O W
T
Hello and welcome to the second issue of Serendipity! The first issue went down better than I could have ever imagined. I just want to say a huge thank you to all our contributors so far and our awesome readers. NONE of this would have been possible without you! Issue two is filled with a lot more content than the last as you can see in the page opposite. Our aim is to continue displaying new artists, models, musicians etc for your pleasure. With that being said, kick your legs up and enjoy Issue two! - MOFE, FOUNDER
CONTENTS Loving Someone Inglewood’s Melanin Queen Z Phoebe Green Poetry by Raegan Knopf Let’s Talk About...Anxiety Poetry by Ashton Kaufman Cool Light Of Dawn Paris Fashion Week - Ready To Wear AW 16 Top 5 Albums Lets Talk About...”Relationship Goals” Lakeshore Drive Guo Pei and Pablo Sebastion by Jane Mechner How to Revise Escapism Spring Trends 2016 Symphony/Cacophony Thrifting Mother, Should I Trust The System? The Clearest Blue A Creed: For All Those That Can Build From Distruction Let’s Talk About...Hatred Towards Feminists Love and Attraction Have No Direction How I Learned To Love Myself A Message To My Younger Self
5 6 14 18 20 23 24 36 40 42 44 48 52 54 58 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 71 73
Serendipity: The occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way.
SPECIAL THANKS TO JOSHUA MCMICHAEL AND RACHEL HASTINGS FOR OUR COVER AND BACK PHOTO
Social Media: Twitter: @SerendipityMagX IG: @SerendipityMagX Contact/Business Enquires: serendipity.mofe@gmail.com Submissions: submissions4serendipity@gmail.com
Mofe Sey - Founder/Editor Ella Redmond - Founder
LOVING SOMEONE
Loving Someone // The 1975 If You Ever Want To Be In Love // James Bay Sleeping In The Sea // Gemineyes Watercolour Envy // Phoebe Green Future Being // RKCB Hold Ya // Joni Payne Falling / Opia Fall At Your Feet // Saint Raymond Made Up Love Song #43 // Lewis Watson Love On The Brain // Rihanna ADX // Matt Wills Without // Years & Years
INGLEWOOD'S MELANIN QUEEN Z PHOTOGRAPHY: SANDDY CHAN - IG: @KILLAHKATZ MODEL: ZARRIAH - TWITTER: @Drakegroupie IG: @ZARR.IAH
PHOEBE GREEN Tell us a little about yourself (name, age, location) My name’s Phoebe Green and I’m eighteen years old, so I’m doing A-levels at the moment which are a pain when I want to spend all my time focusing on my music career and getting my stuff out there. I grew up in a small seaside town in the North West of England, which has been somewhat isolating. Because I’m an hour away from Manchester, I’m so close to such an iconic music that feels just out of reach for me at the moment, and
every time I go to see a band live it’s like I’m itching to be doing what they’re doing. I literally find myself watching local bands and analysing their performance and imagining myself in their position, planning out exactly what I’d be doing differently. Watching people perform is so much more of an educational and inspirational thing for me as opposed to it being a fun night out with mates; of course it can be both, but I just stand there like a sponge and try to take as much in as I possibly can.
ever play a speaking part, practically making it a one woman show. I really was a weird kid, dead creative and enthusiastic but really sensitive and emotional. I was extremely expressive and I think that’s why I was so drawn to music. I honestly used to sing to my parents and then start crying at how sad the song was, I felt things so deeply at such a young age, which is something that has definitely been a part of me since and has influenced my music from the first song I wrote to some of my most recent ones.
"I really was a weird kid, dead Have you always wanted to be a creative and enthusiastic singer? but really sensitive and Yeah, definitely. There are so many emotional." videos of me when I was little standing on the coffee table and singing into a TV remote. I was always dead outgoing as a child; as soon as our music teacher offered a solo part my hand was always the first to shoot up! I’ve been writing since I was about ten years old, as I always used to come home from school and write really dramatic, terrible songs in my diary, I looked back at them a couple of years ago and they’re absolutely hilarious! I loved being the centre of attention at all times, so I put on about two shows a week for my family, dragging my little sister into them even though she refused to
Musically, who are your inspirations? I have a ridiculous amount of bands and artists that I look up to! Wolf Alice, Haim, Halsey, Alvvays, Marina and the Diamonds, lots of female artists or lead vocalists of bands that inspire me daily. I love seeing powerful women in the industry that are completely unapologetic for their art, it’s so empowering. Lyrically I’m dead into Radiohead; I really like dark lyrics...
Panic! At The Disco’s first album is very satirical yet poetic and I love that, I try to incorporate a lot of that in my writing. Completely juxtaposing that though, I love the bluntness and raw nature of Catfish And The Bottlemen’s lyrics because they really depict what it’s like to live in a small town in the UK, something I can really relate to. They’re one of my favourite bands of all time. I’m dead influenced by Kings of Leon, actually, which some people might not hear in my music. Their song ‘Milk’ has inspired a couple of songs on the album. I really like The Strokes in the way that their songs sound so carefree and rough, they’re just so cool. Honestly, the list is endless.
I really enjoy writing a song that people will listen to, and they won’t even flinch because they are just focusing on my voice and the melody. Then I see their expressions change as they actually hear the lyrics and their eyes widen. It’s so interesting to me.
What’s your favourite track on your album and why? I really love ‘Watercolour Envy’, the second single I released off the album and one of the first I had written. To be honest, it changes every day, but at the moment, that’s the one!
