MEET NYAKIM GATWEC – A MODEL NICKNAMED ‘QUEEN OF THE DARK’

A woman was utterly surprised when her Uber driver offered her an unsolicited tip on how to care for her remarkable skin.

Celebrating her striking beauty, the fashion icon, famously known as the “Queen of the Dark,” responded with laughter, dismissing his remarks with ease.

Read on to discover what the Uber driver said and how she transformed the situation into a learning opportunity!

Having spent her early years in refugee camps in Ethiopia and Kenya, Nyakim Gatwech envisioned America as a “heaven on earth.”

However, upon arriving in Buffalo at the age of 14, Gatwech found herself often alone, crying over the harsh judgments she faced due to her deeply pigmented skin.

Based in Minnesota and originally from South Sudan, the model endured years of bullying for her radiant dark complexion, with comments like, “You don’t take showers. That’s why your skin is dirty,” or, “Smile so we can see you, Nyakim. We can’t see you.”

“In class, for example, the teacher would ask a question and say, ‘Oh, Nyakim, can you answer that?’ A kid would say, ‘Who are you talking to? We can’t see her. She’s not here.’ The whole class would start laughing, and I would just cry,” the now 31-year-old woman shares with Cosmopolitan.

As a young girl desperate to fit in, it was tough when random men would bet on whether she was wearing leggings or if her skin was genuinely that dark.

“At one point, I did consider [bleaching my skin]. When I came to America from a refugee camp in Africa [at age 14], I lived in Buffalo, New York. I would cry myself to sleep after being bullied [about my skin],” she says. “There are so many beautiful dark-skinned Sudanese women who bleach their skin.”

Gatwech revealed that her own sister was among those who bleached their skin. “My own sister did it. But when I told her I wanted to [after living in America for a few months], she told me no. ‘I’m not going to let my daughter do it, or you, nobody.’”

Queen of the Dark
Now hailed as the Queen of the Dark, this woman – who has faced discrimination from designers, makeup artists, and even fellow models – feels empowered by overcoming negativity.

Gatwech’s confidence and profound love for her deep chocolatey skin are supported by her 962,000 loyal Instagram followers.

“My chocolate is elegant. So is what I represent… A nation of warriors,” she writes in one post.

Fans are captivated by her striking beauty.

“Omgggggg I love your skin and melanin,” one fan comments, while another says, “love your beautiful skin tone so much! God makes beautiful creations such as you to remind us of His magnificence!”

Responding to the overwhelming support, Gatwech states, “I grew to learn to love myself… Now, I am not bothered by it [the negativity]. I accept my skin, I love myself, and I’m not insecure about my skin anymore. I don’t think I’m ugly anymore. I have confidence in myself.”

‘Stupidest questions’
A few years ago, Gatwech recounts an encounter with an Uber driver who asked if she’d ever consider bleaching her unique skin.

“He said, ‘Wow, you’re dark,’” Gatwech tells Cosmopolitan about her conversation with the driver. “I just laughed. I wanted to know why he thought I should. He said because life would be easier for me. It would be easier for me to be in a relationship, or guys would be more attracted to me if I was lighter. If I was going to a job interview, I would get the job opportunities because I’m lighter. I just said, ‘[Even if] being lighter would make my life easier, I’d rather take the [hard] road.’”

She adds, “I’m accustomed to people asking the most absurd questions about my skin.”

Gatwech then shared her story on Instagram, accompanied by a stunning photo of herself with three other dark-skinned Sudanese women.

She wrote, “A nation with people so dark you won’t believe your eyes… skin so rich and teeth so bright. Gosh, how I love my country, my people, and everything that comes with it.”

She detailed her encounter with the Uber driver: “[SIC] I was asked by my Uber driver the other day, he said, ‘Don’t take this offensively, but if you were given 10 thousand dollars, would you bleach your skin for that amount?’ I couldn’t even respond; I started laughing so hard. Then he said, ‘So that’s a no?’ and I was like, ‘Hell to the f*cking yeah, that’s a no. Why on earth would I ever bleach this beautiful melanin God blessed me with?’ Then he asked, ‘So you see it as a blessing?’”

Her followers quickly responded with praise and support.

“I guess he didn’t get the memo… black is beautiful,” one fan commented.

“I love you for loving you,” shared another. A third added, “Why would we ever want to mess up something so beautiful?”

When asked by Yahoo Beauty what advice she would give to young black girls facing similar challenges, she said, “You are beautiful, you are unique, and there are people who love you just the way you are. They say the darker the berry, the sweeter the juice. Embrace your darkness!”

Childless Woman Returns from a Business Trip a Day Early and Finds a Baby in Her House – Story of the Day

When Alicia returned home from a business trip, she discovered a baby next to her husband on their bed. His explanation made no sense, but she was tired. However, the shocking truth made sense a few hours later when she woke up.

After an extended business trip to New York, Alicia was finally home in Miami and was looking forward to resting on her bed with her husband, Luke. She carefully walked around the house, taking off her jacket and trying not to make a sound. It was late at night, and Luke had no idea she was back.

She was supposed to return in three days, but Alicia managed to finish her work early and decided to catch a flight back as soon as possible. Unfortunately, that meant reaching Miami after midnight and getting home way too late. But that was fine. Luke would be surprised when he woke up next to his wife in the morning.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

They talked all the time while she was gone, but a month was way too much time for a business trip. Never again, Alicia thought when she finally reached their bedroom.

