The George-Anne Reflector Magazine, Spring 2019

Student shares her experience with ANOREXIA NERVOSA page 8

INTRODUCING miscellany for the arts page 29

A LOOK INTO FASHION BRAND SOCIAL EXPERIMENT page 10

PARTY CULTURE

Page 15

05 06 08

Southern Limelight: Student Features

A Brief History of Braids

A Georgia Southern Studentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Recovery from Anorexia Nervosa

10 14 15

Beyond The Designs: Georgia Southern Student Brandon Curtis Aims For More With His Fashion Brand Game Day with GS Softball Player Mekhia Freeman Party Culture: The Dark SIde to College Partying

CONTENTS

20 22 24

The Georgia Picker: The Man Behind My Cousin Vinny’s Bargain Barn A Tale Of Two Main Streets: One Consignment Store’s Journey To Statesboro Sexual Assault Awareness Photo Story

27 29

How Much Of A Stereotypical College Student Are You? Quiz Miscellany - For The Arts

Staff List Editor-in-Chief Miscellany Editor Managing Editor

Blakeley Bartee Christina McKinley Noelle Walker

Creative Editor-In-Chief Rebecca Hooper Design Editor Aminatta Mbow Designers Morgan Carr Khiyah Griffin Kayla Hill Jayda Spencer

LETTER FROM THE

Editor

Dear reader,

Contributors Ashton Christianson Brett Daniel Julia Fechter Tony Ortega Akaria Stewart

Marketing Manager

Kevin Rezac

Our motto at The George-Anne Reflector Magazine is that college isn’t a phase; it’s a lifestyle. Likewise, our magazine is traditionally lifestyle-centric, encompassing

Director of Student Media Business Coordinator

David Simpson Samantha Reid

everything from fitness to fashion to cocktails - and also the ever-changing culture of our generation. But the college lifestyle isn’t all parties and spring break vacations. Sometimes, we’re stressed and exhausted and broke. In this issue, and on our website, we hope to take you through many facets of the Georgia Southern experience, both on and off campus. New to this issue is the section near the back of the magazine for our sister publication, Miscellany Magazine for the Arts. Once a print magazine of its own, Miscellany now resides online at miscellany. reflectorgsu.com. Miscellany went on a hiatus for a few years, but we revived it this semester to shine a light on the thriving arts and literary community at Georgia Southern. We hope you enjoy the selected works in this issue as much as we did. Best wishes,

Blakeley Bartee

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STATEMENT OF

OPERATIONS

The George-Anne Reflector is copyrighted 2019 by Reflector Magazine and Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, Ga. It is printed by South Georgia Graphics, Claxton, Ga. The Reflector is operated by GS students who are members of The George-Anne Media Group, a Georgia Southern student-led organization supported by the Division of Student Affairs. The magazine is produced twice a year by GS students for the Georgia Southern University community. Opinions expressed herein are those of the student writers and editors and DO NOT reflect those of the faculty, staff, administration of GS, nor the University System of Georgia. Partial funding for this publication is provided by the

GS Activities Budget Committee. Advertisements fund the remaining costs. Advertising inquiries may be sent to Office of Student Media, PO Box 8001, or by calling the Business Office at 912-478-5418. Inquiries concerning content should be sent to Magazine EIC Blakeley Bartee by emailing magseditor@ georgiasouthern.edu. All students are allowed to have one free copy of this publication. Additional copies cost $1 each and are available at the Office of Student Media in the Williams Center. Unauthorized removal of additional copies from a distribution site will constitute theft under Georgia law, a misdemeanor offense punishable by a fine and/or jail time.

SouthernLimelight

MARY FLOTT Designed by Rebecca Hooper and Morgan Carr Photos by Kristen Ballard

Mary Flott is a senior theater major at Georgia Southern. Flott is being recognized for her lighting design work in the schools theater production of “Emelie” that has earned her an invitation to the national Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) in Washington D.C. Flott really enjoyed theater in high school and chose to continue along that path in college. It was in her sophomore year, however, that professor Kelly Barry pushed her to take a lighting design class that would set her on course to attend the national KCACTF’s this April. “I’m glad he did because that’s what got me into it, and since then, I’ve been pushing to do as many lighting design projects as I can, and that’s why they asked me to do the design for ‘Emelie,’” said Flott. Since lighting is one of the the last elements implemented into the show, Flott does a lot of her work within last two weeks before technical operations start. For her, this means a lot of hanging and programming the lights in a specific way. Flott says she spent almost 17 hours a day working with the director in order to blend their visions for the show.

Along with her personal recognition for lighting design, the production itself was also nominated. Flott admitted that being a production designer on the road proved to have some difficulties. She said it was hard for her, as a young designer, to understand the process of taking a show from one space and putting it into a new space. As she prepares to attend the national festival, Flott must prepare a presentation that will include production photos, research images, and all the paperwork that has been done concerning the set and present the information to adjudicators. She is very excited to have the opportunity to attend the festival and see what opportunities await her. Flott said, “The thing I’m most excited about for nationals is all the master classes I get to attend and all the theater professionals I’ll get to network with, and I’m so excited to actually get my name out there and get my work presented in front of nationally acclaimed people, so it’s very exciting.” By Akaria Stewart

CONNER KIRSCH Conner Kirsch is a junior at Georgia Southern University, majoring in writing and linguistics with a minor in Animation and new media. He plans to graduate from Georgia Southern University in the fall of 2020. Connor mainly focuses on narrative sequential art, which is art that tells a story. “I focus in comics, storyboarding, animation and things of the like,” Kirsch said. He is the current president of the Animation and Illustration club and also the president of the Creative Writing Club. In Animation and Illustration club, they host craft tables and they also share projects amongst each other. While in the Creative Writing Club, they share writing and also respond to a weekly prompt. “It’s very enjoyable to be able to get a group of likeminded people together and talk about what we do,” Kirsch said. “It's nice to have that one central sense of

community around animation and illustration.” Kirsch also goes to events and mixers, where he talks to professionals and tries to get them to come to GS. As a kid, he wanted to become a biomedical engineer, but knew he had two marketable skills and realized he could choose a career that would make him love his job. Kirsch plans to keep working on creating more content and building his portfolio of comics and cartoons. “It's what I like to do and it's fun,” Kirsch said. “I want to be building a library of content for a portfolio so I can transition into a job.” You can check Kirsch’s art on his Instagram, @ connerkirsch, and check out his portfolio on his website. https://connerjkirsch.wixsite. com/portfolio By Tony Ortega

REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 5

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A BRIEF HISTORY OF

BRAIDS Designed by Aminatta Mbow Photo by Kristen Ballard

Today we know braids as something trendy. Often times, they’re used to express an individual’s style, whether it’s through the pattern, length, color or accessories. As a young black girl, getting my hair braided was a right of passage for me. I can remember one of the first times I ever got my hair braided by one of my cousins. The pain of parting and detangling. The frustration of feeling like I was missing out because while all of my other cousins were playing, I was crouched between legs on the floor with my butt getting more sore by the minute. And let’s not forget the agitation of sitting there for what felt like forever. But I also remember how pretty I felt when I looked in the mirror after it was done. I remember not being able to stop shaking my head because the click-clack of the beads was so infectious. I remember laying down that night and not being able to contain the excitement of showing off my new hairstyle at school the next morning. Those feelings were enough to erase all the trouble it took to get them done. At the time, I wasn’t aware of the rich history and value this hairstyle held for my ancestors. I just knew Alicia Keys had some, and what little girl didn’t want to be like Ms. Alicia back in ‘06? Now

that I understand a bit more about why this style is and has been such a staple in the black girl magic community, allow me to give you a brief history of black girls and braids.

