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The Strange is Beautiful

Alternative self-care for mind obstacles.

kelly duarte

Latina-American Teens With Depression Don’t Need DNA Testing, They Need Cultural Connection: “Some Girls” Documentary Review

Posted by strange on June 13, 2019
Latina-American Teens With Depression Don’t Need DNA Testing, They Need Cultural Connection: “Some Girls” Documentary Review

While scrolling through Instagram, I came across “Some Girls” documentary. I was excited to finally find a film that focused on depression in teen Latina-Americans, something I wished existed when I was in high school with depression. That day I texted Kelly Duarte, The Strange is Beautiful’s media and pop culture contributor, and we met up to watch it together for free on Kanopy, a video streaming service for public libraries. Though the documentary has a lot of great things about it, such as bringing awareness to this under represented and under researched issue, we were disappointed because it ignored many root reasons of why Latina-American teens are more likely to get depression, and disagreed with the creator’s choice to use DNA testing as a means of healing – especially because they claim it helped them, yet they never had depression.

Posted in: Kelly Duarte, Media Reviews, Self Care, Shannen | Tagged: #thestrangeisbeautiful, anti-blackness, anti-blackness in latinas, anti-blackness in latinos, chicano studies, cultural connection, dna testing, documentary latina teen depression, documentary on latina depression, kanopy, kelly duarte, Latina depression, Latina-American Teens, Latina-Americans, latinas, latinx, latinx depression, latinx teens, latinx youth, raquel cepeda, shannen roberts, some girls, some girls doc, the strange is beautiful

Your Inner Glow – March Poetry

Posted by strange on April 3, 2018
Your Inner Glow - March Poetry

by Kelly Duarte

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“Eclipsed”

How much brighter do you think you can get?
Your beams already fall into my eyes
And you burn into my memories
So stunningly
That images of you lay over
The visions of every day.
My dreams are washed out
And replaced with your glow.
I’m not sure if I’m seeing you
In my future
Or seeing a lasting flash
From the camera
Holding the pictures of us
From my past
But I keep my eyes open
Because I’d rather be blinded
By your light
Than to see clear in a darkness
That only happens when you’re gone

Posted in: Georgia St. Jones, Janie, Kelly Duarte, Poetry, TSIB Staff Poetry | Tagged: black poet, georgia st. jones, glow, glow poetry, guatemalan poet, guatemalan writer, janie johnson, kelly duarte, poetry, self love poetry

A Love Letter to Myself: Self-Love Zine

Posted by strange on February 22, 2018
A Love Letter to Myself: Self-Love Zine

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A Love Letter To Myself

Dear Kelly:

I’m going to be honest, I’ve been wanting to express my love for you in person but I couldn’t get myself to do it. So I wrote you this love letter instead.

I admire the weird sense of humor you refuse to apologize for. I love that you read so many books. I admire the strength you have to get through situations without crying. I enjoy the adventurous spirit you have. I think you have a cute smile.

Don’t be afraid to truly open yourself up to others and be vulnerable.

I am proud that you were able to survive 2017 and I want you to truly thrive in 2018. So far you’ve gotten published in a couple zines, started a podcast and attended some awesome concerts.

Even though you don’t always like your body, I love it.

Remember to treat yourself to some milk tea and books because you deserve it!

I love you. You are so valuable, important and significant in my life.

Love,
Kelly

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You are going to live a full life. A life you could never have dreamed of.

You will travel the world. Swim in the Atlantic. Eat a beignet at Cafe Du Monde in New Orleans. Return to your roots and visit the remnants of a Mayan city. See snow at the top of a mountain.

You will find love. After years of pleading, you’ll finally get a dog. A small beagle that follows you everywhere. You’ll find friends in unlikely places. In dorm rooms at two in the morning. At open mics. In the bathrooms of clubs. You will find someone that brings you a shit ton of Gatorade when you have the flu. You will find someone that looks at you like you are the most beautiful girl in the world. But most importantly you will find love within yourself.

You will falter. You will learn that life is hard and the good times also come with the bad. You will learn what heartbreak is. You will learn what grief is. You will learn what depression is. There will be moments when you are in pain and will do anything to make it stop. But you will survive.

There is still a lot you want to do. There is still more you will do. Because you are willful and could summon the world if you wanted to.

