Travel Black Girl!
As women we nurture and care for others; it’s in our nature. Of course there are exceptions to that general statement but I am not the exception. I used to find myself often forgetting about my needs and wants to focus on EVERYBODY else, and that’s not healthy. We have to remember that we matter too and a great way to start that is by taking a small trip somewhere YOU want to go, whether you have somebody to go with or not. Just be careful about it.
Travelling expands the mind, soul, and body; provides layers to your viewpoints and opinions by exploring new cultures; and, among so many other things, gives freedom from your repetitive and painstaking daily routine. I appreciate the women in my life that took the challenge to embrace personal wellness and allowed me to experience that through them until I was able to start doing that myself.
My travel motivation is one absolutely amazing woman that I want to acknowledge, my Line Sister Kam. This girl is so dope, that there aren’t enough words to explain how motivational she is for my life. Ever since meeting her 5 years ago, Kam has had this vision and purpose of igniting self care, self love, self appreciation, and just everything uplifting of self for all women of course but most importantly black women.
In the last 5 years I have seen her start her vision of L.O.V.E (Learning Our Value Everyday), graduating, getting what some people would call a dream job, leaving that because it didn’t embrace her L.O.V.E mantra, start travelling without hesitation, see her dream of L.O.V.E become a 501(c)3 organization, and choose to move her life to Thailand to teach and continue her own journey of self love while giving back. What says Powerful Black Woman more than that? She is a true inspiration and lover of all.
I have quite literally watched her travel the world via IG and share so many wonders that most people don’t dream about because they don’t know they exist. Talk about a bucket list: Bangkok, Vietnam, Bali, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Greece… you name it and she’s probably been there, with so many other places that she still wants to venture to. And get this, she’s not even 25 yet!
I applaud the women in my life, like Kam, that encourage me to be better and want to do better for myself and not for everybody else. Go check her out if you’re interested in seeing pics and video from her travels, her IG is @kaylemons, and go support her nonprofit for love and mentorship for little black and brown girls: on IG @learningourvalueeveryday or donate at www.gofundme.com/love-mentoring-program.
Last year, I hit Miami, New York, Vegas, and Texas. This year I’m stepping out of the country and a big part of that is because of the exciting example this beautiful young black woman has given and the standard she has set for being a young black woman in America.
Who’s your travel crush? Shout them out and let everybody bask in how amazing they are below!