THE CULTURE Although braids have been a part of many cultures for centuries like Asia and Europe, African braiding can be traced back to 3500 BC, according to Hair Venture. They were popular among women and different styles often indicated a woman’s tribe, age, status and even things like marital status. For example, the fulani braid style that is very popular now originates from the Fula Tribe who populate a large area of the West Africa and Sahel region. ONCHECK, an online boutique and blog site, described a traditional style for these women as five long braids that hang free or looped on the side with a tuft gathered in the middle and decorated with beads and cowrie shells. Braiding was also a social activity. The women would sit around as the elders braided each others and the younger girls hair. This is how the tradition was passed down from generation to generation.

NEW MEANINGS The book entitled “Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black

Hair in America” talks about the idea of the start of the Atlantic Slave Trade brought a new meaning for African women and their braids. With Sunday being the only day slaves had to take some time for themselves, there wasn’t any time for the delicate and intricate styles of braids. According to Lori. L Tharps, co-author of Hair Story, practicality became the use of the braiding style being the hairstyle needed to last a week and withstand their working conditions. Single plaits, braided crowns, and simple cornrows became the new normal. As time progressed, braids also became a secret messaging system for slaves to communicate with each other around their masters. The number of plaits would indicate how many roads one might need to travel in order to meet someone to escape.

POST-FREEDOM During the time of the Great Migration beginning in 1916, where nearly 6-million African-Americans flocked from the rural South to northern and western cities, a lot of women took jobs as domestics. Tharps said for many of them, their braids turned into perms in order to be more accepted. Women felt the need to straighten and chemically alter their tresses

because braids were now seen as being unsophisticated. There was also the feeling of moving forward. Many women to leave the painful history of their parents and grandparents behind. The straightened hair represented the new age of the black woman.

THE BIG RETURN According to U.S. History,the 1960’s Black Power-Movement is when the perception of our hair began to shift for us. During this time, African Americans were increasingly wanting to celebrate our roots and our history. As a result, our style and practices began to reflect that. The black celebrities of the 1960’s and 1970’s helped to bring braids back to the forefront of our culture in America. As we started to learn and become more connected to our roots, people began to notice. According to Spinditty, With Hip-Hop at its pinnacle in the late 90’s and early 2000’s the culture seen within the music became the new “cool.” Stars like Janet Jackson and Brandy helped to really push the style amongst black women in the 90’s. Since the return of the trend, many different styles and variations of braids have emerged. By Akaria Stewart

REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 7

A GEORGIA SOUTHERN STUDENT’S

ANOREXIA Georgia Southern University student Megan Manning suffers from anorexia nervosa. She was diagnosed in 2009 while in sixth grade and began receiving treatment at a psychiatric ward in her hometown of Augusta, Georgia.

Tell us about yourself. My name’s Megan Manning. I’m 21-years-old. I’m a senior, a journalism major, and when I’m not in class, I’m doing Kappa Delta stuff, which is my sorority. Most of the time, I’m in class. I love to dance, and I’ve always been a part of my sorority’s dance team.

What’s your family like?

“

What triggered your eating disorder, or what lead up to it?

I was in a children’s psychiatric ward. I had a routine schedule every single day. I had a special diet I had to follow. I had different medications I had to take every single day, therapy every day.

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I thought I was gonna die. I was so scared to be in there, getting pills shoved down my throat, getting blood drawn every morning. It was terrifying.

What did the ward look like? So, when you walk in there, there’s this huge [wall], and it was all steel. You had to have a special password to get in. You walk in, and it’s a hallway, and there’s rooms, and there’s a little tiny kitchen area. My room was the first one on the right. It had two beds in it because sometimes you shared a room, but there weren’t enough people there, so I had my own bedroom. I wore contacts at the time, and we didn’t have a mirror in our bathroom because they were scared we were gonna break it and do something to ourselves. And then you’d go down, you’d see a nurse’s station. There was actually a quiet room, where it’s this huge, safe-looking box, where you’d have to go if you were having a mental breakdown. And then if you go down the hall, there’s a classroom, a therapy room.

How long were you there? About a month, maybe a little less than a month.

It took that whole first half of my middle school year to finally [find] the right doctor, and I actually suffered from anxiety and we didn’t know it. I guess whenever I went through puberty, my serotonin chemical in my brain didn’t fully develop, and so that’s kind of what caused it. It wasn’t really something that caused my anxiety, but my anxiety caused my disorder.

What sort of treatment did you receive?

How did you feel, being in the ward?

Today, Megan is healthy, and she celebrated her 10th anniversary of recovery this year. But despite her good health today, she still struggles with unhealthy tendencies as a result of her eating disorder. This is Megan’s story, in her own words - the words of someone who survived harrowing experiences that many do not.

Photos Courtesy of Megan Manning

I have two little brothers. I have a mom and a dad, and they’re still married. They’re very supportive. They’re just the nicest family ever, you know. They’ll do anything for me if I ask them. If I ever needed something, they’d be there for me.

This is what happened when I was younger, and I still struggle with it every now and then.”

RECOVERY FROM

A NERVOSA Even now, I’m like, “Oh my You can put a whole spread like, “Gotta go to the gym,” or I I’m assuming your treatment continued gosh, these love handles in front of me, and I won’t have to work out, or I need to throughout middle school have got to go,” just jokingly touch it. Not now, obviously, eat a salad today. and things like that. I don’t see but [during my] younger days, But I’m almost 100 percent. and high school? Yeah. At the end of sixth grade in May, I was actually hospitalized for almost a month, because literally, my organs were shutting down. I had such bad anxiety. I was hospitalized and taken out of school and things like that.

In middle school and on into high school, was there ever anything like dieting and counting calories?

