Layna Alvarez
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Having a Boyfriend Isn’t Embarrassing. Settling Is.
Dating isn’t just difficult right now. It’s disillusioning. Conversations with women about dating don’t reflect excitement anymore, but exhaustion. Being unheard. Being under-considered. Being expected to tolerate less while labeling it as love. Independence isn’t lonely; it’s protective. Maybe that’s why having a boyfriend isn’t embarrassing. Settling for one is. This was echoed in Chanté
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What I’m Leaving Behind
Not everything deserves to come with me to 2026. I’m choosing to leave behind everything that no longer holds value. As the year turns, I’m editing my life down to what truly matters.Here’s what I won’t carry into 2026. Mind Relationships Energy Self-Image Creativity I don’t need to carry everything forward to move ahead. See
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Wearing the Version of Me I’m Becoming
The Language of Clothes As a child, I went through many stages of questionable fashion choices. Skinny jeans had their moment (unfortunately). Leggings became a uniform. There was even a phase where I wore winter coats in the summer. At the time, I didn’t have the words for it, but my clothes were speaking for
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What XOXO, Layna, Means to Me
Today I walked through campus and noticed how the scenery had changed. The fallen leaves covered the trees and ground like a colorful flame, fading into a soft, yellowish-orange hue, almost like a flickering flame. I had always wondered what made the leaves slowly wilt, finally dying once the winter season arrived. Of course, science