“Writers see the world differently. Every voice we hear, every face we see, every hand we touch could become story fabric.” –Buffy Andrews

I am a firm believer in the testament that we are bred from our passions, and from those passions we are granted the strength to carry us for the rest of our days. I am many things: a student, a friend, and a daughter. However, in terms of the utmost importance, I am a writer. The ink from my pen dries as the words from someone’s lips, my mind floods with the awakening of plot ideas and character developments, and my eyes glisten with the entrance into an alternative existence. This is who I am.

As a high school student striving to fit into the socially accepted norm, I often find myself caught between my yearning for the pen and the desire to help others feel that same joy that I experience. From a personal standpoint, I see fellow classmates struggle to use words in this form every day. I see them left angry and disappointed at each failed attempt. So much so that they begin to resent it. They become angry at the idea of Oracle Literacy and English essays. I begin to see their wall rise, brick by brick.

Writing is the most rewarding gift you could ever receive, not a diminishing punishment. For myself, writing is my outlet. If I don’t get a good grade in school, writing is my way of ripping up that paper and running over it with my car without a care in the world. That’s why I think writing is important. I’m not the person who’ll tell you “writing is essential for your future career” or “writing is a necessity in everyday living” because you don’t want to hear that. I don’t even want to hear that, and I already enjoy it. Student to fellow student, I am telling you to do yourself the favor of writing every day. I don’t care what about, just make a habit. Do it for your own self benefit. Make it your release, make it your sanctuary, make it your safe place.

Writing isn’t just about stamping words on a page with no emotion or feeling attached to it. It’s about self expression and self awareness, and knowing who you are. Writing will expose you to the deepest and darkest crevices within yourself. You will learn more about you than could ever be taught or experienced through everyday human simplicities. Writing is the best way for you to become one with yourself and your priorities. Writing flows much deeper than mere ink splatters on a page; it’s the entire staple of who you are.