Alyssa Watson
Meet Alyssa Watson a sustainable fashion, travel and lifestyle blogger based in San Antonio, TX. With a dream to explore the world in style, she shares her outfits and experiences in cities all over the world.
June’s Theme:
What’s New With You
Beyond The Stage allows the voices and ideas of the youth in San Antonio to be heard and to have a positive influence on the community. I found myself, as I’m sure many did, spending the first moments of 2020 eager for a fresh start in the new decade. We had our lists filled with goals and aspirations but the world had a different beginning in mind. Starting quarantine in March, I didn’t think it would last more than two weeks and could serve as an opportunity for a “rest and reset”. Looking back, I recognize that hindsight really is 2020. That “rest and reset” quickly turned into “survive and strive”. As weeks turned into months, career opportunities were on hold, my job was on the line, I moved out of a place that truly felt like home and I was dealing with personal family matters. All on top of being the most isolated I had ever been. But I was never alone. When I took a second to get out of my own head, my perspective shifted. I could see that there wasn’t a single person who had remained unaffected by the pandemic. In the midst of this shared experience I saw opportunities for growth and positive changes to come from an overall negative experience. Just as the blessing of a child comes from the pain of labor, or the beauty of a Diamond comes from an immense amount of heat and pressure. We are experiencing the growing pains of change.
During this time, I began to see a shift in our culture. I saw families coming together. Communities getting stronger. Faith becoming a stronghold. The environment healing. Then on May 25th, our perspectives shifted again. With the cruel murder of George Floyd, the lasting prevalence of racism in our country was brought to the forefront of everyone’s minds. A deeply rooted issue that needs to change and requires us as a nation to come together and acknowledge that racism is real, it’s evil and it should have no place in our world. External events, such as the pandemic and the mistreatment of people of color can force a shift in our perspective which has the power to create lasting change. Through shifting our perspective, we change our thoughts, which changes our behaviors and in turn changes the outcome. The fight for racial reconciliation starts with a shift in perspective. For people who are unaffected by racism to acknowledge their privilege, listen and learn from the experiences of others and take action in their community. I believe and have hope that we are fighting for lasting change. That racial injustice will be eradicated. That the shift in perspective from the pandemic will produce a lasting change to the closeness of our communities, the strength of our faith and the importance of sustainability for environmental change. This is the reset that the world needed. 2020 is giving all of us the opportunity to have a fresh start and make the world a better place.
Beyond The Stage is important to the youth in San Antonio, to keep striving towards their goals. More than anything, our youth needs to be inspired and Beyond The Stage provides them that extra push to become our next leaders.