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Free/ Low- Cost Self Care List

  • Long, hot showers
  • Catching up/binging shows
  • Visiting an art gallery/free museum
  • Reading web comics
  • Going on Amazon or Sephora and adding a bunch of stuff to the shopping cart but never actually buying anything
  • Making collages/moodboards out of old newspapers and magazines
  • Going for walks in the rain
  • Keeping a diary
  • Meditating
  • Sending memes to the group chat
  • Napping in the middle of the day
  • Treating yourself to a mini flan
  • Thrift shopping and finding something amazing and unique
  • Watching episodes of “Bob Ross: The Joy of Painting”
  • Getting succulents and learning to nurture and care for something else
  • Going to the pet stores to look at the cats
  • Playing around with Snapchat Filters
  • Folding laundry while it’s still warm
  • Eating ice cream on a hot day
  • Organizing your bookshelf by color or alphabetical order
  • Putting up posters around your room
  • Creating Zines
  • Posted in: Advice for Mind Obstacles, Kelly Duarte, Self Care | Tagged: kelly duarte, self care zine, self love zine, the strange is beautiful, write a love letter to yourself, zines, zinester

    Self-Care Is Not Just A Skin Routine

    Posted by strange on January 29, 2018

    Reflection. It is the edge of a pool that I don’t want to dive into. I don’t know what’s under the surface. It may take minutes, hours, months, even years. Eventually I dive into myself. Reflection can be a scary yet necessary part of self-care. Understanding your trauma is essential to recovery.

    Posted in: Advice for Mind Obstacles, Kelly Duarte, Self Care | Tagged: bath bomb, kelly duarte, self-care is not just a skin routine, self-care monthly themes, the strange is beautiful

    A Light in the Sea of Trees: Review of “Suicide Forest in Japan” Documentary

    Posted by strange on January 24, 2018
    A Light in the Sea of Trees: Review of "Suicide Forest in Japan" Documentary

    Topic Warning: Suicide and Depression

    At the base of Mt. Fuji, there’s a well known Japanese forest known as Aokigahara or Jukai, which means “sea of trees.” The most popular name for it is the “suicide forest.” This is not a tourist destination, it is a mass grave. In what seems to be such a bleak place, there is a suicide patrol. One of the members is the focus of the documentary “Suicide Forest In Japan.”

    Azusa Hayano is a geologist that studies Mt. Fuji and the surrounding area. This is how he began patrolling the forest in order to prevent suicides. At first glance, the forest looks beautiful and tranquil. No one would know that this is a popular place for suicide until they stepped into the forest. However, this soon becomes evident due to the many methods meant to deter people from ending their lives in Jukai. Signs are posted in front of the main trail, urging people that suicide is not the answer as well as listing the hotline number for Suicide Prevention. Long, trailing ropes are around many of the trees, so people can find their way back if they get lost. Finally, volunteers like Azusa Hayano comb the forest.

    Screenshot (33)

    Communication is such a powerful tool, according to Hayano. As the crew wander the forest, Hayano describes a moment which he was able to calm a young man after he attempted suicide. Hayano and the man talked for more than an hour, until the man decided to go back home. Over the course of the documentary, you start to see how much compassion Hayano has. During their trek, the group stumbles across a man in a tent. Vice’s camera crew keeps their distance out of respect but you are able to catch a bit of their conversation. Hayano asks about the man’s well-being. There are no accusations. Hayano simply tells the man, “I hope you’re okay. I’m just trying to prevent suicides. Please take this way back.” Hayano points to the trail that leads out of the forest. When Hayano comes upon a stuffed animal nailed upside down to a tree, he tries to figure out why someone would do that. “I think this person was tortured by society,” he reasons. One of the most distressing scenes is when a skeleton is discovered. Hayano is visibly upset but also says he feels sorry for the victims of suicide. It’s these moments that show that Hayano deeply cares about people and is trying to stop them from ending their lives. As a scientist, he’s trying to find a reason these things happen in the Jukai in order to stop them. Although he is a geologist, he studies the Jukai because he is fascinated by human behavior. “I was curious why people kill themselves in such a beautiful forest. I still haven’t found the answer to that.”

    As the crew follows Hayano around, he starts to discuss why so many commit suicide. His theory? Face to face communication has been rendered obsolete. Extreme isolation is such a phenomenon with young people in Japan that the word “hikikomori,” social withdrawal, was created to describe it.

    “We still need to see each other’s faces, read their expressions, hear their voices, so we can fully understand their emotions,” says Hayano.

    Work culture

    Posted in: Kelly Duarte, Media Reviews | Tagged: Aokigahara, depression, depression awareness, documentary review, hikikomori, kelly duarte, Media Reviews, suicide, suicide forest in japan, the strange is beautiful, vice, vice documentary, work culture in japan
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