All posts by MT

Life

Bravery, empathy and humour

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What are the most important things needed to live a good life?

I have been reading and post Covid to an extent feeling the loneliness or rather isolation that was caused by having an excuse to avoid people and the for the last 10 years a device that allows you to ignore people even when they are around you.

This whole ideology of “I don’t need people” is a lie, we all need each other and I don’t know why but social media makes us feel like we should be ashamed to be true to our selves and embrace that. I’ll explain:

  • Be brave enough to message those people that you have on social media once in a while to ask “hey, do you want to go for a coffee?” And know that it’s ok if they say no, be brave enough to try again with another old friend
  • Be brave enough to show others that yes I’m in a relationship maybe it won’t work but I’m not going to live in defence mode because I may have to take the post down. It makes me think of that quote that was on my pen from Chapters “What if I fall? O but darling, what if you fly?”
  • Have empathy for everyone when you can. This can be that annoying co-worker that can’t seem to get it together, that very very very quirky friend or for yourself when you can’t seem to be what the world needs, expects or wants.
  • Finally humour is one of the most important things to a good life. We see it in the funny posts that we all share with each other. In those moments we allow ourselves to put our phones down we allow something funny to be said or to happen.

I think those three things are the most important elements to having a good life but I would be foolish not to mention that saving also helps in having a good life.

The joke is a little funnier when you have some money in your pockets, you can understand your co-worker a little better if your bills are paid and children are fed and there is no bravery on an empty stomach 😊

Happy Sunday

food, Life, T Taste

Control of my time

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What does freedom mean to you?

Freedom to me is the ability to control my time and have enough knowledge to be self sufficient.

A part of me wanted to say to have enough money to be “comfortable” but “enough” money is relative. I grew up in Zimbabwe where one random Monday a million couldn’t get you on the local bus nor could a billion buy you a house.

I quickly learned that money can’t always “give” you freedom in the way that a practical skill or wisdom will always provide you with a plan, which will always result in real freedom.

E,g. If I lost my job today I can rely on other skills and that’s freedom

Making Cornbread
Black Politics, Podcast, Politics

TThoughts Podcast – Can anybody hear me?

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What do you do to be involved in the community?

This post seems very timely as it is the anniversary of my podcast. Happy 6th birthday to my podcast, yes I promise this is connected to my contribution to my community. I wrote a while ago about how it’s hard to stay consistent in content creation and that has been true not only in my blogging but in the recording of my podcast. 

I love reading and to be fair after university it has become difficult to read fiction. I primarily read non-fiction and so most of what I read I feel the arrogant need to share with others for their own good. At some point I realized that unlike at university life is not a seminar and generally people are not interested in debating or learning more. The only people that may be interested in debating you are on twitter and to be fair they are not doing so in good faith nor are they actually interested in the ideas you are trying to share. 

I read a few things and listened to a lot of podcasts and my conclusion is explained best by Seneca who says “I am acting on behalf of later generations. I am writing down a few things that may be of use to them.” The older I got I realized that as a black woman there are so many things that I did not know that impact my life, my community and a little guidance may have prevented a lot of things or at least helped in the understanding of many things. So while I was learning more things about finances, voting, colorism or just nutrition, I figured I would write down what I am learning because even though people may not be open to what I have learnt at the moment there will come a time when they will be and at that point I would have written and recorded a few things for them.

My contribution to my community is the things I am learning and even though if often feels like it is falling on deaf ears, I continue because of the chance that a young black woman may wish to know why is it important to budget, hold political parties accountable and so she knows that someone grappled with the same questions and they took some notes for her to use, update or disregard. 

My involvement in my community is sharing knowledge that they may not realize they need yet.

Life, relationships, women

Dear * Insert Favourite column name here* – The Settle Down Selections

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Daily writing prompt
List the people you admire and look to for advice…
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I am a 34 y old female (In this day and age I should say cis heterosexual female). I normally love listening  podcasts, reading and swimming but I met a man and he seems to take up all my time. I think of him often and I hate people that randomly sing but I’ve found my self listening to hours of music and sending him songs I think he may like. 

Dear *favourite column* when he starts to sing I join in (something I usually find very annoying) and the other day I was horrified that I not only recorded but proceeded to send him a voice note of me singing TO HIM! 😩

Please help. I’m not sure what’s happened to me. I’ve even started apologizing when I’m wrong, I’m never wrong but something about him makes me reconsider. 

Could this be what they call love?

With love from hater of musicals and all things too cute and mushy