Photos Courtesy of Megan Manning

Like everybody else, I had Tumblr. And I would go on there and I would just look up the most negative things. I’d literally look up like skinniest people or people with anxiety, things like that. And it’d come up with lists and pages and pages and pages of a person looking at a scale, someone being so tiny, and people were like, “Yes, girl, you’re doing so good, keep going. You can get down to 90 pounds or whatever.” That was my Tumblr feed. That’s what kept it going. That’s what kept the eating disorder going. I didn’t so much count calories and things like that, but I danced all through my life. And that’s kind of what I kept up with, because I wouldn’t eat before [dance]. Plus, these girls are stick skinny next to me, me not thinking that I’m stick skinny at this point in my life. I’m like, “Oh, it’s fine. I’ll be okay. I’ll eat some gummy bears, and I’ll be fine.”

When you looked in the mirror, can you describe how that impacted your view, as compared to others?

what everybody else sees. People are like, “Oh, you don’t need to lose weight,” and I’m like, “Yeah, I do.” I see these girls, especially on social media, and these girls are literally tiny. I wanna look like that. I wanna be like that. So, looking in the mirror, I don’t see what other people see. I see the worst things. And even my boyfriend’s like, “Shut up. No, you don’t. You don’t need to lose weight or you don’t need to look a certain way.” I’m like, well, when I look in the mirror, yeah, I do. I’m like, wow, this mirror makes me look fat. This mirror makes me look huge. And I’m like, well, maybe I need to go on a diet or eat a salad tomorrow, and those tendencies will still come up. I look back on pictures and I’m like, oh my gosh, literally, I was skin and bones. I was tiny, and I thought I wasn’t tiny compared to these other dancers that were next to me. It just kind of blows my mind now that I’m healthy.

Living in the South, skinnier people often hear things like, “Eat a sandwich.” “Go eat a steak.” “Put some meat on your bones.” Did you ever receive any comments like that? Yeah, and I still do to this day. Even though I’m at a very healthy weight, a very normal weight, people are still like, “Oh my gosh, go eat a hamburger, go eat some ice cream.” And I’m like, you don’t understand that it’s not just about what you want me to eat. It’s all in my head.

I wouldn’t touch it. Being in the South, it’s also a very negative connotation when you have a mental illness or something. People don’t take you seriously. People will be like, “Oh, whatever, she’s just skinny.” So, I would get those comments, and like I said, I still do. And it’s kind of offensive because I’m like, you know how hard I worked to get here? And now I’m finally okay with myself?

I’ve had such great people in my life who have really helped me. And the eating disorder community is such an uplifting and helpful community with so many resources that you can reach out to and talk to. I can slip back into those tendencies, but they’re nowhere near as bad as they were. I’m very thankful for it and all the people who have helped me through it. That’s how I am today. I’m just like any other college kid.

How did you talk to your Talk about the community boyfriend about it? I actually have a semicolon and the resources tattooed on my ankle, available. because it’s the Semicolon Project about, you know, you could have ended something but you decided not to. And so we were just hanging out one day, and he was like, “Hey, I like your tattoos.” I was like, “What, are you not gonna ask me about them? I would be so curious.” So I started talking to him about it, and I was like, listen, this is what happened when I was younger, and I still struggle with it every now and then. Every day is not a good day. I have my bad days. When I have my bad days, they are worse than normal people’s bad days. I won’t eat. I don’t stress eat. I stress starve myself. And he understood. He’s one of the most comforting people you’ll ever meet.

It’s called the National Eating Disorder Association, and I joined it in high school. You can reach out to people online or you can meet up with them and they do these walks, which I did one time, and you get to talk to other people who have struggled with similar issues, with eating disorders.

What sort of advice do you have for other people who are suffering from an eating disorder? Don’t care about other people. That’s the number one thing. If I wouldn’t have cared about the person next to me, I probably wouldn’t have tried to become someone that I wasn’t, and the size that I wasn’t supposed to be. But I cared too much about the person next to me.

How much of a struggle is your eating disorder By Brett Daniel today? Ashton Christianson, Reflector Now, I still try to eat healthy. If I see myself getting a little love handle on me, I’m

Campus Editor, contributed to this article.

If you or someone you know needs help, please contact the Georgia Southern Counseling Center at 912478-5541 or the National Eating Disorder Association Helpline at 800-931-2237. REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 9

BEYOND THE DESIGN GEORGIA SOUTHERN STUDENT BRANDON CURTIS AIMS FOR MORE WITH HIS FASHION BRAND

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REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 11

Creating a fashion brand is a very popular entrepreneurial endeavor. With an industry that is about creativity and innovation, brands often benefit from having a unique characteristic that distinguishes them from all the others. Senior public health major Brandon Curtis started his brand, Social Experiment with that idea in mind. Curtis established the brand in November of 2016 as a solo project, looking to bring fashion and social awareness together. The name “Social Experiment” stems from a lot of the social issues he chooses to highlight throughout his brand’s designs, much like the “Energies Hoodie” pictured on model Jamar Fordham. “We’re not the same; we don’t have the same experience … the way I react to something isn’t the same way you react to something because your experience in life is totally different from mine,” said Curtis. “It’s supposed to represent how we’re often caught up in ourselves and our own ideologies an our own

Modeled by Kynard McCray, Brandon Curtis ( Owner), Jamar Fordham, and Robynn Melzar 12 | REFLECTOR Spring 2 0 1 9

perspectives on people. A lot of the issues we have with each other can be settled with a simple discussion.” The fashion designer aims to use his brand as a way to broadcast his thoughts and his experiences to the world from his own perspective. Using one of his experiences being a young African-American male, he created the “M.I.A Crewneck,” pictured on model Kynard McCray, that he feels represents some of his thoughts when it comes to black men in America. “Art is usually coming from whoever is the artist. It’s his experience,” said Curtis. “That’s really my take on it, that we value a lot of things because they’ve been kept from us [African-American community], or through programming or through the media and things like that. We value it way more than we actually need to.” Since starting with Social Experiment, Curtis has gained things that have helped his brand grow, such as knowledge on budgeting that allows him to produce more merchandise. He has also started partnering with Fordham on photography and

promotion to really push the creative vision for the brand. As Curtis prepares to graduate and head to Augusta University for his masters in nursing, he has plans to expand the brand. ”I don’t want it to be limited to just Georgia Southern … I want it to be in the street with communities where I’m able to help people and able to put other people on through my brand as well as taking care of my family,” said Curtis.

For a closer look at Social Experiments merchandise visit their site: https://socialexperimentclo.com/social-experiment-clothing

By: Akaria Julia Fechter

Stewart

REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 13

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Photo by Sindi Patani

h t i w y a d Game

Photos by Kristen Ballard

REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 15 Designed by Aminatta Mbow

The Scene: 10 o’clock on a Friday night. $5 for guys, free for girls. Throngs of people fill in a small, empty living room area. Dancing to the pulsating beat of the music. People drink out of red, plastic cups, reveling in the “all you can drink alcohol.” If you’re lucky, there’ll be something other than hunch punch. More and more people come and fill in the room, it gets ten degrees hotter, but people drink and dance and drink until you don’t notice it anymore. This seems to be party culture at colleges today. In the last five years, the university has on record a total of 1,054 social events by fraternities and 625 social events by sororities from Summer 2014 to Spring 2019.