Who would you want to collab with Why is your album called 2:00am and and why? what can our readers and your fans expect from the album? Oh wow, that’s such a big question! I Basically, I found myself being inspired in the middle of the night, around 02:00 AM, so that’s the time I wrote a lot of my songs. I think people can expect some weird ones, definitely. I’ve written songs that sound really lovely and melodic but then the lyrical content is very twisted and slightly grotesque; I love combining poetic, descriptive language with vulgarity.
think putting Halsey and I in a room together would be a bit mental because we have very similar mind sets and big, creative personalities. Like me, she doesn’t seem to have many boundaries or restrictions on what she creates. We are both queer, feminist women that see the world in a similar light... it would be really, really cool to collab with her. Matty Healy from the 1975 is very interesting to me, it’d be really cool to see the way his mind works in a song
writing environment. The 1975 are really cool lyrically, their songs are brutally honest and uncensored, it’s refreshing and heart breaking at the same time. I’ve always wanted to write with Ryan Ross from Panic!, I think he’s an absolute lyrical genius.
What do you want to be doing in 5 years’ time? Everything! Playing sold out tours all around the world, having a positive influence on peoples’ lives and getting people thinking about stuff to be honest. I’ve always loved the idea that art is meant to provoke, not please the eye, or in this case, the ear. I just wanna see how the world will receive my music if it gets big, which I really, really hope it will.
You can check out Phoebe Green’s music here and follow her on twitter!
Stockings on but stockings falling from religiously praising porcelain on the knees, a needle delicately tucked into the skin, dreaming instead of sleeping. No longer an indescribable brand of hollow, it’s a finite waste-away, traceable sadness, a tangible drag inside the cheek. Lips that would rather be on bottles instead of skin. Skulls bumped and bones collided, but there was nothing inside.
Blue eyes gone, red heart torn, green envy dead, just like they warned. Brush strokes of color are unfitting painted on grey skin, mortal irony, apathetic fear, bruised ribs and regret. There’s no point, there’s no joy in the breath of the wind, in butterflies in the stomach, in wearing knee highs that fit, in anything but the ache, when you’re a dead kid walking. RAEGAN KNOPF
LET'S TALK ABOUT... COURTNEY MOANE
Anxiety
Fear. Apprehension. Avoidance. Pain. Anxiety about what you’ve said. Fear that you’ve said something wrong. Worrying about others’ disapproval. The fear of rejection, or of not fitting in. Nervous to join a conversation, afraid that you’ll have nothing to talk about or the people around you will think negatively of you. Hiding what’s wrong deep inside, putting up a defensive wall to protect your ‘secret’. These are some of the daily struggles of dealing with this mental disorder known as anxiety.
was experiencing was beginning to completely take over every aspect of my life. I had trouble falling asleep of a night but could spend all day in bed and my mood swings would be a complete roller-coaster constantly. I became irritable and tried immensely hard to hide this struggle. I attempted to mask these struggles from the ones who could have helped me over come this problem because of the fear I would be judged for dealing with anxiety because of the social stigmas associated with mental health issues. I constantly felt that there was something wrong with me, that I was a crazy person for not being able to sit in a room full of people without feeling overwhelmed and nervous that every single person was judging me or not being able to go to work without the thought in the back of my mind that something bad was going to happen at some point during my shift and not being able to get out of that particular situation no matter what it may have been.
It was initially hard to pin point exactly when my anxiety started or the reasons why, all I know is that these fears and this nervousness I
I then began to experience the physical side effects that come along with having anxiety. Agonising migraines became an overwhelming part of my
Anxiety is a general term for several disorders that cause nervousness, fear, apprehension and worrying. These disorders affect how we feel and behave, and they can manifest real physical symptoms. Mild anxiety is vague and unsettling, while severe anxiety can be extremely deliberating, having a serious impact on daily life. (www.medicalnewstoday. com/info/anxiety/)
life almost up to three or four times a week, constant nausea from overthinking every aspect of my life and all the negative situations that could occur. I would look in the mirror and not recognise myself, growing up I was a confident and an outgoing child who was always up for fun and enjoying myself and now I was struggling to leave my bed because I would believe that something bad was going to happen. My anxiety was centred on social situations, usually the fear of having a panic attack in public and not being able to escape the situation.
people throughout the world, that one in four people will experience a mental health problem at some point in their life, also many people’s issues with anxiety are made worse by the stigma and discrimination they experience from society as well as family, friends and employers, etc. And finally that suffering with anxiety does not make me crazy or psycho, it just means that my brains works a little differently and how I deal with certain situations may be a little unique.
When researching online about this mental disorder I found a quote that My panic attacks took the form of really stood out to me; intense dizziness and nausea which was very difficult to deal with when “I promise you nothing is chaotic there’s a roomful of people or a busy as it seems. Nothing is worth your day at work. Mentally, panic attacks health. Nothing is worth poisoning were unbearable. I would feel like a yourself into stress, anxiety, and crazy person and that no one would fear.” – Steve Maraboli. understand if I tried to explain how I was feeling and it began to take a I have begun the process of not lettoll of my everyday life and health. ting my anxiety have power over me. I recently found out I was b12 defi- I’m sure the negative thoughts and cient and anaemic which can trigger overthinking will still occur from and make anxiety twice as bad and have time to time but I am beginning to had to take some drastic measures to realise how to effectively handle get my health back into shape. these emotions that ultimately will not cause a negative impact, inAfter going and speaking to my doc- stead a positive one. I’m learning tor about these issues I have learnt to focus on the positives in life something; ; this mental illness is and everything I have and am about to common and it affects millions of achieve in my future, instead of the
vicious cycle that anxiety is. I know I may always have anxious thoughts, I’m only human, but I now know that they are just thoughts and I’m not going to let them stop me from living my life. I hope through sharing my experiences with anxiety it can help someone else who may be feeling these emotions realise they are not alone and that together we can change societies stigma surrounding anxiety and overcome this mental disorder. I refuse to let my mind bully my body into believing it must carry the burden of its worries.
