I hate being wrong more than I love being right and usually, I would rather fight than admit I'm wrong. I am a very competitive person and being wrong is essentially the equivalent to losing, making everything in life a game. This character trait is classified as hubris because by always wanting to be right and to "win", even if I know I'm wrong, I'm maintaining my pride. This flaw tends to cause problems in my relationships every now and then because per-say, if I do something the other person considers wrong, I hate to accept it and instead I turn it into an argument opposed to accepting my wrongs.
"Everything happens for a reason". This saying is used so much and although it sounds cliche and cheesy, I honestly believe it's true. There are several situations in my life when I think to myself, "why did this happen to me?" And usually if I wait long enough, and think hard enough I can figure it out; whether it taught me a lesson, opened my eyes and mind to something new, or made me a stronger person. It is inevitable that unfortunate things are going to happen in life, but God doesn't present anyone with anything they can't handle, and these battles come for a reason. That reason may not be understandable at that specific moment in time, but later on you will look back and everything will make sense. "I believe everything happens for a reason. People change so you can learn to let go. Things go wrong so you can appreciate them when they're right. You believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself. And sometimes good things fall apart so better things can come together."
Writing has always been something that has had to be forced and I have had to pry it out of myself, much like a job that I have no desire to do. It has been my most dreaded aspect of school for as long as I can remember, but this year I have broke the barrier and my writing has started to flow and come more easily. Through studying my journal I have noticed a steady trend of improvement as time passed. At first my writing style was really concise, with short, choppy sentences that didn't go into much depth. But towards the end I noticed my entries becoming more deep, colorful, and analytical. Over time I found myself being more expressive and vibrant through my writing, and more fluent and complex as well. I'm really reflective in my writing and I like to write about life and the struggles and triumphs it brings.... "Sure, my religion, my interests, and my preferences are going to be similar to other peoples', but nobody has the exact same outlook on life, making me different and special in my own way."
When I'm really interested in what I'm writing about, I find my writing to flow more easily and it tends to sound better. But when I'm not intrigued or informed about the topic I'm writing about my writing sounds choppy and unintelligent. This is made evident in the comparison of my free writes and the assigned topics. In free writes I am really inspired by what I'm writing and my writing comes more from the heart, whereas, sometimes my pieces relating to the assigned topics aren't as deep or vibrant. For example, the quote, "We bonded not only from spending so much time together but also by the struggles and successes basketball brings. They are what got me through those miserable 3 hour practices and they were there, standing with me as we received our championship trophy from one of the biggest national tournaments out there" from one of my free writes compared to the quote, "One quality of a hero is that they would sacrifice themselves to help others" from an assigned topic about heroes. The quote from my free write is much more complex and reflective, whereas the quote from the hero topic is short, choppy, and not heartfelt in any sense. Also, when I am analyzing quotes I often lead in by saying phrases like "the quote" and per-say, "Piggy says". I also analyze the quote by saying "this quote means" or variations of that. By becoming more interested in the topic by studying it more to become more passionate about it and by becoming more inventive when it comes to phrasing my analysis of quotes I believe my writing can improve by leaps and bounds.
Inspiration is in everything, therefore, my main inspiration for my writing is life itself, and everything that life entails. I relate a lot of my writing to basketball and what it has taught me over the years because it is a main part of my life and it inspires me. Also, lessons I learn from past failures and victories inspires me to write as well. My family and friends also inspire me to write because they have an immense impact of my life, and life is my inspiration. I find life beautiful and inspiring, therefore making it the ideal inspiration for writing, because writing is colorful and wonderful and everything great. I love the idea of saving your feelings and ideas in time through writing which makes my life, and life in general a great inspiration.