WHAT IS PARTY CULTURE? Culture is defined as the “ideas, customs, and social behaviour of a particular people or society,” according to the Oxford English dictionary. Party culture would follow this definition, except it would involve the social group of people who attend parties. “Unfortunately I feel as if party culture challenges you to push your limits as well because you want to see how much fun you can have, how much you can drink with your friends, and a lot of it is sponsored by peer pressure,” said University Wellness at Georgia Southern University Lauren Kiskunes.

PARTY CULTURE AT GEORGIA SOUTHERN 16 | REFLECTOR Spring 2 0 1 9

“Here at Georgia Southern, we are known as a party school, which drives me crazy because every school is a ‘party school,’ but, you know, you become 21 and you want to drink and that’s okay … but I feel like, unfortunately here and I don’t know if this is everywhere but if you don’t go out and drink or you don’t smoke or something that people look at you differently, or are like ‘you’re a goody two shoes,’ and that’s not necessarily the case,” said Kiskunes. Kiskunes said one of the main activities the town offers is going to the bar, and eating and drinking together with friends. She said football season and also the stress of college is a contributor. University Wellness Ambassador Keisha Lockhart said she thinks party culture includes drinking, drugs sometimes and going to kickbacks and clubs, such as the Blue Room

ALCOHOLISM/ SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND PARTY CULTURE The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism found that “almost 60 percent of college students ages 18–22 drank alcohol in the past month, and almost 2 out of 3 of them engaged in binge drinking during that same timeframe.” “About 20 percent of college students meet the requirement for Alcohol Use Disorder,” which is “is a chronic relapsing brain disease characterized by compulsive alcohol use, loss of control over alcohol

intake, and a negative emotional state when not using,” according to the The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. “I feel like alcohol is the basis,” Kiskunes said. “Most people consume alcohol before they try drugs or other things. Whether it’s wine or whiskey, it all has the same effect eventually. I would say alcohol is the main culprit, now whether you choose to look at that negatively or positively is your choice in this situation … pretty much everyone drinks regardless of whether it’s legal or not.” Brooks said what people expect college to be and what they think their peers are doing is also very important. Lockhart said she thinks that, part of the college experience, is that people expect you to do these types of things. She said she feels that alcohol is easier to get to compared to drugs like weed and adderall. “Unfortunately, if you hear someone say they dont drink, it’s weird in today’s culture … it’s really just a common activity,” said Kiskunes. Lockhart said sometimes people can be addicted and use alcohol or substances as a coping mechanism, and she said she’s heard a lot of people say substances such as weed or adderall allow them to escape from reality. “I’ve heard a lot of people say substances like weed, adderall, or whatnot allows them to escape from reality,” said Lockhart.

HOW DOES PARTY CULTURE IMPACT ALCOHOLISM AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE? Jessica Brooks is an assistant professor of clinical and counseling psychology. She has a doctorate in counseling psychology from the University of Georgia, master’s degree in clinical psychology from North Dakota State University and her bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Minnesota Duluth. Most of her research focuses on alcoholism and alcohol use behaviors. Brooks said heavy drinking in college may just be a phase of life for some students, but for others, it could become a diagnosable addiction. On whether party culture leads to addiction, Brooks said the answer for some people is yes. She said there are a few factors that can lead someone to become addicted to alcohol, like people who use it to cope with negative emotions or to enhance already existing positive emotions. “Those tend to be individuals more susceptible to long-term problems and heavier drinking in general because they are using it to manipulate their feelings versus people just who do it for more social reasons,” Brooks said. Brooks said that people who use alcohol for socially motivated reasons have less of a likelihood of having problems. Other contributing factors are people who like to take risks because they are more impulsive and more prone

to sensation seeking, which tends to be strongly linked with addiction, Brooks said. “There might be some genetic vulnerabilities underlining that,” Brooks also said. “Biologically, there’s vulnerabilities for some people to develop a substance use problem if they’ve had someone in their immediate family become addicted to something,” Brooks said. Trauma that may happen in a person’s environment and environmental stressors may encourage someone to seek out substance use, Brooks said. “Now there’s a difference between substance use and abuse,” said Kiskunes “If you’re using Adderall to study, and you’re prescribed that, well there’s not an issue with that, that is substance use but not in the negative sense.” Kiskunes said some students might be spending money they may not have on drugs, facing addiction, getting criminal charges and getting kicked out of school. “It unfortunately opens up a lot of windows to a lot of negatives and cons rather than pros,” said Kiskunes. Brooks said that, often, people are not going to think they’ll develop a problem. “Oftentimes, it’s a person who’s curious and open to those new experiences that tries it and might get hooked,” Brooks said. “Depending on the drug, it might happen fast.” She used the example of methamphetamine, talking about the campaigns where they say something along the lines of, “Don’t

even try it once, not even once,” because it’s really addictive. So the physical properties of a drug can really shape a person’s need for it, Brooks explained. “The way that we define addiction is both the physical dependency that a person displays, and also the psychological dependency that a person might have for a substance that they need in order to function both physically and mentally and in the presence of not using the substance anymore,” Brooks said. She explained that there are dependency and withdrawal symptoms, and it differs based on the substance. “The way that a person

go-to way to cope with things.” Brooks continued, saying that slowly but surely a person may think that is the most effective in the moment, and so all other types of habits kind of give way to that, and so their responses to things around them is so narrow that substance abuse becomes the one thing that they do to deal with things. Addiction has many different pathways to get there, Brooks said, “but the things that we look for are dependency on the substance, negative consequences of their use—is it impairing their functioning in work, school, their social lives—and then also do they have problems stopping use? And if they

A LOT OF PEOPLE SAY SUBSTANCES LIKE WEED, ADDERALL, OR WHATNOT ALLOWS THEM TO ESCAPE FROM REALITY. becomes addicted depends on the person and then also factoring that in with the type of drug they use,” Brooks said. “In the work that I do, alcohol research, it develops a little slower sometimes just because of the way that the drug works and so a person may just use problematically for awhile, and that may come in the form of periodic binge drinking episodes, and then, slowly over time, it becomes their habit or their

do, do they have withdrawal symptoms, and that’s how we determine if someone is addicted and to what level they are addicted.” Brooks said she doesn’t know if party culture causes misuse of substances, but she believes there’s a correlation with it. “I feel like in today’s world, drugs and substance abuse is a part of the culture, even if it’s not party culture even if it’s you’re taking your friend’s adderall to study for a test,” said Kiskunes.

REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 17

PARTY CULTURE AND ITS EFFECTS ON SCHOOL Brooks said she has worked at a number of university counseling centers providing therapy, she finds that party culture, when it becomes one of the focal points of a student’s life, can negatively impact a student’s mental health, physical health and ability to stay on track academically. Lockhart and Kiskunes both said partying can take

24 reported experiencing alcohol-related sexual assault or date rape,” according to the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Brooks said she doesn’t know if rape culture stems from party culture—that it would be too strong to say—but she said that it does not help. “I’ve had a number of clients really struggle with their decision to drink as much as they did, and they wound up being sexually assaulted,” Brooks said.

YOU’RE SURROUNDED BY PEOPLE ON SOCIAL MEDIA THAT ARE PARTYING, AND, WHETHER OR NOT YOU DO LIKE TO PARTY, IT CAN GIVE YOU A FEAR OF MISSING OUT away from academics. About 25 percent of college students reported having academic consequences due to drinking, according to the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Kiskunes said partying can distract you and take away your time. “It’s not just that one night, it’s the next day,” said Kiskunes. “If you drink to [an] excess and it made you sick and you’re hungover the next day.”

PARTY CULTURE AND RAPE CULTURE “About 97,000 students between the ages of 18 and

“And so there’s this sense of responsibility that they did this to themselves, that they asked for it … and it doesn’t matter how drunk or high you are, you don’t ask to be sexually assaulted. And so I think that those myths around being responsible while under the influence can be really problematic.” Brooks said she thinks, systematically, rape culture in general is much bigger. Brooks said that, If you’re thinking about collegeage students and party culture, “it’s still a time of development in emerging adulthood where there’s a lot of kind of finding your

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own way and so sometimes decisions are not fully thought through.”. “I think it does contribute in a sense that it gives people a false sense of acceptance or consent,” said Kiskunes. ““When you’re drinking you’re not aware of your surrounding as much. If you don’t stay in groups or watch your drink then unfortunately things happen as well.” Refer to next page for the Ttile IX reports between 2015-2019 that have occurred on Olympic Blvd, according to a Freedom Information Act filed to Georgia Southern’s Record office.

POSITIVE EFFECTS OF PARTY CULTURE “I feel like party culture invites everyone, it is a chance to relieve stress and let loose whether you are drinking or not,” said Kiskunes. “It typically involves some type of dancing, which is fun too, express yourself … and it also gives you a chance to hang out with your friends and meet new people so you develop social skills.” Kiskunes said that it can also help develop the economy, such as providing jobs for bartenders and bouncers.

STUDENT OPINIONS: PROS AND CONS OF PARTYING Brandon Derricho, third year computer science major, said some positive aspects include outreach. “A lot of people on campus or in college in general tend to find more friends when they don’t

normally associate with when they go to parties and such,” Derricho said. Derricho said a negative effect is peer pressure. “Sometimes, people can get roped into something that they don’t necessarily want to do just by the right variables being in place,” Derricho said. Imani Thomas, senior biology and Spanish major, said some negative impacts include damage to the liver and brain and impaired motor and judgement skills, while positive effects may include developed social skills. . Sydney Hensel, sophomore early childhood development and special education major, said positive effects include hanging out with friends and having a good time, while negative effects include being tired all the time and hangovers. Caroline Stiles, sophomore early childhood development and special education major, said a negative effect could be less motivation for school. Ashley Avila, sophomore pre-med, said she’s not really a partier, but her brother prefers to party. Avila said, “He just prefers to do that rather than like a test because a party’s going to happen once so he, I guess, just temptation and he just goes and the next day he pays the consequences.” By Noelle Walker

TITLE IX REPORTS THAT HAVE OCCURED ON OLYMPIC BLVD, ACCORDING TO A FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT FILED TO GEORGIA SOUTHERN’S RECORD OFFICE

GENDER

ROLE

INCIDENT LOCATION

CHARGES

MALE

ACCUSED

OTHER

NON-CONSENSUAL SEXUAL CONTRACT

MALE

RESPONDANT

OLYMPIC BLVD/GREEK ROW/GREEK HOUSES

NON-CONSENSUAL SEXUAL CONTRACT

MALE

COMPLAINANT

OLYMPIC BLVD/GREEK ROW/GREEK HOUSES

NON-CONSENSUAL SEXUAL CONTRACT

MALE

ACCUSED

OFF CAMPUS

SEXUAL ASSAULT SEXUAL MISCONDUCT SEXUAL HARASSMENT ALCOHOL POSSESSION AND USE

MALE

ACCUSED

OFFCAMPUS

SEXUAL MISCONDUCT AND INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE

MALE

ACCUSED

OFF CAMPUS

SEXUAL ASSAULT

MALE

ACCUSED

GREEK ROW/GREEK HOUSE

NON-CONSENSUAL SEXUAL CONTACT

FEMALE

ACCUSED

GREEK ROW/GREEK HOUSE

DATING VIOLENCE

MALE

ACCUSED

GREEK ROW/GREEK HOUSE

DATING VIOLENCE

MALE

ACCUSED

OFF CAMPUS

SEXUAL MISCONDUCT AND INTERPERSONAL VIOLENCE

MALE

ACCUSED

OFFCAMPUS

NON-CONSENSUAL SEXUAL CONTACT

*The records office can only provide what was entered into Title IX’S reporting system as having occured on Olympic Blvd. (a location data-point in the system), and therefore cannot

confirm that this list includes all nonGreek row complaints/investigations associated with fraternities/sororities (because the system does not specifically track that affiliation other

than by location), and likewise cannot confirm that such took place at a fraternity/sorority party, event, or social

REFLECTOR REFLECTOR Spring Spring 2019 2019 | 19| 19

The

Georgia

picker

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“Thank you, God bless you. Have a good—and tell her I’m very sorry about her loss, alright?” Castellano said to the man. “I’ll respect that,” the man said. “Thank you. I’ll see you later,” Castellano said. “See you later. Bye-bye,” the man said, walking outside. “Take care, be safe,” Castellano said. He turned to me. “He’s a great guy. He comes in here, he gave me knives once, he brings great stuff. He says, you don’t like this, throw it out. But I do a lot of giving away, too. I give people stuff when they have no money. College kids, I give them a break and stuff, because a lot of you guys really have it hard.” Castellano and his three daughters moved to Georgia from New York, where he said he worked for a phone company for many years. He began buying, fixing and selling items in New York before opening his store in Statesboro. One of his daughters, Krysta Castellano, said she ran the store before she left Statesboro to attend the University of Georgia as a financial planning major. She graduated high school early by taking online classes, which allowed her to run the store full time from until she completed her associate degree. However, she began helping at the store before she worked there full-time. “Dad opened it in 2003, and I want to say, when I was 15 or 14, I remember being

picked up from school before I could drive, and Mom would drop me off there, and I would be there from after school until close,” Krysta said. Krysta said the store has always been a family-run business. Both her older and younger sister ran the store at different times, as well as her mother prior to the Castellanos’ divorce. “It definitely was a good experience, being able to run a business, familyowned, and learning the in and outs of buying and selling and pricing,” Krysta said. She said some of the most interesting store items she remembers were the antique clocks, family heirlooms people sold, jewelry and a mummified monkey. One of the challenging aspects of running the business, Krysta said, was pricing the items to ensure the store made a profit, as well as whether they were legitimate. “You do have to look up what things are going for, and if it’s actually real or fake, because a lot of times, people are going to come in there and try to talk things up and act like they’re something that they’re not,” Krysta said. Krysta said her father always had an interest in buying and selling collectables, as well as fixing and changing old items. However, his career in selling antiques and other items began as a hobby. “When he opened the business, it was