Ashton Kaufman Twitter: @ashtonnicolee
COOL LIGHT OF DAWN PHOTOGRAPHY: JOSHUA MCMICHAEL- TWITTER + IG: @JM_MCMICHAEL MODEL: RACHEL HASTINGS TWITTER - _RACHELHASTINGS IG: RACHELHASTINGS1066
READY-TO-WEAR PARIS FASHION WEEK AW16 TATIANA LOPES - translated from French WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2ND 12:30 PM: I arrived just in time for Cédric Charlier’s show (his last one in Paris, as he recently announced he would be presenting his collections at the New York fashion week from now on), entering the beautiful venue that is the Palais Cambon and passing security like I’m a VIP. I said my name to a woman that looked quite responsible and she gave me a backstage pass. I felt cool. I joined the happy few aka the dressers (joke, note that the dressers are very often an awkward group standing in the middle of the room looking at everything happening around them and you can notice them from afar because they are all wearing black — as requested — and they look lost). We wait, wait and wait, get rid of our stuff, choose our models and we’re shown how things will be going from now; we get to discover the collection (absolutely stunning, loving the yellow pieces of clothing and the shoes were nice, also special mention for the glittery stuff and the half furry coats), models have to do the rehearsal (three times in a row!!), everyone takes a little thing from the nice healthy food buffet. The show was supposed to start at 2pm but we were still standing awkwardly by the racks at 2:02... only then, some models come near us while eating and my model says she has to go to the bathroom (only coming back around 5 minutes later, no stress apparently?). Eventually we’re told to dress the girls and everything goes very fast, we’re struggling but everyone helps everyone (even the hairstylists give us a hand) and a few moments later, we are ready. All of a sudden everyone leaves and the show is about to start and the room feels very empty, quiet and we’re bored as hell, not even knowing what is going on upstairs, but that’s okay because we still have the healthy juices and can take pictures of everything and talk to fellow dressers! Later on, a woman runs into the room with her arms full of clothes and we have to help her, she’s very stressed and we understand that the break
is over! Now we have to rush again to get everything back in order. After that, all the models start coming in, we help them get undressed, put the stuff in plastic bags, pick up the underwear on the floor, etc aquick selfie with my model, called Daria, from Ukraine and she tells me she was exclusive for Gucci in Milan and everyone leaves quickly, us dressers help with the last cleaning. At around 2:43, we’re finally free to go, on to the next show! © Cédric Charlier
4PM : The Ih Nom Uh Nit show was a non-official one (meaning that it wasn’t on the actual paris fashion week’s schedule you can find on sites such as modeaparis.com) therefore the place is quite small (but very light and pure), there isn’t a lot of people nor a lot of photographers. Me and my colleagues get to seat second row and the show starts pretty quickly: I immediately recognize the very cool music — a remix of Frank Ocean, Kanye West, Rihanna and Travis Scott — I didn’t really know what to expect but wow! First of all, the first model is very pretty, she really has something special that’s what I always notice first. She’s wearing a sweatshirt with holes in it and ripped jeans, her shoes are Adidas Stan Smiths, I actually feel like they are wearing Yeezy but less crazy and more classical/simple, so I would say I like it! To conclude: it’s really cool but let’s be
be honest it’s not very transcending. (fun fact: Chaz Jordan, the designer, has worked with Virgil Abloh, Kanye West’s stylist so yeah, not very surprising that they are similar). © Ih Nom Uh Nit
THURSDAY, MARCH 3RD 11:20 AM : I was chilling at home with my little brother, checked the hour for the Manish Arora show and it was at 12! I was so sure it was at 4 so I RUSHED, got ready in like 7 minutes and ran to the metro: I have already been in the situation of arriving late to a fashion show and it is not something I want to live again!! 28 minutes later : I DID IT! YAY TATI ARRIVED RIGHT AT 12:02 WOW the venue is incredible (comptoir général @ 80 quai de jemmapes) and actually the thing is 30 minutes late so it’s okay, I still have the time to be bored waiting and waiting. I find one of my friends and we manage to get a quite-okay-place (we have to stay on our feet obviously because that place is FULL) The collection: bling-bling, denim, gorgeous embroideries, cowboy boots, face jewelry, fur on boots (boots with the furrrrrrrrr), amish-style dresses, feathers, transparency, 80s hair, and color, a hell lot of color (a bit too much for me but manish arora is known for the colorful indian dresses)I want to give a special mention to the casting, too, quite diverse, with old women and tattooed girls, cool!
“This collection was a mix of suburban Americana going to Africa, yet keeping Burning Man alive inside with a late 80s point of view” says the designer himself. In conclusion: it’s not my style, too original for me (too much color and prints together) but some pieces can look really good, when worn with other more basic things, for example the embroidered jackets, that I really liked! © Manish Arora
SATURDAY, MARCH 5TH 6 PM : I was so excited for Rahul Mishra’s show because I had loved his previous collection so I knew I wouldn’t be disappointed: and I wasn’t! Very beautiful, indeed. I have a huge crush on some of the mini dresses, and the shoes are cool too (basic/simple black or white creepers), the materials seem interesting, the big dresses are very fluid and original. ©Rahul Mishra
TOP 4 ALBUMS BLURRYFACE // TWENTYONEPILOTS Blurryface is the fourth album by twentyonepilots. Blurryface is an absolute work of art, I honestly can’t fault it (probably because I’m a huge fan anyway). Tyler (lead vocalist) illustrates the story of a metaphorical character named Blurryface...who is he and will he ever be defeated? Favourite line: “I’m a pro at imperfections and I’m best friends with my doubt”
MIND OF MINE // ZAYN Mind of Mine is Zayn’s very first solo album and he has not disappointed. The album highlights his experiences in his previous music career as well as his previous relationship. Mind of Mine features tracks that are very different from each other but somehow it works. Favourite line: “Open up and see what’s inside my my mind”
I LIKE IT WHEN YOU SLEEP FOR YOU ARE SO BEAUTIFUL YET SO UNAWARE OF IT // THE 1975 The 1975’s new album is straight fire, I don’t think there is a song on it that I don’t love. I can honestly say I’ve listened to the album everyday since it’s release. I love how colourful and different the album is in comparison to the self-titled. From pop culture, to love to religion this album covers it all. Favorutie line: “I’m the Greek economy of cashing intellectual cheques”
ANTI // RIHANNA Anti is the eighth studio album released by Rihanna. The singer took a well deserved break and came back with a great album. Unlike some of the songs on her previous albums, nothing on ANTI screams “manufactured for the masses”. Instead the album will make you feel like a bad bitch on so many levels.
