Author: Trelani

  • Open Letter to My PenPal: On My Son’s Wrongful Detainment, Roadtrips with Strangers, Fiction that Frees Us, and Enslaved Muslims
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    Open Letter to My PenPal: On My Son’s Wrongful Detainment, Roadtrips with Strangers, Fiction that Frees Us, and Enslaved Muslims

    Open Letter to My PenPal: On My Son’s Wrongful Detainment, Roadtrips with Strangers, Fiction that Frees Us, and Enslaved Muslims

    CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THIS POST INSTEAD. I’m so at peace, cousin. How are you? CJ is doing wonderfully. I’m so grateful for that. Thank you for asking and for caring. After his traumatic wrongful detainment in Savannah this past December, he’s still choosing to LIVE. He’s exploring Louisiana…

  • “What’s the Story?”: On Jealousy, Ramadan, and Dr. Patricia Stewart
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    “What’s the Story?”: On Jealousy, Ramadan, and Dr. Patricia Stewart

    “What’s the Story?”: On Jealousy, Ramadan, and Dr. Patricia Stewart

    CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO ME READ THIS POST. “What’s the story, Michael?”  We cracked up! Loud too, in the middle of the super quiet Methodist church. That’s exactly what she would’ve said in the tone she would’ve said it. And, whether or not my feelings about not being able…

  • A Year of Quiet: Off Social Media and into Real Life and What’s Next
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    A Year of Quiet: Off Social Media and into Real Life and What’s Next

    A Year of Quiet: Off Social Media and into Real Life and What’s Next

    I’m getting off social media. For like a year. I’m so excited about it and I’m terrified, but I’m also getting beaucoup signs to just do it.  Here’s a few signs (though I’ve been getting ‘em nonstop): 1: J. Cole! He’s one of my favorite rappers and he recently dropped…

  • From Okra to Sugarcane to Shirini Danmarki: When Home Shows Up, Belonging Does Too
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    From Okra to Sugarcane to Shirini Danmarki: When Home Shows Up, Belonging Does Too

    From Okra to Sugarcane to Shirini Danmarki: When Home Shows Up, Belonging Does Too

    “Who likes okra?” Chef Michael W. Twitty asked us last night. We were circled around a bonfire, some of us in chairs we brought from home, others on logs sawed into makeshift stoops. Almost all hands flew up, including my 16-year-old daughter’s. Side conversations sparked up around me about how…

  • The Dance of Surrender and Intention: Life Reminders from Wedding Planning
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    The Dance of Surrender and Intention: Life Reminders from Wedding Planning

    The Dance of Surrender and Intention: Life Reminders from Wedding Planning

    I got married last Saturday and had a beautiful wedding. Up until we were 30 days out, I was coasting. Then it got stressful. I can’t even say the closer we got to the date, because it was actually the closer we got to the aisle, the more my shoulders…