I've learnt this the hard way. Believe me!

The thing is if you look at yourself as a failure, the only person that you really have to blame is yourself. No one else. I've this tendency of always seeking to place my blame on others and it's not good. It doesn't help me progress as a person, so I've stopped! 

I am responsible for my actions and the results I yield as well as suffer. Arrival has taught me that the only person that can stand in the way of your success is you, yourself. So if you truly believe that you can achieve something; then I urge you to work on it, if you do so - you will. 

Follow your guts, not the inner critic (radio me). No matter what you think, you are better than who you think you are. Also when you start believing that...you'll be even greater! Be proud of it. 

Who You Surround Yourself With Matters...Like A LOT:

This has been a terrific lesson for me throughout life. 

Confused? Well, let's break it down. Your past experience, your surroundings, your friends make you who you are. 

Try changing your environment every once in a while as it's the best way to alter yourself. If your company is full of a bunch of douches, backstabbers and lazy asses; there's a good chance that you are one too. Now I know that I'm the kind to profess that "I m not my friends", though as I've spent time with time; I've gradually begun to evolve into them and it hasn't always been a good thing. 

Every Once A Year, Go Some Place New:

As probably know, I'm a huge travel enthusiast so something travel had to be on here somewhere.

I massively believe that I not merely created to simply wake, work a 9 to 5 job, go to sleep and just do that all over again until my dying day. There so much that's out the in the world that we are not taught in school. I crave knowledge, adventure and so much. Therefore I also know that I'm not going to get all that in London.

Omwoyo Oguwangula '15

Soul Survivor Crew 2015

As you all for the past 3 years, I've been going Soul Survivor and if you don't know what Soul Survivor is; lemme explain.

Soul Survivor is this incredible festival that takes place over the course of 3 weeks. However the main center around the whole festival is God and how young people can improve their relationship with him. It's truly a phenomenal experience! And every time I've been, it's always been an honour to examine where my faith lies and I have come to a conclusion after 3 years.

No, I'm not religious. I don't believe in organised religion even though I was baptized earlier this year in February. However I don believe that there is a higher power. Something that imagined and created this exquisite world. My issue with organised religion is that it limits you so much from exploring other religions, which I don't want to do. Whilst I believe that there's only one true God; I also want to be able to practice other faiths in order to help strengthen my own.

Now I bet you're imagining, why I bother spending a week in a tent when I'm not religious...There are 2 simple reasons:

1. I miss my friends. I spend some of my best moments of the year in Shepton Mallet with some of my closest friends. It's no lie that we are growing up and we are all of different ages, so this week is the only time that we can truly be together once more before the year ends and another one begins reminding us of the busy and fast paced lives that we lead. 
2. Soul Survivor is for EVERYONE! Whether you're religious or not, you are welcome. It's not like they ask you a million questions at the entrance. Mike Pilavachi, the founder of Soul Survivor encourages people to be themselves. You don't need to pretend to be someone that you're not in order to feel accepted. I've seen thousands of people give their lives to God and it's a great thing to witness.

I go to Soul Survivor for the adventure within it. For the terrible weather. For those 5 nights that I spend shivering because I'm freezing to death. For night time cricket. For the incredible hosts. For the 10,000 people that come for different reasons. For my friends. For MYSELF. But most of all, I go to Soul Survivor for the guy who's the center of the whole festival because I have a hunger for knowledge. I want to learn about every possible opportunity that's offered to me and that I can grab for myself. 

There's still so much for me to learn. I know that being baptized means to some that you're religious but it doesn't to me. I don't want to be defined by some man made cult because I'm constantly hearing all the time that God was against religion. I'm turning 18th in 3 days and I do believe that life is only just beginning. And this is my first proclamation.  

Soul Survivor: http://soulsurvivor.com/