Let's talk about...
relationship goal culture AVA VANHOOF to possess this type of ‘perfect’ reThere is no shadow of a doubt that social media has become an integral part of virtually every millennials daily lifestyle. For a good portion of us, Twitter or Instagram is the first form of entertainment we grace ourselves with each day, as well as the last. It is pointless to campaign against it because the Internet has brought us, the young generation, multitudes of opportunities. However, it is starting to become apparent that social media has an overwhelmingly negative affect on our personal relationships, specifically those of the romantic variety. Just a few years ago, there was no such thing as “relationship goals”; this is a term that has been coined as of late. Sweeping the Internet and nearly every social media platform came an assortment of posts constituting what the ‘ideal’ relationship would appear to be like. Posts about long text messages, gifts left at doorsteps, exaggerated outings and date ideas; all of these things became things to long for and pine after. Quoting tweets and adding “goals” and expressing how badly one wishes
lationship has become a socially accepted norm. As intended, users have engulfed these ideas and begun their quest to find a significant other that models these caricatures manifested from ‘relationship goals.’ The most pressing issue here, among many others associated with relationship goal culture, is that this is detrimental to the success and development of bona fide social relationships. Given the breadth of the influence that the Internet has on us as a generation, the things we are exposed to repeatedly become normative to us. Seeing ‘goals’ all over Twitter and Tumblr has caused people to expect traits and actions from people that are inflated and unrealistic. In expecting these actions from someone we are romantically involved with, or even interested in, we become disappointed or underwhelmed when they don’t exhibit these traits. Installing these starry-eyed criteria ultimately provides a platform for a failed relationship; one based upon ideas conjured up on the Internet. Consequently, you will look at your significant other and think:
“why aren’t they like these people on the internet? My relationship is not goals. I deserve better than this!� There need not be a post about every small act of kindness or admirable thing your romantic interest has done or said for you. These acts of affection and adoration lose their genuineness when they are brandished to the public on social media websites. It is more important to appreciate these things and share the intimacy you have with one another, as opposed to your hundreds of followers.
We need face-to- face conversations, separated from the chain of our cellphones and our social media updates, alongside emotional investment and genuine love and care. Ask yourself this: when was the last time you went on a date without either picking up your cellphone to fill the awkward silence, or posting about it on your Snapchat story? Sit across from someone who makes your stomach feel like there are a million butterflies kissing and bouncing off of one another inside of it. Sit across from someone and deconstruct their psyche, ask them about the things that matter to you and to them. Pay no mind to what social media is telling you what to say or model yourself after. Ask this person about their childhood, the way the ocean makes them feel, and the places they always find themselves going back to. Promote intimacy, promote interest in the thoughts of those you are expressing romantic interest in; promote stimulating and everlasting social relations.
The reality I am getting at here is that we need to seek greater things from social relationships (especially those of the romantic nature) than those that are being fed to us on the web. You should seek greater than a long text message, or some fast food left on your doorstep with a corresponding "come outside" iMessage, or a lengthy paragraph underneath an anniversary Instagram post. In fact, we deserve far greater than this; we need to obstruct these silly ideas and emphasize what is really needed and desired for a long and lasting relationship. Intimacy is being lost on our generation, It is dire that humans, especially plagued by pursuit of juvenile rela- those at this age, naive and imprestionship goals. sionable, recognize the importance of developing romantic, enduring relationships outside of the realm of social media expectations.
LAKESHORE DRIVE
PHOTOGRAPHY: ANNA ROBINSON TWITTER: @ANAKINS19
HOW TO REVISE
LAILA GHOSSAIN
Having searched the internet for the perfect guide to revise, I came across thousands of examples most of which were not entirely helpful. So, I’ve composed a guide below of what has worked best for me and I hope it will help you too! 1) find a quiet place to revise. This can be the library, a park, but I tend to do it in my room. Make sure you revise on a desk and not on your bed, as your posture is important. Hunching over while revising is not healthy for a long amount of time. 2) do not touch your phone Why? Because it will distract you. Check it only during your breaks; these can be every 30/45 minutes. 3) highlight your notes Start by highlighting important information in your textbooks. Use different colours for different points. I.e. When revising for your French exam, you can use the yellow to highlight vocabulary. Green for verbs. Pink for structures you’d like to remember. Having different colours makes it easier for you to pick out the bits of information you want to revise. 3) use bullet points to translate the information Once you’ve highlighted your notes, copy them onto draft paper and into bullet points. Writing the information makes it stick in your head! Use mind maps, if bullet points don’t work for you. Record the information and play it over. Which ever method works for you best, but do it!
4) use check lists Writing down your to do lists helps in motivating you, as once you’ve finished revising a particular subject, ticking it off the list or scrunching up the paper you wrote it on, makes you feel good. You’d want to move on to the next. But be specific with your to do lists. Don’t just write “revise biology” and be vague; be specific. You could focus on a particular point within that subject. That will make it easier to get it done. 5) don't get hungry, get snacks and drink lots of water Food is fuel to your brain. Drink tea, drink coffee, make a smoothie. Try to eat healthily though, as it will keep your brain healthy too! And there we are! Remember though, these are not to be followed religiously; you can adjust certain points to whatever suits you. This is simply a guide.
