Josh after Party Round • by ~ridreg-martyr

My name is Joshua. I am 20 years old & I live in Bushwick. When I introduce myself to people in Bushwick, I think their first reaction is sometimes “damn my rent is going up.” Both my sisters have changed their names. But I carry on mine. Partly because I think someone in the family should, but mostly because it’s my fathers, and I try to honor him through it. My father was a writer & a religious leader growing up. When I was young, I thought I’d always be religious but never a writer. I’m starting to I think I may have been wrong on both counts. People need Religion because it provides us with the sense of purpose needed to get out of bed everyday. I’ve always viewed my work as inseparable from my identity, and somewhere along the line I think this startup became my religion. I think this is part of what makes building companies so magical, at their core they’re based mostly on belief. Over this summer, during a pause in intensity I was forced to confront two uncomfortable truths. 1)

My name is Joshua. I am 20 years old & I live in Bushwick. When I introduce myself to people in Bushwick, I think their first reaction is sometimes “damn my rent is going up.” Both my sisters have changed their names. But I carry on mine. Partly because I think someone in the family should, but mostly because it’s my fathers, and I try to honor him through it. My father was a writer & a religious leader growing up. When I was young, I thought I’d always be religious but never a writer. I’m starting to I think I may have been wrong on both counts. People need Religion because it provides us wit