My Love Story

MWP

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LOVE STORY 2021

Editors' Note

love

In a world that tells us, we are not good enough, pretty enough, wealthy enough, smart enough... Love is an act of resistance.

PERIOD. Love permeates every single aspect of our lives. Yet, we struggle with understanding and knowing love, especially self love. We live in a world that floods us with opinions of who we "should" be, how we "should" speak and act, and just about any other thing that humans can think of policing. As we worked on this issue, we couldn't help but to ask ourselves... How many of us sit in peace knowing what love means in our lives and how are we practicing love? How do we prioritize self love so that it isn’t a luxury that’s afforded to those who have the time and space to find themselves, and instead create safe spaces where womxn of color can learn to love themselves from a very young age?

Last year, we were hit with a global pandemic that has and continues to disproportionately affect womxn of color.

Undoubtedly, it was a year of change with grief hovering over our communities. For some of us, it was the first time we spent time with ourselves. Time in stillness, solitude, time in the home called our minds, which we know isn’t always the easiest place to be.

Loving ourselves may often feel like a hard-fighting battle as opposed to a journey. There are systemic issues, deeply ingrained and rooted, to ensure that we don’t tune into our power; our divine being. It was so important for us to create an issue that was authentic, wholesome and didn’t just focus on those feel-good moments of loving yourself, but also those really difficult moments when you question if you will ever get there. www.mwpmag.com

In this issue, we tell the stories of innocence, insecurity, confidence, identity, heartbreak and spirituality; Some of the things that contribute to self love or the lack there of. We invite you on this journey with us– the never-ending journey of self love.

This issue was made possible by our creative fam; all amazingly talented people of color. We will always take pride in our community and collaborate with folks to bring you the magic that is presented in every single issue. It's both humbling and astounding to think that were able to make this happen during this challenging time. A special thank you to our cover womxn, Brujas of Brooklyn, for being a constant reminder for womxn of color to prioritize self care and love. To all our contributors, from photographers, to writers, to make up artists, stylists, creative directors, hair stylists, and assistants– we thank you for believing in us, trusting the vision, and helping us bring our first MWP Mag issue – My Love Story – to life.

Eileen & Jarlyne Co-Founders, MWP Mag

Before you embark on this journey, we invite you to create a peaceful space for yourself. Perhaps grab some tea or wine, play our Issue 001 Spotify playlist, put your feet up and if you're from NY, like us, grab yourself a heart shaped bacon egg & cheese.

Remind yourself that you are LOVE.

CREATIVE FAM CONTRIBUTORS

Editors

Black Is Magic

Jarlyne Batista Monzon Eileen Nuñez

Model: Albamarina Nahar Photographer/Videographer: Heaven Horton Leigh Video Producer: Jarlyne Batista Monzon

Writer: Gaby Comprés

Yo... Self Love Model: Elizabeth Brown Writer: Elizabeth Brown Creative Direction: Jarlyne Batista Monzon & Eileen Nuñez Photographer: Eileen Nuñez MUA: Jarlyne Batista Monzon

Metamorphosis Model: Ashley Boyce Creative Direction: Jarlyne Batista Monzon & Eileen Nuñez Photographer: Riana Khan Stylist: Eileen Nuñez MUA: Jarlyne Batista Monzon

Radical Hope Model: Margarita Lila Rosa Writer: Margarita Lila Rosa Creative Direction: Jarlyne Batista Monzon & Eileen Nuñez Photographer: Riana Khan MUA: Dianca Fernandez Stylist: Eileen Nuñez Set Design: Jarlyne Batista Monzon, Riana Khan, & Eileen Nuñez

Rise Above Model: Jarlyne Batista Monzon Creative Director/Stylist: Eileen Nuñez Photographer: Riana Khan MUA: Jarlyne Batista Monzon

THANK YOU

Please You Creative Direction: Jarlyne Batista Monzon & Eileen Nuñez Photographers: Antonio Dillard, Riana Khan, Anete Lusina, Deyanira Marte MUA: Daryam Fernandez Stylist: Eileen Nuñez