© quilavastudy.tumblr.com
Escapism
PHOTOGRAPHY: MIA WARREN TWITTER: @MIAWARREN96 MODELS: Hannah Speller IG: @hannahspeller_ Gabrielle Archibong @gabriellearchibong)
SPRING TRENDS 2016 TIFFANY TURNER
“Floral for spring? Groundbreaking.” –Devil Wears Prada, 2006 Put the old garden-inspired flared dresses back on the rack,and pick up these trends next time you hit the store. I searched, narrowed, and plucked the top 3 trends that are going to be all the rave this spring. The best part...I found some pretty inexpensive items, compared to those runway looks, that you can snatch RIGHT NOW!
LACE UP TOPS Project Social T Plunge Lace-Up Top- $39 These tops have been making their statements since last fall, but they aren’t going anywhere. From glam Kim Kardashian to classy Bella Hadid to bohemian Vanessa Hudgens, this piece can be quite versatile to suit any sense of style © urbanoutfitters.com
STRIPES AND OPEN SHOULDERS Open-Shoulder Striped Top- $14.90 This piece is a two-in- one. Stripes are such a classic pattern and can accentuate every body type based on the size and direction of the stripe which is beneficial to everyone. Let’s not even get started on the open shoulder look. Innocent? Check. Sexy? Check.
SLEEPWEAR INSPIRED Lacy Gauze Cami Mini Dress- $15.90 Honestly, what could be better? Pajamas that are acceptable in public? The silk and lace trend walked all over the catwalk at Fashion Week, and it’s spreading quick! The trend is comfortable and chic AND just in time for the spring weather.
Symphony / Cacophony I never asked for you to hold my hand beneath the gaslight, splintering the glaucous with your sterile clasp. Never asked for you to be the sunspots on my soft-bodied yellowness, a malignant, manipulative cluster of cells. Brooded about you on the windowsill, the clouds gaptoothing in the sky - it’s so hard to sleep when the cage of your breastbone won’t stop rattling to let itself be freed. You should never have given me your fleece, pulled it down over my eyes and acted like you weren’t going to leave before the lights went up again. Should never have acted like you were trained to extract the obsidian between the atria. I was just a tenderfoot to this scrummage, still pregnant with some light, till you moulded me to fit your tessellation, only to change your ever fickle mind and cauterize me, hoping I wouldn’t melt. EMILY MACLENNAN
THRIFTING VICTORIA SADAUSKAS
In my 16 years of living I have never experienced such a love for something, as much as I do with thrifting. You could be looking for just a simple shirt, and find a one of a kind blazer, shirt, dress, or even shoes. (Just make sure they’re in good condition) Go in with an open mind; erase all the bad thoughts, and just look. You could discover that a color or pattern that you once hated, could compliment your skin tone, hair, or even another article of clothing from your closet already. Sometimes common thrift stores, like The Salvation Army, or Goodwill, can be a bit pricy. I recommend hitting up anyone of your local antique boutiques, they could have a Victorian glove set, or even a cute cat knickknack from the 40’s. The possibilities are endless. As for tips, always take your time, I cannot stress this enough. Pick a day where you know you’ll have a lot of time, thrift stores and antique stores are better to go to on a weekday, when everyone’s working. Another tip; look at both the men’s and women’s clothes, don’t limit yourself. You could find a men’s shirt with a unique print,that you’ll end up always contributing into your wardrobe. Don’t go in looking for something in particular, thrifting is special, because you never know what you may find. If you notice a small loose threading, or anything imperfect on the garment, see if you can fix it up yourself. Although, if the article has a massive stain, it might be better to just move on. Always look at paintings, jewelry, shoes, bags, etc. You might just find the most perfect pair of brightly colored square earrings, that your mother would’ve worn in the 80’s and 90’s. There’s something for everyone, and who knows you might just get addicted. I can’t lie, you will get addicted.
Mother, Should I Trust the System? ANTONIA PARKER Education is a tool in society that has become a very crucial part of our lives. The system is often going through many changes which society deems as correct. However, there is one fatal flaw in all of this. No one is asking us what we want to see. How can you say the system is correct if you’re not asking for our opinions? We are the ones living it, not the adults.
Teachers also have to realize that calling someone out in class for their failures is wrong. You’re knocking their confidence every time you pick on them. Stop pointing out the failures and focus on the positives. If you praise students for their work surely children are going to enjoy lessons more? We are no longer willing to be dictated to. We’re starting to use our own minds. We know what we want. What’s the point in teaching us about a circumference of a circle, something I will probably never in use in every day life. Teenagers need to be taught something that they’re interested in. Why must students be forced into taking subjects they have no interest in? Why is it academic children aren’t forced into taking creative subjects? If creative children are forced into taking academic subjects, surely academic children should be forced into creative subjects?
We are no longer living in the Victorian era. The world is constantly changing and developing, so why are we still using the same old methods? Students crave teachers that are willing to allow them to tap into their potential in a manner that is interesting, fun, and important to them. This revolution can begin with teachers in classroomseverywhere who are willing to change their approach to education in order to fit the needs and wants of their students so that It’s all about making the education they are equipped for the future. system fair, right?
Everyone should be allowed a choice in this world. Stop dictating to students, we have a right to their own mind. No one should be forced into anything. If someone doesn’t want to take math because they literally find it impossible, they shouldn’t have to. I understand we need the basic knowledge of the classics to get us through every day life. I accept that and I respect that, but I’ll never respect being forced into picking certain GCSE options. It kills me every time I open that math paper and I feel so goddamn worthless and stupid after every single test. Now ask yourself, how is that right in any way? I can swear to you now, there are thousands of kids across the world who feel the exact same as I do, whether it’s English or Science. Pushing people into doing something they cannot do can destroy someone’s confidence and self-esteem. If you can’t draw you’re not forced into it, why should someone be forced into learning about algebra? The government needs to have a sit down and understand EVERYONE is different and unique in their own beautiful way. Some are academic and some are creative- that’s just the way it is.
