#colorofmyskin

[savsmilesubam-blog]

🖐"The Skin I'm in, is just a covering. It cannot tell my story... The Skin I'm in, is just a covering. If you want to know who I am, you have got to come inside and open your heart way wide" ❤ Beautiful words by Bell Hooks @bellhooksbooks and unique illustrations by Chris Raschka ❤ Published by @jumpatthesun and Available on Amazon, here's my affiliate link: https://amzn.to/2rOblXZ 🖐 #skinagain #bellhooks #chrisraschka #colorofmyskin #openyourheart #insideandout #beautyisontheinside #beautifulskin #theskinimin #poetry #childrensbook #childrensillustration #picturebook #multicultural #charactereducation #diversityinbooks #diversebooks

[gochaseflow]

Always a pleasure working with awesome young and up and coming creatives. Much love to @assataj on allowing me & @jongnic to be apart of her vision for her new short film #Kwame. Great job to her and her team. New single coming!!! #staytuned #gochaseflow #colorofmyskin #Hiphop #USC #LA #cali #Shortfilms #film #actors #composerlife #score #goodkid #badcity (at University of Southern California)

[thecolorofmyskin-blog]

Prologue  - Untold Truth

Wynter 

“Where you been?" I asked my  twenty three year old sister Shellie. Even though she was my oldest sister I felt like I always had to be her parent. My sister was staring at herself in the mirror changing her outfit for the millionth time. “Wynter why are you all up in my ass. I’m going out tonight with the guy I met from the club earlier. Look if you get scared just call Willie over here”. I bit down on my lip, ever since our parents been gone for this longer than long trip of theirs I’ve been getting weird vibes from everyone. I stood in the middle of the floor and glanced at my sister. Shellie was the oldest but she was the most beautiful well that’s what my parents would say. “She’s beautiful” I use to hate her because of it due to the fact they called me their “Nubian Queen”, still saying I am just pretty for a dark skin girl. 

“Nah you don’t have to call him, I’ll call Erica and see if she wants to hang out”. 

Before I could even get my words out my sister was already grabbing for her purse. The girl spared no time. Times like these made me wish for my older sister Tasha. She is away studying civil rights at the University, Howard that’s. Much power to her. I am just now graduating High school. 

"Make sure you cook before you go to bed, I don’t wanna come back and be hungry Wyn "she said as she put her purse and keys around her shoulder and ran out the door to meet the man of the night. "Where is-”

Couldn’t even ask her where was the spare money she left around here for dry days. 

“Hey Erica! Yeah Girl my sister done left with another Bill Clinton. LoL but come over for I get bored”. 

Erica was literally my best friend. We have been hanging around each other ever since Middle School when Matthew Sparks placed gum in our hair. It took 3 months for my hair to go back to the right texture. 

“Pookie open up” I laughed, people been calling me that since my mom and dad invited everyone over and the bakery they got the cake from said Happy Birthday Pookie. Their mistake became my name. 

“Hold Up Girl and stop banging like you crazy for you wake up Mr. Powell”. 

“Wynter, do you really think I care about old sagging predator Mr.Powell he can go and suck my lef nu-”

Before she could make me holler any more I opened the door and embraced my best friend. 

Erica sighed as she closed her front door , she looked out the small window and then sighed. Something was wrong with my best friend and she wasn’t telling. Most girls our age was getting happy about going off to college but my best friend was happy that she was dating one of Pop Culture Elite, Chris Brown. “ Hey Boo you gonna open your mouth and spill” She went to the kitchen and started seasoning the meat without me even telling her. 

“Okay well I called Chris last night and he didn’t answer. So I went out to his Instagram page this morning and I found that he was at the club last night. So I said okay he’ll hit me back up. Instead after you call me I started looking through my Instagram at the explore pages and stuff. How about he’s out her with SHELLIE”. 

My mouth grasped and my breathing couldn’t stop going fast. I didn’t know whether to laugh or go give my friend a hug. 

“it’s probably nothing, you know how fans take pictures with him all the time. Boo you just overreacting”. 

:”No I am not Wynter, look all the blog websites have them kissing at the club last night. Shellie knows I’ve been dating him for over 5 months now. He kept it quite because I was still in school. How could she do this to me. Your sister is a fucking hoe”. 

My best friend make a lot of huge fusses when it came to Chris but none of them was about to result in her calling my sister a hoe. Whatever my sister does it’s what the man wants. If anything Shellie was probably drunk. 

“Erica you need to take that back. You know her and that’s like fam to you. They was probably both drunk”.

She stepped from out of the kitchen and placed her phone on the counter, “No she tried to steal my man and right from under my nose. She’s a jealous ass grown woman that’s mad because a 18 year old got more shit than she does”. 

So she really was not going to hold back. Erica must have forgot the only reason why she was even on this man was because he blew up a year ago off his song “Yo Excuse Me Miss”. Hell and he only twenty one so he could’ve been made their relationship public. 

“Girl you playing yourself, if he wanted you then he would’ve took you to the club. It’s other dudes out there Erica. This my sister yo that you speaking on so please bring that shit back or we got problems”. 

I was a southern gal and we had streak family values. One of which meant family first over anything. 

“You standing up for the same sister that use to call you a piece of shit. The same sister that said that you looked ugly as hell. The same sister that raped you guys half brother and got a baby”. 

The tears began to flow down my face. Erica and I was suppose to be best friends yet here she was using the most confronting things I told her against me. “Get out Erica” I mumbled”. 

“I aint apologizing but I didn’t mean to make you cry, your sister is a hoe for stilling my man”.

“GET THE FUCK OUT ERICA”. 

Now I didn’t even give a fuck whether or not Mr. Powell would hear me and call the Landlord. Right Now I didn’t want to even see Erica Gomez. 

[foreveriwillsinggg]

I couldn’t help but feel scared...

Yesterday, I went out to the 6th Grade Center to play on their basketball court with my cousins and little brother. We were having a great time and this police car was driving by. He stopped, rolled down his windows, pointed at me, and gestured for me to come to him. I didn’t get close but I stood up and walked closer to his car. 

I had so many thoughts inside my head:

1. Someone probably called the cops about Asian people playing on the court and were calling for mysterious behavior.

2. Am I going to be shot?

*I understand that not all cops are bad* but I automatically thought of negative scenarios. I thought about my life, my cousins, my brother, and the color of my skin. 

In the end, he was just wondering whether or not if my vehicle was the one stuck in a ditch. I told him “no”, he apologized, and told him “...to have a nice day”. 

People might think that Asian people don’t go through tough times but that’s mostly because we don’t have stories exposed as much. It’s the fact that Asian are put into “model minority” and everyone thinks we’re well off because we are smart, hard-working, and kind people. 

This is why Mike Brown, Trayvon Martin, and the many, many, many more victims matter to me.

To the only story that I’ve ever heard of Asian police brutality.....Fong Lee. I will remember you. 

[richim]

#ColorOfMySkin 🌇 atardecer panameño desde #CascoViejo #Panamá 😍 #around 🚶mientras ibamos hacia el colegio de sacerdotes 🙏 #lunes (en Casco Viejo, Old Panama)