Reading Time: < 1 minute Her honesty is disarming. Her words make our hearts sing. Her poetry is the perfect soundtrack to our lives. We have a major poet crush on Morgan Harper Nichols. We’ve visited her Instagram profile so many times that it’s almost embarrassing. Almost.
Nichols hypnotizes us through design and color paired with her relatable words. We admire her creative process and courage to stand out. She is a breath of fresh air in a community with some same-ness going on.
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You might be feeling a little pressure to answer questions about “what’s next,” but I hope you know that no one, not even the person that’s asking has it all figured yet. The important thing to remember here is that you have the awareness that you are growing and being strengthened in this season. You might not know exactly how it’s all going to turn out, but you are being prepared for it, deep within. So don’t be discouraged if you don’t feel like you look strong on the outside. Don’t be disheartened by those who seem to wear a kind of confidence and certainty that you will never have. It’s true: you will never look like them. But they will never look like you, and whatever positive thing you see in them, you can see that in you, too. I don’t know if you’re the one in the family who always gets overlooked or if you’re the friend that is expected to always have it together, and I don’t know if this year was one of the best or one of the most difficult, but I do know this: you are going to get where you need to be when you need to get there. You are going to be guided by endless Light even in the middle of nowhere. Even amongst a thousand endless questions of where you’re going to work, where you’re going to school, when you’re going to get in a relationship, when you’re going to have kids—you are free to answer with the truth. Often times others mean well, and many times they are only looking to have a conversation, but don’t ever let that make you feel that you have to pretend to have something figured out that you don’t yet. If anyone truly wants to know how you’re doing and what you have been up to, talk them about how you’ve grown in joy. Talk to them about how this year taught you how to be stronger than you ever thought you would be. Tell them the story about how through all the mountains and valleys of this year, you found endless, boundless grace. Nobody has it all figured out yet. Nobody knows exactly what’s next. But we all have this present moment to live and also reflect on how far we have come. – Morgan Leave a comment below: what ways have you grown this year that you might share with others in your life?
A post shared by MHN (@morganharpernichols) on Dec 21, 2018 at 8:12am PST
Nichols comes from a background in music and continues her work in the industry today. She has been involved in various Grammy-nominated projects and has been a contributing writer to Billboard-topping songs.
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1. For the one with the broken heart: “With all that you know now, may you carry on with hope: the audacity to believe there is still more road to go. Arise anew on summer mornings, where mercy runs and rushes in, after all that you have been through it will only give you strength: To travel on and travel light, to travel deep into the night, treading on with firm belief: in the end, you’ll be alright. With all that you know now, you can carry on with hope, the audacity to live, for there is so much life to go.” 2. For the one unable to see her progress 3. For the one with heavy worries 4. For the one with a crowded mind, entering new territory on the journey 5. For the one dealing with anxiety 6. For the one who works a lot, and doesn’t have a lot of time left at the end of the day 7. For the artist who has not felt seen or supported in her endeavors 8. For the one longing to be able to sleep tonight 9. For the one seeking joy 10. For the one whose year has not quite turned out the way she thought it would ♥️ got out of my comfort zone today and recorded these videos with you in mind. I hope wherever you are, you are encouraged in knowing that you are heard, you are seen, and there is grace to make it through all of these things. – M
A post shared by MHN (@morganharpernichols) on Jun 11, 2018 at 8:39pm PDT
Given Nichols’s music background, it’s not uncommon for her poems turn into songs. With her book, Storyteller: 100 Poem Letters
Nichols is also on the board of directors at To Write Love on Her Arms , a non-profit organization whose mission is to spread hope to those struggling with addiction or self-harm and to invest in their recovery. Do we actually have the same amount of hours in a day as her? It floors us how powerful she is, and how real she stays in her prose.
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Perhaps, even here, I am growing. When the days are long and I do not feel as strong and when the hours go by slower than they ever have before, and sun is shining and I am lost indoors, perhaps even here, I am growing…learning to be at peace in what does not make sense to me. Perhaps, even here I am growing. + About these slides: 1. Words written a year ago that I came across today. Wasn’t feeling well at all today, and I know for sure I needed to be reminded of this… 2. So I wrote it down again 3. Thinking about “how even here, I am growing,” I wrote these words for someone who left a 🖤 comment on a recent post. I don’t know her story, but perhaps if there’s ever a day she feels like that, I sent these words to her. 4. I almost started over when I wrote a letter wrong, but then I remembered it’s okay for everything not to be the way I thought it would be. Even when it comes to handwriting. 5. I doodled this while listening to the words of C.S. Lewis being read on YouTube. 6. Doodled with nothing more in mind than the words written 7. I often write this over and over. I know for others it may get repetitive but I believe there’s a reason I feel led to write this often. 8. The beginning of writing #3 9. Caught a glimpse of a photo of Cordoba, Spain, and just wanted to try to sketch it out, even with this terrible headache I have had 10. Another doodle…just a way to rest, after a very long last few days. + Sometimes you just have to pick up the pen and write. It doesn’t have to make sense. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Sometimes you just have to #fillthejournal. The journal I wrote in today was from 10 years ago, but I am determined to finish all of my unfinished journals (feel free to join me using the hashtag #fillthejournal!). I am determined to finish them on the days where I am inspired and motivated and on the days like today where I’m sitting on the couch, staring up at the ceiling, trying to rest. Starting to feel better now, and I consider it a huge blessing to still be able to write and create and grow, even on days like this. + Leave a 🖤 below if you’d like me to write something for you. I randomly select people to write for each day.
A post shared by MHN (@morganharpernichols) on Apr 5, 2018 at 9:25pm PDT
Nichols shares insight into her motivation to continue to write and create via her Instagram profile. We hope she never stops.
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Swipe for poems and quotes and leave a comment if you have a favorite! It helps me know what to write for you, if you’d like something…even if it’s not listed, it means the world to me to be able to know what resonates with others. + ABOUT THIS PROJECT Everyday, I write and make words/art for people who I do not know who send me messages and leave comments. The reason I do this is because writing and making art is a huge part of who I am, I am inspired by people and their stories, and I hope that in being able to write for you and share in this space, we can all encourage each other in our journeys. + However, you may noticed that I don’t share the actual stories behind the pieces. The reason I don’t share that (even anonymously) is to first, protect their privacy, and also, to give space to what I believe is missing sometimes in our world: maybe we don’t have to have the details of someone’s story to have empathy. Maybe we don’t always have to know “what happened” to take a moment for them. I am not saying that our unique stories are not important because they most certainly are. And I believe we should tell our stories. However, sometimes people share their stories with us and sometimes they don’t. Either way, they are a human being with a story. We all have stories. And whether or not we know details of each other’s stories, we can take time to listen in our conversations, our daily lives, and even our art. 📷: my husband @kekoanichols on our first trip to Oahu sometime back where I got to meet a lot of his family for the first time.
A post shared by MHN (@morganharpernichols) on Mar 27, 2018 at 8:57am PDT
Keep up with Nichols on Instagram (@Morganharpernichols) or visit her website: morganharpernichols.
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