LIFESTYLE

F/W 2021



Moesha’s Diary : 

An Ode to Freedom & Radical Rebellion



 
December 19 2021 | By Daija Green




    As I scroll through my Tumblr feed, stumbling on quotes that are a little too relevant to my life for my liking, I come across one that tugs at my fear of living a life completely for myself. 

“There’s a lot of unspoken pressure to keep liking the things you used to like and to keep dressing the way you’ve always dressed and to never question what you believe in. Basically “be yourself” has slowly morphed into “be what everyone knows you as” but trust me when I say if you just give it up and simply make decisions and take actions based purely on what would make you happy, you’ll gain a very comforting sense of self peace.” 

Let’s be honest, we all have felt the pressure and fear of living a life completely curated around what we want and what we want only. Whether it be choosing to move away from home, changing our sense of style, deciding what career path we want to go down, or simply what we post on our Instagram. No matter how much we want something, there will always be opposing expectations, perspectives, and pressures, but there is a power in revolting against these pressures and choosing ourselves. There is power in rebellion.

In our latest interview, rebel girl Cydnei - a writer and truth-seeker spoke to Trutuyou about the power of radical rebellion. If you ask Cydnei, wallowing in the fear of living in your truth...is death. She expresses, “To me, death is when you give up and let other people dictate your life. I'm not interested in being a zombie. I'm interested in seeing what I can get out of life by being unapologetically myself.”





    Throughout this conversation, we browse through the pages of Cydnei’s diary, where she shares gems on confidence, being unapologetically herself, and the lessons she’s learned from her loc journey.

Cydnei also known as rebel girl by way of her Instagram handle @siyorebelde, which translates to “Yes, I am rebellious” in English, has one of those IG feeds that’s refreshing, authentic, and enlightening. It’s almost as if you are actually flipping through the pages of her diary. A curation of loc appreciation posts, diary entries, and hawt body flicks showcase her unique style and approach to life. In relation to her byname, Cydnei is not afraid to go against the grain and live life her way.





Signed, Moesha’s Diary






To begin our conversation Cydeni shares a little bit about who she is. 



CYDNEI :

My name is actually Cydnei. My Instagram name is Si, yo soy rebelde meaning "Yes, I am rebellious" in English when translated from Spanish. I would say I am someone observing this place and engaging where I feel most needed. I think that's the basis of the rebel name as well. I would say my perspective can be classified as counterculture and my style of expression can sometimes be considered rebellious or against the grain.





Swipe through the pages of Cydnei’s Diary︎︎︎




TRUTUYOU : What purpose motivates you to keep going? What inspires you on a daily basis?


CYDNEI :

As far as what keeps me going I would say I'm just not a quitter. We have to ask ourselves if we are multidimensional beings having a human experience, what is death? To me, death is when you give up and let other people dictate your life. I'm not interested in being a zombie. I'm interested in seeing what I can get out of life by being unapologetically myself. I could've compromised years ago and been in a different position in life, but that would have been the moment I betrayed myself and my creator and I don't think I could look at myself the same if I consciously did either of those things.





    Two years ago during the rise of the pandemic, Cydnei was inspired to create a diary series titled, Moesha’s Diary. This series is a play on the renowned 90’s sitcom Moesha, starring R&B artist Brandy Norwood. The show is noted for Moesha’s signature diary entries where she expresses her thoughts about friendship, romance, and teenage drama. In the same way, Cydnei makes the concept her own sharing reflections about confidence, setting boundaries, self-love, and more in her series. As she concludes each diary entry she writes, "Signed, Moesha's Diary”.



Swipe through the pages of Cydnei’s diary︎︎︎




TRUTUYOU : What inspired you to start your diary series?



CYDNEI :

The diary series started from a larger series I tested out during Covid where I was sending out weekly reflections via email. Two years into the pandemic, the little gems are my way of translating that experiment into an Instagram format.




On her loc journey︎︎︎


“ My dreads play such a huge role in my self preservation. One wrong move with my hair can affect it for life and it taught me to treat myself with that same precaution.”


- Signed, Moesha’s Diary





TRUTUYOU : Your locs are beautiful and I know that your journey has been too. Can you share a few of the lessons this journey has taught you?


CYDNEI :

I'm constantly learning from my hair but I think the most important lesson has been accepting the form that I was created to live in. My hair before being loced required a lot of maintenance and finally, I just decided to let it do what it wanted to do. It's a thought that has since reverberated throughout other areas in my life. Essentially the lesson was to relinquish control.






TRUTUYOU : Can you expound on a few of the quotes, gems and words that you've shared in your series?





"Never forget the biggest part of the tree is underground."


- Signed, Moesha’s Diary





CYDNEI :

By the time you see something, it's already been in the works. While the tree is huge and towering, it's poignant to acknowledge that the largest part of it is unseen.






On confidence︎︎︎


"There's a difference between being comfortable with you and being confident in you. Take a moment for self assessment."


- Signed, Moesha’s Diary





CYDNEI :

You can be comfortable with lacking confidence. I think for me at this point I realized I had been comfortable with my flaws and never asked questions of myself. At 27, this is the most confident I've been in myself and it required a lot of reflection, honesty, and accountability. Humorously enough, sometimes it's actually very uncomfortable and I think that's why some unknowingly do not achieve true confidence. From my experience, we imitate confidence and play the role of our confident selves without doing the work to be confident.   






On accountability and purpose︎︎︎


"Hold me accountable, but don't hold me hostage."


- Signed, Moesha’s Diary





CYDNEI :

I can be problematic at times and I think I'm always willing to own my shortcomings and flaws when approached respectfully. But when I address those things, accept the most recent version of me. Don't hold me hostage in the space I was in before.
If you're uncertain about your purpose, separate yourself from everyone and locate the things you enjoy doing when no one is around, the things you do naturally. Those are your gifts. That's what you were put here to do.





Swipe through the pages of Cydnei’s diary︎︎︎



TRUTUYOU : It seems that you are a firm believer in living your truth. Why do you feel this is so important?



CYDNEI :


Living in your truth is the fullest expression of life because when you love the good and bad about yourself you finally experience true love and love conquers all. When that love is of self, you're unstoppable. Why live in your truth? Because no one is entirely good, no one is entirely bad so don't sweep your shit under the rug! Let he who is without sins cast the first stone and.... that will never happen.






If there is anything we can learn from Cydnei it is to choose ourselves. In every way. Entirely. To choose to create and live a life that brings us joy.  Even if it means rebelling against the norm, being misunderstood, or going through uncomfortable phases. To choose ourselves is to choose life. 




THANK YOU CYDNEI ! ︎




︎ : Siyorebelde





INTERVIEW BY


︎ Daija Green
Founder





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