Blog #9: Reflections on Essay #1

Writing the first essay was very therapeutic for me. I wanted to express a lot of those emotions before but always stopped myself from writing them down. It also opened up many other possible topics for me to explore in the future. As far as form and content, I have some work to do in regards to length but the main idea of a journey coming full circle was definitely conveyed. I’m going to add another scene in the beginning and make the ending (my moment of realization) the fist fight between my cousin and I.
One point I want to hit home that may not have been too clear is this: I ran away from what I didn't want to be (angry, hateful), and I found that these feelings followed me to North Carolina- not just because they were saturating my cousin's family but because they had become a part of me.
Once I was able to make a rough outline of my ideas, it was easier for them to come together on the screen. I wasn’t as concerned with how the first draft sounded as long as my message was clear-now I can go back and polish it. I usually write a story in my notebook before typing it, but in this case I wrote everything on the computer so there wasn’t as much editing involved.
I have not decided what my next topic will be, but all of the things I am considering are directly related to the first one. It’s like an emotional domino effect; one door opens many more and I have rediscovered things about myself that I was repressing for so long. This introspection was much needed, and I’m excited about writing another one.