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Greetings!!
Don’t box me in Fam!!!!
That’s the caption, that’s the story, that’s this week’s vibe. Coming off a full sunny weekend back in the District after some much-needed time away to the west coast that’s where I’m at. As I traveled from Phoenix, AZ to Los Angeles I saw so many different people. A variation that probably seemed foreign to me and others considering we are coming off a year in the house and strictly being surrounded by our bubbles. Many times, I found myself people watching how folks move, the conversations, the energy and more. One thing that stood out was that people were free. Free in their speech, lol, Free in their personal style of clothing and truly loving the skin they were in. I found it extremely refreshing. It led me to think about my life, the people I commune with on a regular and those that my paths have crossed through the present becoming. An overwhelming feeling came over me because I realized many have placed me and some of you reading today …in a box. I mean like a cute box as expensive as the box used at American girl doll store or the custom ones many of the creatives make for special occasions with your initial on it! The box has been customized in such a way that some people truly can’t seem to see beyond it…. And it’s terrible. I want to advocate today for myself and others who have always lived outside the box in a world that can only see them in one.
For the people who have been guilty of placing people in boxes based on the little that you have seen or know without considering or leaving room for their growth …. this is a Public Service Announcement your BOX was not BIG enough throw it away!! See some should have never been in a box in the first place and others outgrew the box and that my friends is why everybody is frustrated and misunderstood. When you placed that person, place, or thing in the box you never considered the other parts of them and now that they are walking in it you are sitting in a space of shock and confusion because of the limits you placed on them from the beginning. Take the limits off and again THROW away the box! When I purchase a shoe, the box has a label on it that describes the contents inside the box. The shoe label has the size, where it was made, the style and what other sizes can be converted to fit this same shoe. Once the shoe has been worn a few times the contents begin to shift but because of when the shoe was purchased the label never changes. It does not mean that the foundational principles and structure of the shoe has changed but it does mean that the shoe specifications may feel a little different after a while. See a size 9 shoe after a few years begins to stretch a bit if worn often , sometimes the taps and heels get worn and have to be replaced , it may get a scuff or two ….still the same shoe but really doesn’t fit the box it came in at first because at the time of purchase there is nothing that accounts for after use …and if it’s something you wear very often it probably lives more outside the box than inside the box anyway right? The box never changes yet the content of the box does, and we must stop trying to box folks in where it no longer fits the description.
People can change and shift gears in their life. People can go from not drinking wine to drinking wine ……from wearing heels to wearing sneakers. … From Suits to Sweatshirts …. I can run and walk ……. Like my hair long and short …It’s MY /THEIR Prerogative in my BOBBY BROWN Voice!!
And to the ones who are mad because people keep putting you in said box ----Public Service Announcement STOP GIVING folks That BOX energy expecting them to get it and JUST DO YOU!! Eventually they will adjust, they may not ever understand but I guarantee you they will ADJUST. Move accordingly and BE FREE!! I know they don’t know your full story and it gets borderline disrespectful when people address you from box level when you are much more or much bigger than that! I GET IT so I charge you to TEACH people how to treat you by simply being YOU in all areas of life. At work, church, with friends and loved ones and more. I’m personally not who I was at 20 nor am I who I was at 30 …. My palette changed a long time ago these taste buds have traveled much further than any box can handle.
I dare you to tell 5 people this week when you feel limited or shackled “Don’t box me in, I'm much more than that”!! Let them know they are missing the magic when they do! It’s BIGGER than what the natural eye can see for both you and for me! Live whole, live well, Be Free!
Love ya!
R. Rene’-xoxo