Morning Routine
By Jayola Reid
Discussed: mental illness stigma
A young girl of color is having a hard time educating her religious mother about the depression she silently struggles with.
Wake up and get ready for school anyway—I’m not working day in and day out to pay your tuition for nothing.
Straighten your hair and look presentable—I don’t care if you cry when your ear is burnt.
If you can lay in bed and watch TV, you can get on the train to school. Failing should give you anxiety, not walking into the packed subway car.
You’re faking it.
What do you have to be sad about? You have everything you need, I don’t know what else you want. Stop crying before I give you something to cry about. Crying because you miss your father is not a valid reason.
Stop victimizing yourself—that’s what our folk’s problem is.
Don’t blame your teachers for dress coding you—blame yourself for believing you could wear that high skirt as if you were skinny enough not to be sexualized.
Why should I pay for a therapist when there is a Bible on your nightstand?
I don’t care if you can’t find friends that look like you. We don’t deal with identity crises. We know who we are. Drugs are the only thing you can use as a coping mechanism?
I’m not paying for a therapist.
Now you depend on boys’ love for your mental health?
I’m not paying for a therapist.
I’m not taking you to get diagnosed. I know what you have and it’s just laziness.
Iron your white collared shirt, put on a longer skirt, make sure no curls are sticking out, and get on the crowded train to school.
Jayola Reid
Jayola Reid is a Girls Write Now mentee. Her mentor, Ashley Okwuosa, says, “Jayola is a gem and being paired with her throughout this process has been incredible. She is smart, self-assured and confident. She is not afraid to speak her mind and is constantly looking for ways to improve herself, whether it's with writing or the activities she does in her spare time, like debate. Jayola is bold and thoughtful. She came into the program sure of who she is and I hope that she leaves the program even more sure that she belongs in every room she walks into and that the future is hers for the taking.”