Shine Model: Riana Khan Creative Direction: Eileen Nuñez Photographer: Eileen Nuñez MUA: Jarlyne Batista

Miss You Love You Model: Tiffany Rae Chan Creative Direction: Jarlyne Batista Monzon, Eileen Nuñez, Nasrah Omar Photographer: Nasrah Omar MUA: Lisbeth Baez Stylist: Eileen Nuñez

ME WITH POWER MAG

A Tiny Poem

Tune In (Feature) Models: Griselda Rodriguez-Solomon & Miguelina Rodriguez Audio: Griselda Rodriguez-Solomon & Miguelina Rodriguez Creative Direction: Jarlyne Batista Monzon & Eileen Nuñez Photographer & Video Producer: Deyanira Marte MUA: Lisbeth Baez & Dianca Fernandez Stylist: Eileen Nuñez Hair: Riana Khan & Melissa Simøn

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SUPPORT WOC CREATIVES

More than a publication, MWP mag is a COMMUNITY. It is a space where you can create, connect, and collaborate with womxn of color creatives.

At MWP mag, we believe that visual storytelling has the power to heal. WOC deserve to share our stories, tap into our creative beings, and see actual representations of ourselves in art, music, the media... everywhere.

This issue exists because of YOU. If you would like to support us, there is a suggested donation of $15 for this issue. You can donate directly to our donation campaign by clicking the link below.

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MAG | Issue 001

MY LOVE STORY A Tiny Poem To be. That is Enough | Gaby Comprés

Innocence Hood Skies Dear Younger Self

Insecurity | Confidence Yo... Self Love | Elizabeth Brown Metamorphosis | Ashley Boyce, Riana Khan

Identity Radical Hope | Margarita Rosa, Riana Khan Rise Above Black Is Magic/Pieces of Me | Albamarina Nahar

Sensuality | Sexuality Please You

Heartbreak Shine Miss U, Love U | Tiffany Rae Chan, Nasrah Omar

Spirituality Tune In | Brujas of Brooklyn, Deyanira Marte

STAPLES Editors' Note Creative Fam Donate In the Issue | Shop Guide

T J I L

H E O U R N E Y S N O T I N E A R 3

what to do, in order to be loved? what to do, to be worthy of love? and the answer comes: to be. to be. to be.

-gaby comprés

"If we give our children sound self-love, they will be able to deal with whatever life puts before them."

- bell hooks

I N N O C E N C E

H E A L I N N E R C H I L D

dear younger self,

Photography by Deyanira Marte

Photography by Jarlyne Batista-Monzon

“Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is selfpreservation, and that is an act of political warfare.”

- Audre Lorde

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Yo...

Self Love Photography by Eileen Nuñez

Not sure if it’s eating Doritos or depriving myself of some.

Can’t tell if it’s logging off gmail for a fraction of time to take a bath or if I’m low-key avoiding responsibilities.

Are you a game of this or that?

Is it to be my authentic self and say no to invites? But then what about FOMO? I have questions. Defining you acutely triggers my anxiety.

I love myself.

I understand “how” to take care of myself.

At least the literal words in isolation.

But what do I do with MY isolation?

My neighbors are tired of my incense. Exhausted from the sage lingering in the hall.

Energetic voices of podcasters drowned my negative thoughts, assuaging me of discontent for 95 minutes.

Yet when that’s over... and the corners of my apartment go silent.

E L I Z A B E T H

B R O W N

m me et ta am mo or rp ph ho os s ii s s

Photography by Riana Khan

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Photography by Riana Khan

Radical Hope

I believe that in 2020, more than in any other year, we were transformed by the emergence of radical hope. Championed by scholars like Imani Perry, Sonia Sanchez, and bell books, radical hope is anchored in a deep Black feminist practice. Radical hope, unlike any other emotion, rids us of notions of passivity and instills in us the knowledge that we can and we will. Hope is the antithesis of apathy and cynicism. It says, “our ancestors have stood up before and I will stand up now.” It’s a collective striving, rather than an individualist, corporatist effort to “get ahead” and “make it out."