Luckily, she didn’t have to turn on the lights because the moon reflected enough light to see around. She saw her husband’s figure on the bed and heard his light snoring but moved quickly around the room, changing into her PJs.

But she stopped dead in her tracks when she saw a tiny bundle on her side of the bed. There was a pillow at the edge so the baby wouldn’t roll and fall to the other side. But Alicia and Luke didn’t have kids. What’s going on here? Where did he get that baby?

Luke didn’t have any family as he grew up in an orphanage, so the child couldn’t be a niece or nephew. So what was happening here? she wondered in shock.

She went to the other side of the bed and shook her husband. “Luke! Luke! Wake up!” she tried to keep a whispering tone, but she was way too startled for anything. Fortunately, the baby didn’t hear, but her husband felt her hand on his arm.

“What? Who…. Alicia? What are you doing here?” he said groggily, his hand raising to his face and wiping sleep from his eyes.

“Meet me in the kitchen right now!” she stage-whispered and walked away.

Luke followed slowly and looked at his wife sleepily. “You’re here early.”

“Yes, whatever. Who is that baby, Luke? What’s going on here?” she questioned angrily.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

“I’m not sure, Alicia. Someone left him on our doorstep a few days ago, and I’ve been taking care of him,” Luke said and yawned heavily.

“What? That doesn’t make sense! Let’s call the police!”

“Yes, we have to do that, but I keep forgetting while taking care of him. Listen, I’m way too tired to have this conversation. And you’re probably tired from traveling too. Let’s go to bed and figure out what to do in the morning, okay?”

“No, we have to figure it out right now!” Alicia exclaimed in exasperation.

“Shush, please. It’s too late. You’ll wake the baby. Please, let’s go to sleep,” Luke insisted and walked back to the bedroom, not waiting for Alicia’s response.

“Fine,” she whispered and followed. She laid down on the other side of the baby, and it was okay because their bed was huge. Shockingly, Alicia fell asleep quickly and didn’t dream that night.

Seven a.m. that day…

Alicia woke up to a couple of muffled voices coming from the living room. She turned on the bed and saw that Luke and the baby were gone, so she rushed up and sauntered out of the room, trying not to alert anyone.

“Luke, when are you going to tell her? This can’t go on like this!” a woman’s voice said in annoyance.

“Please, keep it down. I don’t know how to tell her, okay?” Luke said in a lower tone, hoping that Alicia wouldn’t wake.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

But she was wide awake now. Who is that? Is this about the baby? Is she his secret baby mama? Alicia worried and wondered if she should show herself and confront them.

“Please, let’s give it some time. I’ll tell her when the DNA results come out,” Luke pleaded, and Alicia’s jaw dropped.

DNA test? He got someone pregnant, and now they were testing to see the parentage? I can’t let this go on, she decided. Alicia stepped directly into the living room and saw Luke talking to a woman who was just outside the front door.

“What’s going on here? I want the truth right now, Luke. I heard everything. What DNA test? Is that your baby mama?” she demanded, crossing her arms on her chest. Luke and the woman turned around with wide eyes.

But shockingly, the stranger smiled. “Baby mama?” she said and laughed.

“There’s nothing funny about this. Luke, did you cheat on me with this woman?!” Alicia almost shouted.

“No! No! I swear! I would never do that. Please, listen to me,” Luke begged, walking towards her with his hand in front.

“You have ten seconds!” Alicia seethed, her arms still crossed in anger.

“This is my sister, Linda.”

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

Alicia’s arms dropped. “What?”

“Linda and I met two weeks ago by chance. Look, baby. She looks just like me. We met at the supermarket and were shocked by our resemblance to one another. We started talking and realized we were both orphans. Now we’re waiting for the results of a DNA test to confirm it. But we’re pretty sure because our childhood experiences were similar. I believe I remember playing with her at the orphanage, but it’s a blurry memory,” Luke explained the shocking story.

“That’s crazy,” Alicia whispered, looking at the woman. But Luke was right. The woman looked awfully like him. If identical twins of different genders were possible, they would be the perfect example.

Luke continued. “We’ve gotten pretty close since then, and she had an emergency last night. She asked me to watch her baby, Tony. I was too tired to explain earlier, but there it is.”

Alicia calmed down and invited Linda inside to hear the woman’s side of the story. It was pretty remarkable. Luke also begged forgiveness for not telling her sooner, but he didn’t want to ruin her important business trip with this complicated news.

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

For illustration purposes only. | Source: Pexels

“Anyway, the results are supposed to come out in a few days, and then, we’ll see. You can see them along with my husband and corroborate that we’re not lying. But I really hope it’s true because not having any extended family is the worst,” Linda commented after they talked for a while.

Alicia was glad to hear that Linda had a husband. It made the story much more plausible, and she forgave Luke for the lie pretty quickly because Tony was super cute.

A few days later, the results confirmed they were siblings, and they decided to spend more time together. Alicia was glad that Luke had a nephew to dote on, and she always thought that family mattered more than anything in the world.

What can we learn from this story?

  • Don’t lie to your spouse. Things could’ve gone south for Luke if Alicia didn’t patiently wait for an explanation. So it’s best not to lie to your partner.
  • Family is the most crucial part of life. Cherish your family members because tons of people wish they had them.

Share this story with your friends. It might brighten their day and inspire them.

If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a girl who asked her parents to adopt a kid she found on the bus.

This account is inspired by our reader’s story and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone’s life. If you would like to share your story

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