Just inside the metal roofed building, there are wooden ducks, jewelry, a chandelier, Elvis Presley memorabilia, old glass bottles, clocks, records, ceramics, fishing supplies, taxidermy, a player piano, hot wheels, miniature ships, an old stove, hats, tennis rackets, antique irons, paintings, signs, posters, figurines, canes, deer heads wearing hats, knives, pots and army patches and canteens. This is the first room of the store. Under the sign that reads “Landfill,” a doorway leads to the rest. Vincent “Vinny” Castellano owns My Cousin Vinny’s Bargain Barn—officially an antique furniture store, though he calls it a “junk store”—located on Highway 301 in Statesboro, Georgia. The store, a twostory structure surrounded by scattered outdoor merchandise, has been open for about 15 years. When I walked into the store to interview Castellano, the Georgia Southern – Georgia State football game was playing on the radio by the cash register, but the chair at the counter was empty. Castellano was outside, talking to a man with gray hair. Displayed by the counter in a frame was a newspaper clipping from The Statesboro Herald, which told the story of Castellano and his neighbor saving a woman from a house fire in 2013. When Castellano came in and we started talking, the man from outside walked in.

Photo by Alexa Curtis

The man behind my cousin vinny’s bargain barn

just a hobby. He, and this sounds kinda bad, just opened it out of the blue. I don’t think he really talked to my mother at the time,” Krysta said. “Wasn’t too good at the moment, but it’s just something he’s always had a passion for. He’s always loved antiques, like collecting things, so he just opened a business, and it’s been running for 15-plus years, so he must be doing something right.” Before I had time to ask Castellano any of the questions I had written down, he began telling me there were ghosts in his store. “You know, it was weird, a guy came in here the other day with a rosary bead on, and I’m like, ‘Oh, you wear a rosary bead?’ Because I always wear a cross, and he was like, ‘Yeah, it keeps the spirits away.’ He went upstairs, and things started happening,” Castellano said. He motioned toward a wooden cross hanging on the wall by the cash register. “That thing came off the wall and hit me on the head. It came apart and hit me on the head.” He said a woman told him an old mattress he had in a baby crib upstairs was haunted with an unsettled spirit and that he would need to get rid of it. “And I was hearing things up there, so I was like, oh my God. I threw it out. I burned it,” Castellano said. “And after that, nothing happened. It’s just crazy stuff that happens. I had a cat like that. It freaked me out.” The cat, he explained, was a skull of a cat he found under someone’s house while

digging around for old glass bottles. Castellano said he hopes to retire in Costa Rica or Brazil. However, he is unsure of what will become of the store when he leaves. “I don’t know yet. I might even keep the store and have someone run it. The only problem is people like to deal with me directly,” Castellano said. Two customers walked around the store, looking at the merchandise on the shelves. They were regulars, and Castellano knew them well. Dylan Bragg, a young man wearing glasses, said he comes to the store several times per week. “It’s where cool stuff goes to retire,” Bragg said, explaining that he has purchased instruments, furniture, albums and more from the store. The other customer, Ryan George, said he started coming to the store almost every day when he moved to Statesboro two years ago. He said he has found boats, motors and pictures at the store. “I’m a regular. I come up here just to hang out, look at everything that he gets new in,” George said. Castellano said George knows the store’s inventory better than he does Although Castellano has several regulars, he said many of his customers are people in the Georgia Southern University community, including students and parents. “I get all different people. I get a lot of out-of-towners. Believe it or not, a lot of

my clientele now is students’ parents,” Castellano said. Castellano and I walked through the doorway to the rest of the store, where he keeps furniture, paintings and a wide variety of odds and ends. He talked about pieces he has built, like the chair he made with an old engine at its base. He pointed at a corner of the room with tapes and a tape player. “That’s an 8-track player. I probably got 200 of those 8-track tapes. If people have an old car and they want to get 8-tracks, because, you know, a lot of the old classics have 8-track players. But even the truck I drive every day is a 1982, and it runs great,” Castellano said. He gestured toward a brown sofa. “This couch, believe it or not, it’s called a Duncan Phyfe couch, if you look this up on the internet, they go for 4,000 to 10,000 dollars. That’s how much that couch is worth. And you know what I put it for? 300 bucks,” Castellano said. “Why?” I asked. Castellano said, “Because I got a good deal on it, and if I pass it on—I had a college student come in, and she loved one that was pink, and I sold that for 250. And she’s like, ‘Oh my God,’ she goes, ‘Do you know-?’ I go, ‘Yeah, I know what it’s worth.’ See, if I give a good deal to someone, they’ll always come back.” By Blakeley Bartee

REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 21

REFLECTIVE COLLECTIVE A Tale of Two Main Streets: One consignment store’s journey to Statesboro

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It is another afternoon at the Reflective Collective consignment store in downtown Statesboro. One man shuffles between helping a customer at the cash register and adjusting some of the store displays. His friend, another man, meticulously arranges merchandise on the clothing and shoe racks, while their dogs, a long-haired dachshund and French bulldog, trot behind him with a sense of leisurely curiousness. One might assume, by observing this rhythm, that this consignment store has been open in Statesboro for a while. However, the store’s owner, Jared Burnsed, only decided to move the consignment store from its South Main Street location in Pembroke to Statesboro in December 2018. Reflective Collective has been open at its 39 W. Main St. address since the beginning of February. The story of how it arrived there is co-equally a story about it, Burnsed and the people who have helped Burnsed.