Margarita Lila Rosa

At this time in my life, I have conviction about the fact that there is no honor in “making it out” when so many others in my community are still weighed down by the economic and social constraints of the gig economy on one hand, and corporate feminism on the other. I have conviction that a politics that represents women must also represent low-income Black women and all individuals of marginalized genders. I have a conviction that it is not the individual savior that makes history, but the collective striving that allows individuals to speak without interruption. And I have a conviction that, it is only by learning who we truly can be that we can garner the kind of power that can save us. In 2021, we strive to rid ourselves of the notions of perseverance that have up to this moment, defined our individual narratives at the expense of everyone around us.

As I near the end of my Ph. D studies at Princeton University, I cannot help but feel that the past six years have gone by all too quickly. And yet, when I sit and contemplate the passage of time, I recognize that my nails have grown longer, my hair has lost the last tinges of dye, and my eyes glow differently. Perhaps something fundamental has occurred during this time.

In 2020, we saw a wave of uprisings against police brutality that radicalized communities among the left and solidified the movement for Black life. We saw the deadliest pandemic in a century wash upon the shores of all seven continents. And we saw communities utterly transformed as widespread unemployment and poverty widened income disparities and the coronavirus moved communities inside. But perhaps something else, something subtle yet deeply profound, has happened to us—those of us who for years have been waiting for this political moment to arrive.

And so, it does seem that my nails have grown longer, and my hair has lost the final tinges of dye. But if you look deep into my eyes, you will see a new glimmer, a glimmer defined by radical hope.

Hope in the collective. Hope in us.

Rise

Above Photography by Riana Khan

CIGAM SI KCALB CIGAM SI KCALB CIGAM SI KCALB CIGAM SI KCALB CIGAM SI KCALB CIGAM SI KCALB

Pieces of Myself The time sticks again and I feel uneasy because for the hundredth time I’m running blind with a feeling And learning in a new place with a new face Where people won’t be able to communicate the way I am used to Because a new language takes real digging deep And undoing my past unknowing it fast is what i needed to surpass my darkness Attempting to escape as the waves evaporate with my stillness Blinks of the eye remind me how terrified I was to understand self love To rediscover and redefine the fine lines of what can be mine by becoming super blind as if there were no time Blaming moments of generational curses Knowing damn well there was no versus Just me and me flesh to air mind to spirit The unraveling had to be in action to bring true satisfaction SELF LOVE BEING SCREAMED AT THE TOP OF MY LUNGS I’ve learned that the past me had to be sprung Thanking my travels experiences And the branches from the trees that compliment me beautifully When I look down reminding myself to look up And never give up Because my ancestors got me and my spirit tribe got me And my roots are chaotically colliding as my flowers are divining into many versions of myself Because I know my wealth

ALBAMARINA NAHAR

"Sexuality is personal. It is something that has to be owned or earned.Sometimes it's tainted because you've had horrible experiences or been robbed of your power."

- Rihanna

S E N S U A L I T Y

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Y O U

Photography by Riana Khan & Anthony Dillard

Photography by Riana Khan & Anete Lusina

Photography by Deyanira Marte and Riana Khan

“You’ve got to learn to leave the table when love’s no longer being served.”

- Nina Simone

H E A R T B R E A K

B R O K E N Y O U A R E N O T

S H I N E

Photography by Eileen Nuñez

MISS YOU LOVE YOU Photography by Nasrah Omar

Earrings BRWN GRLZ

"Yeah… and it’s about self love. I think the older I get, these dark nights happen less frequently and I am not pushed as deep because I realize I’m first and foremost God and then me."

