“How do you know it’s impossible, if you don’t try?”

​     Sometimes we get really stuck in the same box, the same comfort zone for a long time. The habits we've created have grown and matured. It's important to keep learning new skills. You can start by watching tutorials on YouTube, taking classes, or just trying it without help. Stop being afraid to take a different track than the one you go on every single day.

1. Find a new store to shop at.
2. Read a new genre.
3. Eat from a different culture.
4. Take a walk in the mornings.
5. Go to an open mic night.
6. Find another coffee shop.
7. Take a road trip.
8. Paint something.

      These things don't have to be scary or drastic. See experiences as a part of life and change. This summer the new things I'm trying are dabbling in photography, some music composition, and creating choreography. Dancing isn't a hundred percent new to me, but I don't do it often at all so it counts!

     You may think, "I'm good here." No! Do not get comfortable, because life will hit you with a flaming fast ball out of nowhere. I encourage you, yes YOU to try something new and discover another fun thing. The world is too vast to stay in a four by four. Continue to expand, even by little measures. Maybe one day someone will need help decorating their living room and because you've been watching interior design videos on YouTube, you have insight (maybe). Say your friend is having a party and wants to bake a really cool cake, but doesn't know how. Thankfully, you've been taking baking classes and can help her. These examples sound far-fetched, but I hope the message still got through. I'm not saying do it for others, you could be in those predicaments. Doing something you haven't done brings a new kind of excitement because it's not what you're used to.

      So please try something new and encourage others to do so as well!


*Photo by Patrick Boucher on Unsplash

​Studying abroad in Brazil was only part of my summer. 

So, what am I doing for the next month and a halfish before going back to school? A LOT. I finished the second round of editing for my novel Our Father  which means I will be reaching out to Beta Readers soon. I'm also working on my other novels Being a Model, Her War, The Other Side of the Mirror, and A Grave of Dead Roses. In between writing, I am delving in photography music, and dance (follow me on Instagram to see @abbyakyiaw). This doesn't sound like much, but it takes up a lot of time. Everyday there's a list of things I need to accomplish, a certain about of words to write, etc. And of course writing for this blog! More interesting and helpful topics coming your way like public speaking, traveling again, going to therapy, and many more.

This past month I learned some exciting things in another country. I ate new food, interacted with a new culture, and shared these experiences with nine other students in my group. Of course, nothing is without its faults. This trip had its ups and downs, but overall I enjoyed living in Brazil and learning about the Black experience there. I won't sugarcoat anything in this overview, but I also will not bash the program or the coordinators. They did their best in the context that they were in. First, I will talk about aspects of the program that I enjoyed. Second, I will talk about things that bothered me during the trip. Finally, I will discuss things that could be improved on.

What I Enjoyed

Environment: So the weather was very humid and warm. I'm all for some humidity, but this was a little too much. Only a few times was it actually cold. I could wear whatever I wanted, though most of the time I still wore pants. Coming from the airport and settling in our apartment in Copacabana, I realized Rio reminded me of a city inside a jungle. There were luscious green trees planted along the sidewalks, swaying above us with the buildings. I also liked how there shops lined down the streets close to where we lived. The supermarket and the metro were a short walk away.

Fast food/ Tapioca: Okay, let me tell you something. The fast food in Rio was a hundred times better than here in the U.S. (my opinion). Over there, places like McDonald's, Burger King, and KFC, are a lot more pricey, but the quality of food is great. A McChicken from McDonald's in the U.S. is flat and sad looking. In Rio? It's fresh, and ready to be eaten. Now, I am someone that doesn't eat fast food often, but I allowed myself to divulge in Brazil because 1) It tasted better 2) I won't have this luxury back home so I might as well enjoy. So, Tapioca is a bit difficult to explain. It's like a folded sandwich with various things you can have inside like chicken, ham, cheese, butter, coconut, chocolate, banana, etc. The first one I got was chicken and coconut, but I didn't like it too much because it was dry. The second time I got butter and chicken. That was delicious.