I got shot and this is what I learned.

First of— I'm okay. I'm gonna do a little sidestep, side to side, side to side.

I'm still Jo, I still smile, I still make jokes.

Uh, it's been one week since a bullet was lodged into my back.

Got a little patch.

I'm okay! Again, I'm okay!

Everybody at home, freaking out,

Yes, it is a reason to freak out,

It could have been super super super terrible

It could have gone so many ways but

Here I am, perfectly fine, with a bullet in my back

A little extra piece inside of me,

And a huuuge message to share.

Let's rewind.

Damon and I decided to go to the Carnival in Bresil

So we took a twenty-day trip to Sao Paulo first,

And then we went to Rio, my birth city

Of course, I was born there and I almost died there

But I didn't! And I am here to tell the tale

of the time I got shot in Bresil.

Why can't it be a joke ?!

'cause it's real!

Ok, so before the dramatic ? story

Just to get things clear, Carnival was amazing,

We spent three nights partying, dressing up like...

Animals... and putting glitter on our faces and...

watching everybody just feel completely alive.

So, after the parties , after the glitz and the glitter

And all the good things about Carnival

that you hear about all the time,

Damon and I decided to split up,

because I needed to see my family,

my father still lives there, my little brothers, my cousins,

uncles, aunts, everybody's still in Brazil

and so, then I took the opportunity that

that it was the last day of Carnival,

and I took an Uber all the way to the northern zone of Rio,

Tijuca, where my family all lives

And my dad and I hugged, we caught up, we...

danced in the street!

When I tell you: this is living...

You could just watch it for yourself

Again, my family has lived in this neighbourhood their entire lives.

So, it's not... a particulary extremly dangerous neighbourhood

It is dangerous, Rio is dangerous, but danger is everywhere

And I don't want it to seem like "you should never go to Brazil"

Damon had a beautiful time, in Brazil

This did not happen to Damon.

So, this is just one particular story,

not to scare you,

I would never want people to not come to my own country

That's so beautiful!

So, it was around 9:30, I was

supposed to meet Damon by Copacabana to go to a party

And I told my uncle

"Hey I'm gonna take an Uber home. Don't wait up"

And they said

"Absolutely not, we're gonna drive you home"

So we all hopped in the car

My uncle's driving, my aunt's in the passenger seat

My 15 year old cousin in the back seat with me

And for some reason

Even though I always do this

I did not put my seat belt on

Thankfully

And I was telling a story while they were driving

So I was leaning towards between the front 2 seats

We're driving down the street

In the neighborhood my family has lived in for years and years and years

All of the sudden and when I tell you in a blink of an eye

Everything changed

What I see

Was something out of movies but this is real life

2 motorcycles blocking the street

And at the dead center of the street

There was a man holding a gun pointing directly

At the windshield of the car that I was in the middle of

Dead center in the middle blocking the street

And in attempt to steal car and rob whoever in the car with guns

So my uncle was driving at 40 miles per hour

kept driving because he didn't see that there were 2 motorcyclists

And when he keeps driving

he hit one of the motorcycles

And from that point on we were like "We can't stop here"

"these people have guns"

"and they wanna kill us"

From that point on, it was just like...

Flash, flash, flash

It was like my pupils were opening to try to...

see as much information as possible, too see where I should

go and what to do and how to react

We drive away

And immediately

You hear: Pow pow pow pow pow

So I duck

And I see the slow motion of the red flames flying out of the guns, like...

WHAT?

This is not a movie. This is life

And I'm ducking because I'm trying not to get hit in the head

And I'm trying to make sure none of my family is getting hit

And as we're driving away

And the sound is so loud and the smell of gun powder is so, so vivid

All of the sudden I feel heat in my back

And I'm like

I just got shot in the back

I just got hit in the back. We need to go to the hospital. NOW

Never thought I'd say those words

And I told myself as I was lying down

You say you're strong. Now it's the time to prove it

And I calm down

And I was actually calm

considering I've just been shot

And my poor 15 year old cousin was there like, holding me

And I though to myself: "No 15 year old, no child..."

"should have to see this and live this and, make this a part of their everyday life"

Because of danger and violence that are so unnecessary. FOR WHAT?

For a car?

For a cellphone, really?

It appals me

That this is not just about me. This is about everybody that gets hit with bullets

It's about everybody that is a victim of a violent crime for something so silly

After I realized that I was hit

We sped into a hospital

And I looked to the side

of the car where I should have been sitting had I had my seat belt on

And there was a gapping hole

where the window, where my head would have directly been next to

So again, everything happens for a reason

If I have sat in the car, put my seat belt on

You wouldn't be seeing this video right now

And from that point on, adrenaline was rushing, I was in survival mode

Straight up like... Girl you're gon' survive this

I get separated from my family and this is the part when everything gets so real, so fast

And you're lying, looking up at a blank ceiling you're just thinking

"If this were my last day, would it have been a good one?"

And to be honnest

Yes I've lived a great life. And my 24 years have done more than a lot of people can dream of

But that particular day

I managed to argue with everybody that I care about.

For the dumbest things

Damon and I argued because I didn't feel like sharing my beach towel with him

WHAT?

Really? Is that how it's gonna close out of a chapter of an amazing friendship?

My mom and I weren't speaking

My dad and I had had a decent time

I haven't spoken to my brothers, my sisters, my best friends for over a week

And if that was my last day

that would have been a shame

So anything when I was looking up at the ceiling

At the blankness

of the abyss that could have been the end of my life

I was upset

And I realized

I can't do that again.

You need to live every single day life your last

And tell everybody that you care about how much you care about them

And make an effort to think not about the things that don't matter

Like likes, comments, your appearance. Things that are so vain

Yeah, of course you can think about those things

But if it's your last day on Earth. Is that really what you want to think about?

Here's the best part

They didn't take the bullet out of me (whattt?)

Your girl is now Iron Woman

Someway somehow this bullet managed to go in the one spot in my back

where it would affect nothing vital

Thank you

And everything plays a part in this

Going to the gym like a race horse

It was like I was literally practicing to survive without knowing it and that's absurb

I'mma beep through airport

Here's what I'm encouraging you to think about now

Are you living every single day like it's your last?

Are you doing the things that you wanna do now?

Have you booked the trip you've always wanted to take?

Have you told the person you love how much you care about them?

Are you studying something that makes you genuinely happy?

Are you helping others?

You never know when something like this could happen

Don't sit around and wait

We think we're invincible, we think these things never happen to anybody close to us

Guess what? It happened to me

So now you know somebody, who it happened to

somebody that you follow on a regular basis

somebody that constantly travelling the world

And to give you an idea. I'm not going to avoid going back to Brazil. I will go back

This isn't going to make me afraid

Because if I live my life in fear then it's

completely going against what I just said

which is you need to live your live to the fullest. So...

On that note

It's time to shut and go and live your live