The education system needs to be tailored to everyone’s needs, not just the academics. Another thing that seriously grates on me is the hours. Making someone get up at 6am is just ridiculous. How can you expect anyone to get up and be focused for the day? Not only that, you then expect them to do a full days worth of learning, cram a load of homework in and still expect them to do after school clubs and socialize? It’s insane! How can you expect that off anyone? It’s far too much. People need breaks. They need time to themselves. School literally takes over our life. Teenagers should be out there experiencing the real world, not stuck inside having a breakdown because they can’t understand something. If a teenager is at school for roughly eight hours, and they are doing homework for possible four/six hours, and they need at least nine hours of sleep for their developing brains, then they may have one or two hours for other activities like exercising, socialized, hobbies, relaxation and family time? Then there’s the stress that comes with all of that. The mental health issues teenagers have to deal with. The problems students may be having at home.
Just read over that one more time and think. How on earth can you ask that of anyone? Just because teenagers may not have as much as experience as adults does not mean they are not important. Teenagers shouldn’t dread going back to school. They should be ecstatic to be learning, to be seeing friends and to have the access to an education. Instead students are crying, faking they’re ill and doing everything they possibly can to get out of it- and it’s not always because we’re I could go on, but you’ve probably heard enough. It is clear that the education is strongly flawed and must be changed. We are not stupid and it’s high time we stop getting treated like we are.
The Clearest Blue When you looked into my eyes you saw a clouded over blue, a foggy cerulean, and you were reminded of the days when you were lost in that ill-coloured dimness. You dismissed me and my blueness as a representative of depression, of sadness, of the days of the not too distant past, but I am more than that. If you made an effort to crack through the newer associations, you could see who I truly am. You would remember how we sat. Firecracker popsicles dripping in our hands, and how I looked up at you with my blue and red stained toothy grin, leaned in close to your face, and blew a raspberry in your ear, a sound that made us both laugh until our bellies quivered so much that they ached. You would remember when we were 12, our teenage years sprawled ahead of us. You spun the bottle, its navy label fluttered until it halted and the bottle’s spout pointed at Cady David, who shrieked in disgust and ran off. You ran too, and I followed you, my hand quickly guiding yours back to the party, my lips ushering words of assurance that it didn’t matter. You remember when we were freshly seventeen and went on a class trip to an art exhibit. My face turned pink with excitement at the promise of seeing my favourite painting, while you turned away eyes glazed over, lost. It wasn’t until we stood under Blue Dancers by Degas, admiring the crispness of the tulle tutus and the pleats in their bountiful brunette waves that your passion for me ignited and you kissed me bringing forward a sense of peace in each other we never quite struck before. But then something happened, an accident that ripped you away, but it wasn’t really an accident, was it? For months your home was a hospital and images of my colour in your memory were replaced with the cornflower dressing gown you wore day in and day out, the cobalt balloons that seemed to mock you when they flashed the words “get well soon.” And the cyan and white pills that peppered your diet. Now you’re back, but you aren’t really back at all. I lost a piece of you that day, or more so you lost pieces of me, of us. You lost our love, our smiles, our warmth, our resilience, our childhoods. You lost me. SAMANTHA SCHRAUB @woltves
A Creed: For all those that can build from destruction I am neither light nor dark But i am not a grey area, a shade in between a rock and a hard place Like a prey cowering to its predator i shake, I am an earthquake I am the flames of a forest fire A destructive and blaze you can’t find yourself look away from I am the gentleness of a breeze on summer night A short-lived relief in continuous suffering I am bone rattling thunder A noise that cannot be silenced TATUM MYERS @ surfbabeirwin
LET'S TALK ABOUT...
Hatreed towards feminism BENJAMIN ESAPA What is concerning to me is the num-
Living as a young person in a British pocket of youthful countryside liberalism, it’s easy to state that anyone trying to talk about feminism is preaching to the converted: we’re all feminists and we’ve all accepted feminism as a necessary and positive part of society. However, this simply isn’t the case. Fighting for equal rights for men and women, and spreading the word about what true feminism is, is just as important now as it always has been. It only takes a quick scroll through Facebook to find posts supposedly “debunking feminism” or lambasting so called “feminazis” for their “hatred of men”. Prominent social media figures have a huge part to play in this: an example being Nicole Arbour: YouTuber who, in a video entitled “Dear Feminists” purports that feminists ignore important issues pertaining to men’s rights and instead use the label to further an anti-male agenda.
ber of people rejecting the label of feminism and supporting and sharing videos such as Arbour’s. I’m not arguing that people such as those Arbour mentions in her video don’t exist: those who are anti-make and wish to further that agenda, but these are, by definition not feminists. By associating the term feminism with individuals such as these, Arbour and others who send out this message are doing a disservice to feminism and society at large. Disseminating this association with feminism and discrimination against men not only gives anti-feminist activists the ammunition to dismiss feminism out of hand as an extremist movement, but it also means that people are less likely to be open to the ideas of gender equality that feminism portrays.
LOVE AND ATTRACTION HAVE NO DIRECTION MARISA
The words ‘sex’, ‘sexuality’, ‘sexual orientation’, ‘gender’ and stuff related to them are very common these days. Many people talk about it like they were experts. Sometimes, this helps a lot with questions you may have, but you weren’t really sure how to answer them; but most of times, this information can be confusing and even harmful. You ought to have in account that the more real data you have and the more you know about this matter, the easier it will be to understand your body, your needs and you will be even capable to take care of your sexual health. Sexuality is too diverse, and truly personal. Understanding your own sexuality is really important, because it implies a lot of diverse topics; it is about the sexual and romantic feelings and attractions we feel towards other people, and it’s actually not just about who we have sex with or who we could procreate with.
