[This is a series of responses to Donald Glover's recent Instagram posts, in which he shares some revealing info about his professional and personal insecurities and frustrations.
Dear Donald,
Folks are calling you
-Disturbed
-Depressed
-Crazy
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It’s easy to overlook that while you rap with confidence, you too, feel insecure
While you make us laugh through your comedy, you too, feel pain
And I’m sorry I never took that under consideration. So…
I want to thank you for being brave enough to be vulnerable
Thank you for removing the mask of perfection to reveal your fallibility
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Thank you for reminding us it’s okay to…
-Cry when we are rejected
-Doubt our dreams will come true
-Be afraid to disappoint those we love
-Have bad handwriting (sorry about that— your handwriting is still dope tho)
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-Worry if we will see our loved ones tomorrow
-Hate ourselves sometimes
-Wonder if we will ever be enough
-Be angry when people screw us over
-Doubt our talent, beauty and worth
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-Seek the approval of others
-Feel lonely in a crowd
-Be hurt when we are forgotten or overlooked
-Fear we won’t be as great as our hearts tell us we can
-Doubt we will ever leave our mark on the world
-Wonder if we have a reason to live
_______________________________________________________
Life is hard
And at times there seems to be no light at the end of the tunnel
But you’re right, we can’t be lonely
Cause we’re all here, in this thing together
Trying to figure out our purpose
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And if we give ourselves permission “to be better,”
We will tackle this beast called life
I thank you for reminding me of that
But most of all, I thank you for reminding me that…
__________________________________________________
Just because I have these thought, doesn’t mean I’m crazy, disturbed, or depressed
Sometimes it means
I’M JUST HUMAN…
Loy Alexandra is an attorney and freelance writer from Chicago. She’s also the founder and editor of the faith and personal development site Livin’ Like Maya. Follow her on twitter at sherontraining.