Final Reflection

1.       1. Some things I’ve written this quarter were a lot of poems, or other personal posts. Especially during the 101 things about me. I enjoyed writing about music and family memories. The journal writing for me was more of a way to gather my thoughts in order to create an actual writing piece.

2.      2.  I used to love reading but this semester was crazy busy for me. I haven’t had much down time but when I have I read some pretty great things. A lot of the writing on this blog is phenomenal. I think reading what other people have to say about their childhood or their opinion on things is a really good way to get to know someone. I also read some good books from the library, including Where She Went and 13 Reasons Why.

3.       3. Setting up my blog was a bit of a struggle. I couldn’t decide what to name it, what background to have, how I wanted it to look. Eventually I came up with a name for it, Extraordinarily Ordinary. The reason I came up with that was because I feel like it describes me as well as my writing. I don’t really stand out, and I’m okay with that. My writing is just average at best, and I’m also okay with that because I thoroughly enjoy writing and that’s all that matters. I may continue to blog, I just don’t know if I will continue to use the school blog. I would probably just post about my day, good or bad. I may write about things I read, places I go, music I find.

4.     4.   I really enjoy journaling because I like having a place specifically for my writing and my thoughts. I write a lot about my day, memories I have, things I’m thinking about or things that are bothering me. I don’t really think I would want many people to read my journal. If they’re close enough to me, they already know what’s going on in my life. I definitely will continue to journal. It oddly releases a lot of stress that I have. I’ll continue writing the same way I have been. 

5.    5.    “Growing up means saying goodbye to life as we once knew it. It’s saying goodbye to old friendships, sometimes because of fights… and other times it’s because they’re gone forever, out of this world. Growing up means learning that some goodbyes are permanent, and you never know which will be your last. Growing up means saying goodbye to innocence. Goodbye to being naïve. Goodbye to happy meals and 12+under discounts. Goodbye to being happy with your appearance. Goodbye to being completely oblivious to bad things.

Growing up means saying hello to freedom and responsibility. Hello to all night study sessions. Hello to endless drama. Hello to facing challenges you haven’t been taught how to handle. Hello to stress so extreme there are nights you can’t help but cry yourself to sleep. Hello to relationships and break ups and broken hearts. Hello to friendships drifting apart. Hello to grades being a life or death matter. Hello to driving. Hello to jobs. Hello to so many new scary things. Hello to new exciting things as well. Hello to a new life.

”

6.     6.   “This feeling of guilt may never go away. I’ve tried so incredibly hard to forget about the accident. Forget that it’s all my fault. Maybe if I would just admit to what happened, some of this guilt would go away. Maybe I’d be able to eat and sleep again. Maybe I’d be able to close my eyes without seeing the scene of the accident. Maybe then I would be able to look at myself in the mirror and not hate what I see. But how can I admit to this? How can I admit that it’s my fault that four innocent people are dead? Who wants to be known as Courtney, the girl that accidentally murdered her best friends?”

7.     7.   I will probably always write, not as a profession or career or anything. I just enjoy getting my thoughts down on paper. I think creative writing releases so much stress because it helps organize my thoughts. I get so busy and stressed out and sometimes just getting everything down on paper is enough to help. I like that I’m able to write whatever I want, there’s no right or wrong. Unlike most English classes where there’s only one right way to write a paper.

8.   8.    This class was just a super fun environment. I loved that we all could share stories and memories and read each other’s writing with no judgment. Everyone was so encouraging and nice. It was nice to start my day off in a laid back class. It was extremely easy to open up and post whatever on the blog without being concerned about what anyone would think.

9.      9.  "The whole idea of growing up, moving out, finally gaining freedom makes me feel scared, excited, happy and oddly enough, angry. I’m so incredibly excited because of obvious reasons. I’m finally going to be free to do what I please. I can make my own mistakes, be my own person. I can do what I want, wear what I want, go where I want, date who I want. I’m also so scared at the same time. I have no idea how to be an adult. I don’t know how to live on my own and run a household by myself. The being angry part is probably a little hard to understand. But I’m angry because I’m not prepared at all. No one actually takes the time to prepare the teenagers for REAL life. I don’t know how to buy a house, pay bills, taxes, anything. I feel like maybe we should spend less time figuring out what A B and C equal and a little more time figuring out how to make it on our own. Growing up is scary anyway, but it would be nice to feel a little prepared. "