- Dr. Griselda Rodriguez-Solomon

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Photography by Deyanira Marte

POURING INTO YOURSELF IS A FORM OF SELF LOVE A conversation between Dr. Griselda Rodriguez-Solomon and Dr. Miguelina Rodriguez, Brujas of Brooklyn

Miguelina: So I got an email at the end of last year, end of 2020, that it was my 10 year anniversary at Kundalini Yoga East, the yoga studio we technically started practicing Kundalini yoga. It got me in a space where I was really melancholic, but in a good way. I was just thinking about how far you and I have come and how central Kundalini yoga has been to our journey. And you know, thank God for Ricardo, our spiritual elder who introduced you, Griselda, to Kundalini yoga and now here we are.

Griselda: They say when the student is ready, the teacher would appear because I was in a really emotional tender place.

Miguelina: How old were you?

Gris: I was 25, not even in my Saturn’s return, and I was emotionally unwell. It was starting to affect my studies. I was in my PhD program and my advisor at the time, love you Dr. Linda Carty, she recommended that I see someone that she knows and trusts, who long story short ended up being our guide through the years who introduced us to Kundalini yoga. The beauty of it is that we didn’t even know we were doing Kundalini yoga until years down the line.

Miguelina: Because we went to see him for a reading.

Griselda: So he’s a priest. He would have me chanting and doing breathing activities for 40 days to calm my nervous system and care for my mind. I would do a lot of different 40 day practices to help me focus to write my dissertation. It’s a practice that’s really helped root me. Getting my PhD was an experience that was so lonely and difficult but I’m happy it happened because now this is the anchor of our work as the Brujas of Brooklyn.

Miguelina: And I think that what you just said about your PhD process being lonely and cold, that sometimes you felt misguided, at least that’s what I heard, you can take that and remove the PhD and essentially replace it with anything like your Saturn’s return, a marriage, a divorce, a new job, leaving an old job. Whatever it is, there are dark periods. Those dark nights of the soul and you know, you and I have gone through our fair share of them. As twins, we’ve gone through most of them together and Brujas of Brooklyn was created to assure people, especially women, people with wombs that you aight and if you don’t feel alright, we are here to hold that space and remind you that you’re alright. You will be more than alright when you come to the other side of it. I know I could speak for both of us. We’ve been through some really desperate times. India Arie says “I don’ been through some painful things I thought that I would never make it through” and now we’re here and I look at that 25 year old, 28 year old, 30 year old Migue and I hold her with so much tenderness but I also know that she needed to go through all of that to get to where she is now.

Griselda and Miguelina (left to right)

Griselda: Yeah… and it’s about self love. I think the older I get, these dark nights happen less frequently and I am not pushed as deep because I realize I’m first and foremost God and then me. I pour into myself and pouring into yourself is a form of self love that looks whatever way it looks for you. Bath, journaling, crying, singing, yelling, moving, isolating, socializing, whatever you need to do to pour into yourself. This is especially what this new age is calling and one of the things we love about Kundalini yoga is the central place in which the voice and chanting plays in the practice. So we are going to briefly sing the closing of the practice so every time you practice Kundalini yoga on your own or in a studio or collective, you close by singing this beautiful song and chanting this mantra Sat Nam, which means truth is my identity.

Miguelina: So Sat Nam means truth is my identity. We are going to serenade you. Let's start.

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Earrings GRL Collective

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ME WITH POWER MAG

IN THE ISSUE SELF LOVE SHOP GUIDE

I Am Right Where I Need to be eucalyptus affirmationcandle | $28 Chantal Diaz Collection @chantaldiazco | bychantaldiaz.com

Black Girl Magic coaster set of 2 | $20 Cherished By Cocoa @cherishedbycocoa | cherishedbycocoa.com

Miss U / Love U earrings | $50 BRWNGRLZ @brwngrlz | brwngrlz.com

'Say Something' GRL PWR earrings | $68 GRL Collective @grlcollective | grlcollective.com

Self Love engraved bar chain necklace | $22 Sea of Marina @seaofmarina | seaofmarina.com

Wear Your Crown gold necklace | $30 MWP Mag @mwp.mag | mwpmag.com

Witch Don’t Kill My Vybe aura cleanser | $22 Brujas of Brooklyn @brujasofbrooklyn | brujasofbrooklyn.com

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MAG

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