Recap of 2023

2023 was an emotional rollercoaster to say the least. I decided to leave my job of four years and start working towards a major career transition. It hasn’t been the most relaxing six months, but I made it to the other side. The past year reinforced my confidence in my vision, my belief in my voice, and the importance of patient, deliberate growth.

In March, I went back to Chicago for what was supposed to be a two week visit. It ended up being four weeks, making it the longest time that my kid and I had spent away from my husband. It was also the most socializing that I had since the start of the pandemic. Not long after returning, the entire family drove back to Chicago during summer on a road trip for another month. Let me tell you, it was a time. 

Chicago has a habit of making everything feel possible. A series of conversations with ex-lovers, reconnecting with friends who saw and shaped the formation of many early experiences in college and along my political journey, and getting comfortable with calling myself a photographer. 

Being back in the city kicked things into gear. Let’s get what stood out the most for me. 

Taking Negotiation to the next level 

Some of you may know that I am writing a collection of essays about navigating mental health and sexuality as a queer Black feminist. Despite writing intimately about past relationships, I didn’t expect to spend a portion of my year having a series of conversations with ex-lovers. Though I have to admit, I’ve always wanted to say “I’m writing a book and you’re in it.” 

Not everyone is getting the luxury of chatting with me or reading material that mentions them. Having those other conversations changed my understanding of Negotiation and myself in early adulthood as well. And there’s been plenty of discourse in the past two years about dating and politics, navigating intimacy, and exploring non-traditional relationship models that I am just like, hurry up and finish your book already! 

I have a good feeling about it happening in 2024, but I can only focus on putting my best effort forward. I plan to apply for at least one writing residency to make it possible, please feel free to share recommendations! And wish me luck! 

Nourishing friendships 

My depression made it so that I didn’t talk to many people in 2022. The year was consumed by grief and overworking, I didn’t have the energy or desire for much in my personal life. Fortunately, none of my close friendships are ones that require daily communication. But the less I talked to people, the more I was convinced that people didn’t want to spend time with me. Sure, there were friendships that have trailed off over the years, but there wasn’t any real reason for me to feel that way. Just another unnecessary scenario. 

In 2023, I started to take small steps towards reconnecting with friends: texting a meme instead of sending a DM, sending a “just thinking of you!” text, scheduling video chats and regular co-working sessions on Zoom. Taking a break from Instagram encouraged me to be intentional about reaching out to folks by text or email. (Highly recommend!) 

Long distance friendships are hard but building most of my longest friendships online has taught me that you don’t need to see or talk to each other every day to remain close. My friends are my biggest sources of inspiration, strength, and hope—and I am forever grateful for them.

Exploring other artistic mediums 

I took thousands of photos last year. Most of them won’t be seen but I did resurrect my Flickr account and have been sharing photos over there. Over the course of this year, I had the pleasure of taking photos of old friends, classmates, and family. Documenting our road trips, hiking trips, and everyday life has made me appreciate enjoying smaller moments. Going through my archive dating back to 2008, I saw for myself how the least exciting moments still unlock some of the best memories. You probably won’t see me without a camera in 2024. 

We got back into zine making, y’all. 

I watched a bunch of videos by @brattyxbre and remembered how much I loved zines. Getting back into zine making, I published I Used to be the Sun, my first zine since 2019. I revised and re-released Welcome 2 the Unknown, a zine about parenthood. And most recently, I shared the inaugural issue of Sounds like a Personal Problem, a bimonthly zine about anxiety. Returning to zine making has truly been a joy, and I can’t wait to create and read more this year. 

Other highlights

• My first editorial was published for In These Times. 
• I tried a new platform and started a newsletter on Substack. (As of December 2025, the newsletter lives on Ghost!)
• I started a YouTube channel to document reconnecting with my creativity and navigating parenthood. 

I hope you enjoyed this recap! It’s hard to believe that I went from not completing a creative project for nearly five years to nurturing my creative practices and bringing my visions to life.