Everything is Everything

Hello, my fellow scientists; I know it's been a while. Since we last spoke, a couple of milestones have happened to me. First, I graduated with my master's of science in earth and atmospheric sciences in 2020 and started my Ph.D. that year. One of the great benefits for me during 2020-2021 was focusing on just Ph.D. coursework during the first year and getting immersed in the work and knowledge. Though these are all great things, they come with painful experiences: racism. There are so many different forms of this in academia, especially those who hold "power." My experience taking my first-year qualifiers wasn't a good one due to this, and it took a long time to unpack that. Thankfully, a few people were there to help and assure me that I experienced exactly what I thought I was.

There will always be people who do not believe you deserve to be where you are. They'll often hide their thoughts about you and your abilities as "critiques." You don't "know" enough, you aren't "doing" enough, and your skills aren't "sharp" enough. They may even try to subtly convince you to quit what you're doing. Do Not. Not everyone who smiles means you well, and you must learn to keep pushing, even in adversity. As one of my mentors (Dr. Shakila Merchant) tells me, "When you've mastered being comfortable in uncomfortable situations, you've unlocked the key to life."

I aim to always show up as the best version of myself. Continuously improving, always learning, and this is a learning process. Recently, I've realized it doesn't matter who doesn't support me; it only matters who does. The trick is to figure out genuine support and what is disguised as that. If you're reading this, do not quit; keep moving forward because if I've learned anything, nothing meant for you will ever miss you, and that which missed you was never meant for you. So don't be discouraged, as I leave you with this from Psalm 23,

"Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me, thy rod and thy staff they comfort me! Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. Thou anointest my head with oil, my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the lord. Forever!"

As my father likes to say, Everything is Everything.

Until next time,

Embrace every part of your being...