Joleen Brantle

I offended and angered both Black and White people.

“Respect is earned, not demanded.” This statement is so ignorant of the history of the oppression of women that I have difficulty processing it.

So it was a bit of a culture shock when I met people who referred to me as a “little colored girl” and told me interracial marriage, which I am proudly the product of, is a sin.

There is a degree of anonymity granted by online dating that really frees people to say whatever the hell they want. And these guys really went all out with that.

We didn’t, we couldn’t, pursue anything in the environment in which we met. Would something have happened if we met elsewhere? I don’t know, and I never will. We often speculated about whether we’d have been friends, lovers, or strangers in the “real world.” Or, whether our friendship was based on the circumstances rather than a natural connection.

Girls throw the term best friend around like it’s going out of style. But your best friend is, in some ways, the most important person in your life.

I joined the National Guard for a variety of reasons. Money for college, the opportunity to better myself, and fear of the impending end of my teenage years with nothing to show for them being among the top few.