What doesn’t kill you either makes you stronger or makes you wish it did. Our most defining actions in life will be taken when we have a choice between holding on to something or letting it go, saying something or keeping it to ourself. There’s a direct response to every action that says “how you chose to act brought you this and this is your karma.” A lot of aspiring writers I know have told me that they were brought up with the idea that nothing they had to say (or write about) was important enough to be heard, because someone else somewhere in the world has already spoken about it. Understandable, yet mistaken. When I hear things like this, I think about my own struggles as an aspiring writer, which ultimately led me to make the choice that I made.
The ones who feel as though the world around them is broken are the ones who write amazing stories, either in the form of a novel or in the form of poetry. Ultimately, it really comes down to allowing yourself to be intimate with yourself and/or someone you trust, because although you may be writing for yourself, you’re sharing your life with a world of people in the hopes that someone responds to what you’re doing in good fashion.
I spend most of my free time either writing or watching movies. You wouldn’t be able to tell just by reading my blog, but movies are a big part of my life and they always have been, for the most part. They are a form of escapism. A form of art that entertains me while I focus on doing bigger things in my life.
You know you’re in pain when you take a deep look into who you are, realize that you’re not a happy person and want to inspire others and make them happier than you’ve ever been. It’s what inspired me to become a writer. I was the person who felt like the world around him was broken — more accurately, his own world. On some days, writing comes naturally to me, because I know what I want to say — but it can also be frustrating, because it doesn’t mean that what I have to say is necessarily something that people want to hear. Being a writer is like doing a sales pitch. Some people will love what you’re selling and others don’t want to hear it. On some days, I think about giving writing up and on others I tell myself that writing is what I was born to do. It comes naturally to me, because there are lots of things I want to say in my writing.
It’s crazy to think about how much we as people go through on a personal or emotional level, so much so, that we could be on the verge of breaking down, yet no one notices. This is where art comes into play. Art is the tension between wanting to show the world what you’re feeling but also wanting to hide and not be seen.
Do you ever stop and think “What makes me so special?” or “Is anyone proud of me?” Chances are, you probably ask yourselves those to questions a lot. I won’t define “a lot”, but I know it’s something a lot of people ask themselves every now and then. I know I have. But there’s a simple answer to both questions.
Your mind makes you special. Everything you ever experienced, every thought you’ve ever had, every difficulty you’ve faced and survived has made you who you are and continues to make you who you are. It’s all about how your mind works and that’s what makes you special. How you think, what you think, what you like and dislike, how your mind was shaped by things you’ve done in your life, etc. In that way, we can love people for who they truly are.
I’m proud of you. I’m really proud of you and all the hard work you’re putting into your life. You matter, your life matters and you inspire people. Even on the days that aren’t so good, you’re doing really, really well — even if you think you aren’t, you’re reading this, which means you’ve made it this far. Keep it up!
We might not realize it, but everyone in the world brings something to the table and fulfills someone’s life. If you think about it, we may have someone we look up to, but do we ever tell them how much they inspire us and how proud we are? We may, but we may not. But just because we don’t, it doesn’t mean we’re not inspired by them. Remember that. Someone right now, looks up to you as their role model and they may not say anything, but it’s true.
We’re all a product of the choices we make. Whether or not we’re in pain, the choices we make, friends we keep, the money we make and the people we inspire are all self-made choices. We’re self-made as people, by everything we do in our lives. So, the choice is yours. Are you going to channel your anguish into art, expressing yourself, or are you going to let isolation eat at your soul? The choice is ultimately yours, but there’s always more than one choice. The crazy thing about art is that it’s a matter of perspective. Someone could be expressing the severity of their anguish and all we may see in the art is our own pain, because often times in art, we deflect.
