It's Okay To Not Be Okay About This

Some things happen, and you just sit with it.
You don't have the right words. You're not sure if you should cry or scream or just stare at your phone because you can't believe what you're seeing. Something inside you shifts, and not in a good way. You feel it in your chest. In your stomach. In the way you go quiet.

That is okay. That is actually the right response.

We all saw the videos from the so-called festival. You saw it. I saw it. And I could not stomach it. I don't think any decent person could. It is the kind of thing that sits with you long after you've put your phone down, and if you're still carrying it, still feeling heavy about it, still angry or sad or both, that makes complete sense.

When you watch people get hurt, it stays with you. It is supposed to. You are not being dramatic. You are not too sensitive. You are a human being who just came into contact with something painful, and your mind and body are reacting exactly the way they should.

Anger is okay. Let it be there. It means you know right from wrong and you're bothered that the line got crossed. That's not a bad thing. That's actually a good thing about you.

And if the anger has a sadder feeling underneath it, that's okay too. Sometimes things hurt before they make us angry. Sometimes they do both at the same time.

You don't have to be strong about everything. Not about this.

Check in with yourself. Step away from the noise when it gets too loud. Talk to someone. And if all you can do today is feel it, feel it. That counts.

You're not too much. The situation is just that heavy.

And if you need to talk to someone, please reach out to MANI. You don't have to carry this alone.

-Oluwademilade from MANI