The Mixtape

by Brittainy C. Cherry

I wanted to know what made a person tick. I wanted to not only see them in the sunlight, but I wanted to see their rain clouds too.

Unfortunately, we lived in a world where going deep wasn’t very common anymore. People lived on the surface level, showcasing the happy highlights of themselves.

There was a comfort in knowing that even when one was lost, home was always right there around the corner.

“When it rains, it pours,” she sang, looking up at the sky as her face became drenched, yet still, she was smiling. The biggest smile on her face. “But the rain always stops, and the sun comes out again. Thank you for your kindness. May God bless you.”

When it rains, it pours, but the rain always stops, and the sun comes out again.

“No life is better than another. They are all just uniquely different.”

The hardest truth to learn in life was that not everyone loved the same way you did.

The oddest thing about life was how something could show up out of nowhere and change everything in a split second of time.

Healing doesn’t walk a linear line; it takes the messy route. I believe that healing comes during both the dark days and the bright ones. It’s not all rainbows. Sometimes healing means slicing open the scars that made you hurt so much before and examining them to fully understand yourself. Why did the cut hurt you in the past? How did it change you into who you are today? What can we learn from the pain of your yesterdays to better your tomorrows?”

True success comes from within. And that success is defined by being able to wake up and have gratitude. That’s the goal. Now, that’s not saying that everything is perfect when you are happy. That’s not what happiness is. Happiness, gratitude, is the ability to wake up and say, yes, some things in my life are hard right now, but I still get to feel good about one or two things. You get to choose joy, even when times are tough.

Every person in this world has a mixtape of sorts, a collection of tracks that defines their lives. Each memory is a song, and they all come together to create a masterpiece. So, tell me about your story. What lyrics, what melodies, live on your mixtape?”

“Sometimes family isn’t what we were born into—it’s what we choose,” Michelle explained.

“The mourning doesn’t get easier. It just gets quieter.

A piece of advice—find yourself a man who will dance with you even when your heart is broken.”

“It’s a sad day when a person needs to use God to cover up their guilt for harsh choices in life,” I muttered, turning away, knowing there wasn’t anything else left for me to say.

I can’t look at her without seeing him. I cannot hold her, without remembering him holding me down.

Sometimes, part of the healing journey involves falling apart. That doesn’t make you weak; it makes you strong. So, fall apart tonight, and you’ll be stronger for tomorrow. You’re doing great.”

“I said it’s not your fault. What that man did to you—it wasn’t your fault. What he took from you—it wasn’t your fault. Everything that took place afterward wasn’t you playing the victim card. You are the victim of a disgusting act, and I know your parents have told you that you could’ve avoided what happened to you, but that’s not true. You are not to blame. You were abused. You are the victim, and none of this is your fault.”

“It doesn’t matter what you were wearing. It doesn’t matter what you said. It doesn’t matter what hour of the night it was, Sammie. What that man did to you was unacceptable and evil, and I am so sorry that you went through that, but you aren’t to blame for what happened to you. It wasn’t your fault.”

“Everyone breaks sometimes. It’s a part of life. Sometimes we have to fall apart before we can fall back together. I couldn’t look in mirrors for a long time.

When love met pain, beauty could be created.

In that moment, I knew the truth about family. There wasn’t one cookie-cutter way to create love bonds. Families came in all shapes, forms, and sizes. Some were tied together by blood, and others by heartbeats. At the end of the day, it didn’t matter how you came together; it only mattered that you stayed together. That you looked out for one another and loved in an unconditional way.