Eulogy

  Born to children, her mother only sixteen and her father a mere fifteen at the time, Ashanti was adored by all those around her from the day she arrived home from the hospital. Rambunctious as a child,  Ashanti discovered that she had talent as a singer through her afternoons spent singing along to the radio with her mother. Music became an important part of her life during those earliest years, during which she used it as a means of communicating and bonding with both of her parents.
   As she grew, Ashanti began to abandon her strictly academic-driven goals and embraced her more artistic side. From the time she was in grade school she wrote poetry as a way to release some of her boundless energy. She would also entertain her friends and family by constantly keeping them laughing with her never-ending jokes.  Ashanti was the life of the party at many family functions.
   Upon reaching high school, however, Ashanti began to veer away from her family as she took the first steps toward self discovery. She began to act out in ways that her parents had never anticipated, as she was a well behaved child.  Again, she was forced to rely on the gift of poetry to express the feelings that drove her to misbehave, and found her voice once more on the stage. She had discovered that poetry was her way of communicating with the world.
    Ashanti had an eye for style, an ear for music, and a voice for poetry. She dedicated her life to making people feel as beautiful on the outside as they were on the inside through her sewing, and to the uplifting of the oppressed through spoken word. She was the first person her friends would call when they needed advice or cheering up, for she always fought for the elevation of those closet to her heart. Championing for freedom and love, with a smile that resonated with the desire for both, Ashanti left her mark on everything she touched.