There are different types of topics that sexuality involves, and it can take some time to figure out what suits right with you, but you have to always remember that there’s nothing wrong with you and liking or not liking some things doesn’t have to affect your personal life, also that there is no need for you to label yourself and even others. Everyone is special and perfectly fine being themselves. First, you can’t talk about ‘sexuality’ if you don’t really know what it really is and what it implies, because, as it was mention before, it really isn’t just about sex. It includes: - Your body (this is your sexual and reproductive anatomy and body image) - Your biological sex (for example, this could be male, female, or intersex) - Your gender (this is about being a girl, boy, woman, man, or transgender, or genderqueer)
- Your gender identity (feelings The environment you live in has a about and how you express) lot to do with how you carry yourself and the decisions you make. If - Your sexual orientation (this is you live in a supportive and open who you’re sexually and/or romanti- family, you can be honest about your cally attracted to) doubts and if you’re in love with someone and situations like that. BUT - Your desires, thoughts, fantasies, if you were raised in a ‘traditional’ and sexual preferences or ‘rigid’ family, you may have problems expressing and being yourself or - Your values, attitudes, and ideals even introduce your mate, because of about life, love, and sexual rela- what they may say or think (the words tionships (See? This is nothing to sexist, homophobic, transphobic and do with something sexual, yet, it is such, can be related to this). included in human sexuality) You have to remember that your par-Your sexual behaviours (yes, this is ents, or whoever lives with you have including masturbation) their own opinion, and it’s not very likely that you can change their Now that you have a better idea of minds, but also consider that no what sexuality is, we have to go matter what other people think, you deeper and look beyond the taboos should be true to yourself and not and what has been declared before as hide your feelings and doubts. ‘correct’ or ‘morally accepted’. To do this, you should know that out A person is not just ‘straight’ or there, there are a lot of differ‘gay’. There many different types of ent sexual orientations. You may have people in our world, which means that heard about some of them, some could they will (and they do) exist a lot be new, but is always great to know of different attractions, relation- more about this. BUT, by the way, of ships and ways to live. This also course there are other people that means that because of all the dif- aren’t actually into a sexual, physferent pads you can take, you can be ical or even a romantic relationship. a little puzzled about who you are, who you are attracted to and who you can love.
They find pleasure in the simple things as having a nice conversation or just sharing thoughts; some examples here:
And these are just some examples to have a better view of these types of sexual orientations. There are many more, that even though you are not familiar with, you must at least re- Asexuals: they’re not interested spect other people, no matter what, in experiencing an intimate physi- because at the end, we are all hucal relationship, even just holding mans. hands is not comfortable for some of them (Reminder, being asexual doesn’t “Understand that sexuality is as mean that you don’t have the desire, wide as the sea. Understand that it just means they lack the sexual your morality is not law. Understand attraction) that we are you. Understand that if
we decide to have sex whether safe, - Aromantics: these people don’t ex- safer, or unsafe, it is our decision perience any romantic attraction to and you have no rights in our loveothers making” — DEREK JARMAN - Grey-romantics: they experience limited romantic attraction to the one that surround them - Demi-romantics: they just experience romantic attractions only after they’ve got an emotional connection - Somniosexuals: not attracted to people while they are awake, but rather only when they are in their sleep (dream about their loved ones and their lives together, but in real life, have not such interaction of that type)
HOW I LEARNED TO BE MYSELF MACKENZIE HUNTER
So I am coming up pretty close to my last year of high school and lately I have been going through a change on bettering myself. We have all had a time where we know that we are not the best person that we can be. So here are a few things that I have kept in mind over the past few months. 1. BE WHO YOU WANT TO BE Being you is ok! You might be different than everybody else but different is what makes you who you are. At one time I was acting like someone I wasn’t and that was the most difficult and confusing time of my life. You feel like you are lost, and no one should feel like that.
2. HAVING A FEW FRIENDS THAT ARE TRUE ARE BETTER THEN A LOT OF FAKE ONE One of the hardest thing about high school is finding friends. There are going to be people in school that are just rude and mean, and those are the ones that you do not want to be friends with. They tear you down and make you feel inferior to them. Know that you are better then that, you deserve people that are going to be real with you, but also bring you up as a person and an individual.
3. RELATIONSHIPS DON'T MATTER RIGHT NOW!!!! Of course every teenager has their things with others and whatever, but know that it is not the end of the world and that person that broke your heart is missing out on a great individual. Instead of worrying about them and crying over them, put your heart into other things, whether it be music or writing or even school work. Surround yourself with wonderful friends and a happy lifestyle and you will be great! 4. TAKE AT LEAST AN HOUR EVERYDAY AND DO SOMETHING YOU LOVE Take a break from the school work and do something that you love that will make you stress free! As kids still in school we are always stressing about our grades and things like that. Take some time and do something that will make you rewind a little. At least once a day i do about 45 minutes of yoga, it helps me relax and rewind if I am feeling stressed out. If you don’t have something that helps you relax, find one! Try new things and see what works for you!
