xojane.com

By Kelly-X

While studying abroad, I quickly became friends with one of my neighbors on my floor, Thomas. Thomas is Dutch and spent most of his early adult life in St. Croix, an island in the Caribbean that has a lot of melanin — in other words, he grew up around black folks. Thomas also has a son who is close in age to me. We immediately clicked with one another, and I’m just a weirdo who always seem to gravitate to and get along well with older people.

Looking back, I see that Thomas and I were destined to grow close. During the first conversation I had with Thomas, not even 15 minutes of meeting him, he looked at me and said: “Thank you for being confident enough to wear your natural hair.”

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The 'Girlfriends:' LaVeris/FilmMagic

By Brenda Alexander

Like many, I was disappointed in the lackluster season 8 finale, which turned out to be the series finale (cancellation), of Girlfriends. Fans who grew close to the characters and related to their relationships, were left with no real resolution, or even a happy ending. After years of failing in love, Joan Carol Clayton had finally found it in her fiance Aaron, only for him to be deported to Afghanistan. Free-spirited, once homeless, always jobless and sexually free Lynn Searcy had found steady work and passion as an indie artist with a record deal and an uncertain future at her label. Our beloved “5th girlfriend” William and his wife Monica were pregnant; and, I can’t even remember what the hell was going on with Mya and Darnell post his mid-life crisis gig as a race car driver, their son acting a teenage fool and Mya’s rise and stagnant position as a black self-help author. The most devastating part of it all was that we never got to see a reconciliation between longtime frenemies Joan and Toni. Talk about a cliff hanger?! I mean, I have the series on DVD and watch it from beginning to end in a repeated cycle because I feel like I was robbed of a proper ending.

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By Veronica Wells

Yhá Mourhia Wright, Ashley Versher, and Katherine George

By Kanisha Parks

Whoever said that Valentine’s Day is just for couples should really have several seats! While Valentine’s Day has an interesting history rooted in romantic ideals, it isn’t meant to be celebrated by couples alone, but to show love to the important people in your life. You remember giving Valentine’s Day cards to all of your classmates as a kid, right? That tradition is still continuing now, so why is that when we grow up, we think we need a “boo” in order to participate? Girl, before you prepare to stay in and rock yourself to sleep while watching romantic comedies in your PJ’s, here are a few ways you can actually enjoy Valentine’s Day, even in your singlehood!

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Marc C. Nappy.co