Perfect?

 When it comes to the topic of perfection, practicing what I preach is an extreme challenge. I want perfection. In everything. Without having to work at it. Yes, I'm a lazy hypocrite, I know that. But it's simply true.

 In my writing, I want perfection. I want to be the best. I'm extremely competitive, something which I hide very well. This winter I joined the speech team and wrote my own creative expression piece. Hours upon hours were poured into perfecting my piece, yet it was controversial as it dealt with topics of a troubled teen (into witchcraft, suicidal, etc) who came to Christ and ends up dying in a school shooting. Not only did I get biased against because of the Christianity aspect but also the fact I was using a historical story. For next year, I'm determined to make it to state and am already planning out how to accomplish that. To make it to state you have to make it to the top three in sections in a category where there are up to thirty competitors. So my strategy is to be unique, thought provoking, and intense without being controversial.

But am I losing sight of the true goal? To make people think and turn their thoughts toward God? It was interesting at speech this year, everyone knew what I believed just from hearing my piece. It definitely added pressure to how I conducted myself at meets and on bus rides, but it was a really awesome opportunity. If I go in a different direction next year, will I be selling out?

 

 I want to go to state and dominate state. I want to get first at a meet instead of 4th (my highest placing last season). But what's the price for "perfection"? And is selling out perfection anyway?

 These are the thoughts in my head. I decided that I was just going to write whatever was on my mind and I guess this is it. It's really weird to write something like this, it's not my usual style and not my best by any stretch of the imagination. But it's raw. And I think that's what my writing currently needs. I need to take the rawness of my songs and poems and put them into posts. Scary. But you know what? I think it's a step towards true "perfection". The real kind. 

A Love for the Spoken Word

 Poetry slam.
 Two simple words instantly put me into a cozy little cafe with people wearing scarves and snapping their fingers with one hand and sipping tea with the other. The concept of spoken word has enraptured me since I was about six and watched Anne Shirley recite The Lady of Shallot in Anne of Green Gables. That beautiful, intense, lustrous way of putting life into poetry is what makes me love poetry. Needless to say, when my English teacher announced a poetry slam for an assignment, I was pumped.

 She ended up turning our poetry slam into a legitimate contest. Two students from her four classes were selected to go on to a final found to compete and I got the privilege of being one of them. This is the piece I wrote for the slam and I just wanted to shave it with you all. Enjoy!

To Blog or Not to Blog

 To be or not to be - that is the question I have been asking myself when it comes to this little blog. It's been nine months since I last posted on here and a lot happens in that amount of time. The last nine months have been incredibly life altering as God has been shaping me into someone who I've never been before. That has required some insanely hard times and painful exposure to character flaws and hidden sins. It's been a difficult journey over the last nine months, but I know that it was essential to becoming the person God wants me to be.


 Lately, I've been pondering a return to blogging. I am starting to miss it and the sense of accountability it gives you to simply write. I want to be more honest and real in my writings and simply put, raw. So that brings me to a question I am hoping for some help on. To keep Nobody416 and just revamp it a bit, or start again from scratch. Total new beginnings with no set pattern to follow. I want your opinions - stick with what I got - or go with something new?