A MESSAGE FOR MY YOUNGER SELF You are eight years old. You are standing in the middle of a baseball field, boys and girls your age surrounding you, all in matching polos and khaki/plaid combinations. Your hair is flying in every direction from the May humidity, and the fine red dirt of the pitchers mound is seeping into your patent leather Mary Jane shoes. You love the days you play baseball in gym; you love to run, you love sliding into bases and getting your knees dirty, and you love how far the baseball goes when it’s your turn to hit it. You wind up your pudgy arm and squint through the afternoon blaze of sunlight, throwing a tiny purple baseball towards Tommy Rich; a metal baseball bat in his hand. He doesn’t swing. Instead, he laughs. You squint harder to find the reason, and when you do, you find him looking at the boy standing on third base. The boy standing on first. You hear the boy on second laughing, and the girls in the outfield are even giggling too. It was a good pitch; you know it would’ve gotten him out if he’d swung. Why didn’t he? “I’m not hitting a ball a girl throws to me. I want to play real baseball.” Your throat feels hotter than the air around you, and you turn to your teacher sitting on the metal bleachers for reprise. He smiles, and asks you to switch with the boy behind you. Your skirt suddenly feels like a navy blue prison, everyone is giggling, and the air feels so hot you cannot breathe. You are eight, and you never play baseball again. You are twelve years old. You are standing in front of a full-length mirror with your best friends, trying on a bright blue bikini that Sarah stole from her older sister. You’re all passing it around, taking turns pretending you’re 15 like her sister, and your mom lets you wear bathing suits that show your stomach. “Ugh, I can’t believe how big my stomach is! I’ll never be able to wear a bikini in public looking like this.” Sarah says, squeezing the tiny bit of skin that covers her hipbones. Your friends giggle and agree, and you
are suddenly aware of nothing but the way your hips sneak over the edges of your cotton skirt. Rachel complains about how “flat” her boobs are, and you are so afraid of your own skin, you say you have a rash too bad to try on the bathing suit. You are twelve and your friends yell “ew” loud enough that it rings in your ears for hours later, but when you hear it, all you feel is the space you now occupy far too much of. You are fourteen. You have not eaten in four days, but you like the way it burns. It’s a reminder- a reminder of the shrinking space you reluctantly occupy. You are walking down a city street with one headphone in, drinking water from a restaurant to-go cup (itwas all you had for dinner), and bubbling on with your friends about how your moms finally let you take the train into the city alone. When you leave your friends to throw away your empty water cup with a bitten-through straw, a man in a black blazer with slicked hair that reminds you of your father’s catches you by the elbow. He smiles so wide it looks like it may slip off his cheeks, and asks you to bend down again, so he can see that pretty ass for just a second longer. You are fourteen, and you rip your elbow from him and run faster than you think you ever have, and when you get to the train station, you tell your friends your stomach hurts, and in the bathroom you scrub the skin of your arms with soap so hard it begins to bleed. You still feel like street grime. The woman next to you at the sink says nothing- you figure she must know. You figure everyone does- you stupid, stupid little girl. You are fifteen, sitting on a couch with the first boy to ever call you beautiful. His arm is around your shoulders and even though you don’t like it there, you don’t say anything. Minimal space. No more yelling. His hand leaves the couch and you feel like your lungs are free, and then suddenly they are gone as his hand finds purchase on the flesh of your thigh. He whispers “pretty,pretty girl,” and slides it higher, pressing down on the skin above your fly with his pinky. You whisper, “stop,” but he’s gone deaf. He kisses a tear off your cheek and it makes him smile, like he absolutely loves the taste. He weighs so much more than you do, you tiny tiny thing, and when he presses you down into the couch, he doesn’t care
how loud you tell him to stop. He loves the way you taste, and he’s deaf to you. You tell your school counselor the next morning because you heard that’s what you were supposed to do. Your skin is red again from scrubbing, and when you tell her, she pulls her tortoise shell glasses off and raises one eyebrow. “I surely hope you weren’t wearing that. Anyone would be confused with the message that dress sends.” You are fifteen, and you can’t look at yourself in the mirror anymore. You are seventeen, and you occupy so little space now you can barely breathe. You hate the feeling of being small, but you know it is all you can be. Boys call you “hot,” they call you a “nice piece of ass,” and you take it. You take it because you need your lungs, you need to breathe, and you can’t stand any more yelling. You can’t stand to take up an ounce more of space. Everyone has gone deaf to the cries you no longer emit, and it feels like this is how it will always be. This is how it’s always been; this is how it’s meant to be. You are seventeen, and it feels like the end. You are nineteen. You have six notebooks full of the years passed, and they listen to you. They see you. They listen. It did not begin with the boy at second base. It did not begin with blue bikinis, slicked back hair, deaf hands, or silent pleading. It did not begin with shrinking, with becoming small, with breathing back your words. It did not begin with disappearing. It began with you. It began with gripping your lovehandles in the mirror every morning, even when it made you cry, and telling yourself “I do not need them. I have myself.” It began with writing your words down even when they sounded like the stupidest nonsense mankind had ever encountered; began with reading the incoherent scribbles and repeating, “I do not need them. I have myself.” It began with wiping the lipstick off that you hated but wore because your boyfriend liked it. It began with wiping him off of you, too. It began with burying yourself in what you loved; not who loved you.
It began with you curling your hands around your own ribs, counting your freckles, and whispering, “I do not need them. I have myself.” It began when your reflection made you smile. Darling, it began when you thought it was all meant to fall apart. It began in your giant heart, in your loving soul, in your brilliant, brilliant mind. It began with the things you love and the things you hate. It began with your softness that the world taught you so avidly to hate. It began with every tiny fragment of universal matter that composes you into the completely unique and irreplaceable thing that you are; human. It began when you let your scars stay scars, and wore them like war paint instead of battle wounds. It did not begin with their validation. It did not begin with anyone else. You are a universe, my dear. You are spectacular. You will make it, and you will make it fiercely. You do not need their half-hearted compliments. You do not need their admiration of your figure in a bikini. You do not need their approval. You do not need anyone’s permission. You do not need them. You have yourself. You will always have yourself. TENNANT ROSS
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE IN THE NEXT ISSUE PLEASE EMAIL SUBMISSIONS SUBMISSIONS4SERENDIPITY@ GMAIL.COM