WHEN IN PEMBROKE

By the spring of 2017, Burnsed had become discontent with his job at the time. That April, businesswoman Sarah Williams opened the Shops on Main store in Pembroke. Her store served as an outlet for different vendors to rent space to sell their items, somewhat kind an antique or outlet store. “I was trying to actually get a job working for her, and she was like, ‘Hey, you love clothes,’” Burnsed said. “‘Why don’t you [Burnsed] rent a space from me [Williams] and sell clothes?’” So, Burnsed had to go to thrift stores and other consignment stores to acquire his original inventory. After that, he maintained his booth at Williams’ store while still keeping up with his other job. Meanwhile, Burnsed had conversations with Williams about his aspirations and dreams. “We had talked about different things he wanted to do, about wanting to go to New York,” Williams said. “You could tell he had a great sense of fashion about himself, so I told him that he didn’t have to go to New York to make his dreams come true.” In July of 2017, Williams,

whose business with her wedding venue started to increase, called Burnsed and asked him if he would like to run the Shops on Main. He agreed and put in his two weeks’ notice at his previous job. “It just all happened that way … a person who had known me for less than a year handed me a business,” Burnsed said. Williams, now a wedding venue owner in the Pembroke area, elaborated that, when she would bring her friends into the Pembroke store, Burnsed was very attentive to what kinds of clothes might look good on her and her friends, as well as the kinds of items they were interested in buying. “He knows people’s sizes, so if cool pair of 7-and-a-half pair of wedges came through the door, he’d call me,” Williams said. “He’s just very personable, and everyone who met him immediately liked him.”

HOW OTHERS HELPED

The Shops on Main underwent several business changes, both appearance and business-wise. It became solely a clothing consignment store, so Burnsed acquired most of the clothing for the store via people’s donations. As the Shops on Main was changing hands, Burnsed realized that he could not operate the store by himself. Enter Tre Knight, a friend of Burnsed’s whom he met in 2016. Knight started helping him then by redesigning the Shops on Main. Knight clarified that, though he regularly assists Burnsed with his business, they have not been business partners, either at the old or the new consignment store. “It’s his business, and I’m just helping a friend that needs the help,” Knight said. Knight explained that his responsibilities typically involve visual merchandising, the process of sorting clothing items by their different fabrics and colors. For example, he periodically reorganizes the items on the clothing racks and redresses the mannequins. He also assists Burnsed with the store’s respective social media platforms. Burnsed elaborated how Knight also contributes to the vision for his consignment business.

“Whereas I can see an idea that I want or an idea that I like and have no idea of how to put it together,” Burnsed said. “He [Tre] can see it, and he’s like, ‘Okay, this is how we make that happen.’” Part of Knight’s abilities in that arena are bolstered by his experience in the fashion industry before he met Burnsed. Knight mentioned that he moved to New York City when he was 19. He started working in fashion as a makeup artist and progressed to doing styling, consulting and designing clients. Since fashion was such a part of Knight’s background, Burnsed entrusted Knight to guide and mentor him. Knight thinks that, overall, he pushes Burnsed to be more creative. “ I think we all have mentors as kids, and just from his [Burnsed’s] past and his history, he really didn’t have that,” Knight said. “He’s starting that now. He’s starting that later in life. It’s never too late to start something.” With Knight joining Burnsed, Sarah Williams mused how the Shops on Main began changing in earnest from how she ran the store. “He began to bring in the clothes, and people loved it,” Williams said. “He began to get a following … he basically took over the shop and really made a name for himself in the community.” The store’s name, Shops on Main, was changed to Reflective Collective in December 2017. Burnsed did not start considering relocation to Statesboro until August 2018, and he did not definitively act until that December. He was motivated by the store’s slowed business, which, while it was not losing money, it was only sustaining itself and not earning Burnsed a significant profit. Moving before the January dead season was paramount to him. “You gotta do something,” Burnsed said. “It’s to the point of ‘Hey, we try this somewhere else, or we shut it down and find another job.’” Planning a store move was very stressful for him, but friends like Shiloh Foreman, the owner of Southern Soaked, helped Burnsed because, by that point, it was the middle of December. Foreman described Burnsed’s initial efforts as non-stop looking at buildings

without being able to find a feasible spot for his business in Statesboro. She stepped in and contacted city entities, like the Downtown Statesboro Development Authority. “They [the DSDA] said that it [the West Main location] might be a good spot, and so we got in touch with them [the realtor],” Foreman said. That same mid-December day, when Burnsed and Foreman contacted Manack Properties, Burnsed signed the contract for the lease on the West Main Street property. When January arrived, Burnsed and Knight feverishly worked to prepare the Statesboro store, doing everything from stripping flooring and laying down concrete to building the cache racks for the shoes and boxes on which the mannequins would stand. The work seemed to pay off, though, when Reflective Collective officially opened to the public at the Feb. 1 First Friday event in downtown Statesboro.

Tre Knight, 33, Savannah

Jared Burnsed, 35, of Pembroke

THE CUSTOMERS

For the new customers, Burnsed wants to continue emanating an authentic, comfortable store atmosphere. Burnsed mentioned how it is both easy and enjoyable for him to talk with customers in the store, and that his interacting with them is part of creating a good experience for them. “I hate when I go into a store, and people don’t pay you any attention, act like you shouldn’t be there [in a store],” Burnsed said. Burnsed added that, overall, he wants people to feel like they can relax in his store. “I want you [anybody] to come in here … and feel like you can be yourself, that you can let your hair down,” Burnsed said. As far as return customers, it is not unusual for Burnsed to see people come as far away as Vidalia or Savannah to visit the store’s new location. “If people like you and they like what you’re doing, then they’ll support you,” Burnsed said. “A lot of the times, it don’t even have to be like what you’re doing. If they like you, they’ll come in and buy the shirt they don’t even want.” By Julia Fechter

REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 23

Sexual Assault

Awareness

Take Back the Night March Around 70 people gathered in front of the university store to participate in the Take Back the Night March, which seeks to put an end to sexual assault and domestic violence. Participants and volunteers

We have the power, However we dress, we have the right, wherever we go, the streets are ours to yes means yes Take Back the Night! and no means no!

“

marched from the university store, through Eagle Village and through the Centennial Place parking lot until they arrived at the rotunda. They marched despite the rain falling down all around them chanting:

“I thought it was really important,” said Ellie Weeks, a freshman marketing major. “I think it’s really great for a school that’s known to be kind of conservative like in the south to still support these huge causes for sexual assault victims, especially for women.” 24 | REFLECTOR Spring 2 0 1 9

End the Violence Rally

People gathered in the rotunda at the end of the march for The End the Violence Rally--a candle light vigil and open mic event where survivors could share their stories. Shirts from the clothesline project

and survivor love letters were around the rotunda stage. Everyone was invited to listen in support and and learn how everyone plays a role in ending sexual assault and domestic violence.

