Kickin' It

Hey lovely people! 

These days, SZA’s 20 Something has remained on an insightful repeat. Whether you’re one of those people who keeps your new favourite song on repeat for weeks on end or not- surely you’ll understand where I’m coming from with this airy-yet-heavy tune.

Navigating your 20’s is hard. Navigating life is hard. But one issue I feel I constantly battle time-and-time again is being close to all of the people I love at one time. Back in 2012, I moved to Edmonton, Alberta to finish up and graduate high school. The experience was nerve-racking and exciting all on extreme levels. (A little fun fact here- I was actually born in Edmonton and raised in the GTA!)

I frequented trips out West to visit family and finally picked up and moved there to stay with my grandparents alongside my sister. At the very tender age of 16, I was nervous, yet excited to encounter a completely new environment. 

Once the move had been completed and I settled in at Queen Elizabeth Composite High (Go Knights Go!!!) it was difficult, making those friendships everybody told you you’d make in high school. These were supposed to be your golden years! A time for hard work and even harder play, crushes, a whole bunch of different “first times” and for me, playing as many sports as I could. Yet because my two first years of high school in Ontario had failed me, I was weary of what came next in a new province, a new school, and what felt like, and quite frankly, was- a whole new world (queue Aladdin soundtrack).

As time went by, I learned that being undeniably Eboni would lead me to the right crowd, and thankfully- it did. Some of my closest friends to date were scouted in the very walls of Queen E, and will line my heart forever. We don’t all get to see each other nearly as often as we’d like, but when we do link up, it’s enough love and support to keep me going for the rest of my life. 

This time around, one of my best friends Keanna Simpson visited Toronto. Naturally, I live by the phrase “team work makes the dream work”, and there was zero hesitation hopping into a creative stance and getting shit done. One thing I can say is, I’ve truly been blessed with talented friends. They’re always there when you need a pick-me-up, or when you’re just tired of everything going different to how you planned it. 

This post means a lot to me simply because I worked with two of my best friends on it. My built-in-bestie aka my twin, Essence, worked alongside Keanna to bring you Kickin’ It. We all hopped into every position we could think of on “set”, and treated it like the days we’d spend hours laughing,  crying and just being teenagers. 

While these days, it seems like things only continue to get harder, it’s people like Keanna and Essence who remind me that something as simple as friendship can propel you to heights you never dreamed of reaching. In SZA’s own fairy-like words, God Bless these 20-something’s. 

Without further ado, here’s Kickin’ It.

Vintage overalls // winners button-up cardigan // File Disruptor II’s // Adidas bucket hat

xox,