Dreads are NOT Dreadful

Hello Everyone!

I have gotten a lot of questions about my hair so I want to take this blog to prove that dreads do not have to be dreadful. I decided to get dreads, or “lock up my hair”, on November 14, 2015. My decision really came because I absolutely hated having to maintain my hair every day. The beauty with dreads is that they are self-maintaining and don’t take a lot of work. I typically just wake up and go. Amazing, right? However, just because I can wake up and go does NOT mean that I cannot wash my hair. I REPEAT just because I don’t have to daily maintain my hair does NOT mean that I cannot or do not wash my hair.

So how do I maintain my luscious locks you ask? For those of you who are wondering how this happens, it is actually quite simple. All I do is lather my hair with shampoo and then rinse out the soap. Crazy, but most people have believed the myth that: “When one has dreads their hair cannot be washed”, and this is, in fact, NOT TRUE. I really love my hair and it is easy to manage and style. Most days I just wear it down and keep it pretty simple, but occasionally I will throw on a headband, wear it in a ponytail, or braid it into a style. Also, my hair has gotten pretty long over the past two years and I even decided to spice things up a tad with dying the ends.

Hopefully this blog has educated you just a tad about dreads; if you see me on November 14th, feel free to wish my locks a happy birthday.

Go Flames!

-Tatyana Crowder #4

Nene's Last Year

Hey Everyone it’s Nene! 

I’m a senior and graduating in May with a Bachelors in Sport Management. I am also from South Florida. A lot of people ask me why I would come from the Sunshine State to Virginia and my answer is always the same: I felt like God led me to this place to teach me valuable life lessons. I feel as if I am here not only to pursue my bachelors degree and play ball but to also learn about myself.

Transferring from a junior college to an NCAA Division I program was a major transition for me. It was difficult because it was my first time moving out of the state of Florida and being so far away from home. The junior college life is totally different because the school size isn’t as big as Liberty and there aren't 15,000 students walking around. I’m an introvert, so coming here and being surrounded by so many people was a step out of my comfort zone.

My senior year is quickly coming to an end. I’m grateful for all the people I have met here and at my junior college. I’ve made lifetime friends that I will forever keep a relationship with. Virginia will always have a place in my heart.

Go Flames!

-Nene Johnson #3

Getting to Know Emily Lytle

Hello,

My name is Emily Lytle and I am a redshirt sophomore. I transferred from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock where I also played basketball. I was born and raised in Memphis, Tennessee, with seven other siblings and two amazing parents who truly love the Lord. I love pets, so I have two cats and a dog at home.

Things to know about me: 

• I am the youngest of eight kids and people usually ask me if I am spoiled because of that
• My whole family has played and is playing basketball, which is probably why I am playing since being around the sport so much has made me enjoy it 
• I love to watch Anime and Law and Order SVU
• I like to draw, paint and watercolor
• I’m learning to play the ukulele

Not many people know this about me, but I was homeschooled until my freshman year of high school. I played for a homeschool team called MHEA (Memphis Homeschooled Education Association) and let me just say that those were some of the best days of my life. I got to play on a team with my dad being the assistant coach and my three sisters being my teammates. It is funny because high schools would make fun of us for being homeschooled until we would blow them out the on the court. But, the best part of it was that we even had a 3-point contest, a dunk contest, Tip-off, Regionals, and National Tournament where all 360 homeschooled teams would compete for the championship - the whole thing was just awesome. I am glad I will forever have those memories.

God Bless and Go Flames,

-Emily Lytle #23

Exceeding Expectations

Hi Everyone,

My name is Ria Gulley and I am a redshirt sophomore. I transferred here just this year from Indiana University. I am originally from San Antonio, Texas. A few hobbies of mine include sports, photography, art, and reading. My major is finance and I intend to pursue corporate financial advising/planning. 

Back in the day, I had an art teacher who changed my life and the way I see things. She was self-taught and very successful. She helped me realize that everything is art. One time I was painting a beautiful woman’s face on a wooden box. After I finished the nose, I saw it was too big. I hung my head and wanted to start over. My seventh-grade self forlornly brought up the box to her desk and she laughed and made some major slashes across her face. I was shocked. I thought she had ruined it even more than I already had. Then she said “you can add a masquerade mask”. It was a long process, but I did. It ended up exceeding my original expectations.

She taught me that things may not go as planned, but they have the potential to end up even better than anticipated.God is kind of the same way. I thought I would have a wonderful experience at Indiana University as I began my college career. That was not the case. God had my life wrecked and turned upside down in Bloomington, Indiana before I could make it to a school that would exceed expectations: Liberty University.

Go Flames!

-Ria Gulley #2

Wedding Fun

Hi Everyone!

First and foremost, I would like to say, “HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!” I hope you commit to you New Years resolutions and do not let them out of your sight!

My name is M’caela (but everyone calls me Lela - feel free to call me whichever one you want!) I have had a very interesting and fun year! Although it felt as though it went by really fast, there were also slow times. I have learned a lot about myself this year and I really want to continue to grow into who I am as a person.

There are countless memories that I would love to share with you all, but I’m going to just share one of my favorite memories from this past year and that was in April when my brother got married. I have been to weddings but I have never been in one, so when my brother and his fiancé asked me and my two sisters to be in the wedding we were so excited. The wedding was in Minnesota (my home state) and I hadn’t been there for about two years. While I was there I was able to meet up with old friends and at the wedding I got to see a lot of my relatives and grandparents. It was a wonderful time going back. After the wedding, we sat down to eat and the food that my brother and his fiancé choose for the meal was breakfast food! I love breakfast. Then, the rest of the night we danced and sang our hearts out on the dance floor.

After seeing all of my old friends and family members it made me realize that you could not even know you miss someone until you meet up with them again realize how much you missed them being in your life. I wish I could go back in time and replay that day all over again because I had so much fun. I am so happy for my brother and I am so glad that I was able to be a part of his wedding!

Thanks for reading my blog! Much Love and Go Flames,

Lela #14