Walk a Mile in Her Shoes

Photos by Sindi Panti and Isis Mayfield

Over three hundred people participated in Walk a Mile in Her Shoes. Dr. Lauren Patterson said at the beginning of the event that, since the inception of the event, over $16,000 has been donated to the Teal House. “Thank you so much for what you’re doing. You’re doing so much

more than walking a mile wearing high heels,” said Teal House Community Outreach Coordinator Julia Price. “You’re being a voice for survivors, and you’re supporting something that’s so important to our community.” By Noelle Walker

REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 25

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How much of a stereotypical college student are you?

How much coffee do you drink on a daily basis? a. None b. 1-2 cups c. 3+

5 You have a paper due next week. You: a. Have already started b. Will start this weekend c. Will wait until the day it’s due

How much sleep do you get? a. A steady 8+ hours b. 5-7 hours c. What is sleep?

How often do you party? a. Not often b. Occasionally c. Frequently

What do you normally wear to class? a. I like to dress up b. Nice shirt and jeans c. T-shirt & shorts

How often do you watch Netflix? a. Not often b. Frequently c. I’m an avid binge-watcher

8 What’s your financial situation? a. Everything’s fine! b. On a budget, but nothing serious c. I have like $2

9 What’s your policy on grades? a. All A’s, all the time! b. I just try my best, no matter the grade. c. C’s get degrees.

Mostly A's

Are you sure you’re a college student? Just kidding! You’re honestly living your best life--keep it up!

Which of these are you most likely to eat? a. A healthy meal b. Leftover pizza c. Ramen noodles

10 How many times have you/will you change your major? a. None - I know what I want to do. b. Once or twice. c. More than three times!

Mostly B's You’re an average college student, and there’s nothing wrong with that! Keep working hard.

Mostly C's You are the embodiment of the stereotypical college student. REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 27 REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 27

Looking for experience in Marketing? Multiple positions in product marketing, events, social media, and internal organization event planning. All majors welcome. Internship credit available as well!

28 | REFLECTOR Spring 2 0 1 9

Send resumes to smmarketing@georgiasouthern.edu to apply today!

REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 29

MISSION STATEMENT By Miscellany Editor Christina McKinley

In Spring of 2019, Miscellany Magazine of the Arts was reborn after three years of inactivity. The Editor-in-Chief of the GeorgeAnne Reflector Magazine at the time worked to get the publication running again and hired an editor. With this rebirth, the staff was a bit lost for a time, unsure of the exact purpose of the publication besides being a place to post student works maybe once a month if they were lucky. However, as the submissions

DANDELION WISHES Noelle Walker Photography

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rolled in, we realized that Miscellany could become not just a publication but a collaboration platform. Students would have a way to share their work publically and get input from anyone. The Miscellany staff determined that the magazine would become a creative community for Georgia Southern students. It would connect them with the creative, from art to writing, and become a way for students to express themselves. Miscellany now aims to promote

the creative culture at our university and inspire students to share their work and grow as creative people. Our hope is that through community and collaboration we can reach our full potential as artists and as a university. A lot of promise exists in this new Miscellany to grow as a publication to serve students and nurture creativity. We strive to be a safe place where everyone and anyone can share their work and become better creators.

GOODBYE, FARM. Allison Exley Digital Art

WHEN I TALK

Tandra Smith Poetry

Content Warning: Assault After it happened Fingers snaked their way up my body Past trembling thighs Ghosting over budding bruises Right into my chest

Fingers squeezed and prodded and poked Discovering unknown crevices And there they resided Silencing me Restricting me “Don’t talk,” they breathed “After all, who would believe you?” Nobody for now But when I talk, the fingers will wither one by one My bruises will fade My thighs will still My voice will raise And they’ll know REFLECTOR Spring 2019 | 31

ONE DAY

Isis Mayfield Photography

SIMPLE SAN JUAN Kaitlin Sells Photography

OBSTACLE POEM

Harry G. Dukes Poetry

Yesterday, I realized what gets in my way. It’s me, Me misinterpreting the things that I see as normality. Succumbing to soul spears that aim for my fears. Restarting the same game with a new username. Thinking that for once I can win As long as my character’s aren’t kin.

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I’M ARMED FOR NOW, AMERICA

Zachery Rahn Poetry

THE BUDDING THOUGHTS OF MOTHER EARTH

I signed the papers after hearing his true stories. Stories of joy, courage, bravery, and good will. Stranger man, kind and ensuring, was sending me to follow in his previous footsteps. Insuring me. I shook the recruiters hand today after he enlisted me for “A life changing experience.” I’d go see the world (what’s left of it), meet new faces (don’t make eye contact), eat new foods (wash it down with liquor), and indulge in mixed fruits (the cherries taste the same in Afghanistan). I’d fly in bi-planes (use D-IX for take off), see new animals (can’t name our german shepards), and make plenty of new friends (drill sergeant will be my #1 enemy). I’d walk the lame (carry halves of men through city streets), help the poor (there aren’t soup kitchens but we’d give them our prayers and roses), and teach them of American cheer (bombs aren’t the only thing that can cause shell shock). I’d make a difference for our nation. He rolled back in his swivel chair, legs missing. Knees for feet. Mortar stricken smile. Grabbed a red stamp, took my hand in his and marked my knuckles with “Send to deployment prescreening.” I felt the jolting chill of his myoelectric fingers pinch my skin. “Without the infantry, I wouldn’t be the man I am today!”

Tykia Lumpkin 2D Art

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SUPER AGAIN Marjorie Adams Digital Art

COMMUNICATION IS LOVE Jaren Stephens Photography

AS VALENTINE’S DAY APPROACHED, I THOUGHT BACK ON MY PAST RELATIONSHIP. THE ENTIRE EXPEREINCE OR RATHER THE LESSONS I LEARNED. I LITERALLY WENT FULL CIRCLE, FROM ME DAYDREAMING ABOUT A WOMAN I COULD GIVE MY ALL TO ME PICKING UP PIECES OF MY HEART AS SHE TORE IT. I WOULD SAY ALL IN ALL, THE ENTIRE DOWNFALL WAS DUE TO MISCOMMUNICATION. COMMUNICATION IS THE CORE OF EVERYTHING. IT’S WHAT LED US TO EACH OTHER, IT’S WHAT LED YOUR PARENTS TO EACH OTHER. WITHOUT THAT KEY COMPONENT, ALMOST EVERYTHING IS DESTINED TO FALL THROUGH. I WILL END THIS OFF BY SAYING I HOPE WHEN YOU FIND LOVE, YOU DON’T LOSE COMMUNICATION.

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Creative thinkers needed Our creative team is looking for graphic designers, illustrators, and photographers Build your portfolio! All majors welcome. No experience needed! To apply go to www.thegeorgeanne.com and click 'Apply to Student Media'. REFLECTOR Spring 2019 |email 35 If you have any questions please prodmgr@georgiasouthern.edu.

Because college isn’t just a phase, it’s a lifestyle.

ReflectorGSU.com

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