"Erutuf Etarelit Em"

Looks like it's in Latin, right?? Nope that's just my brilliant, literate self :)

In all seriousness, I believe that literacy is the key to communication, and that communication is salient to the successful existentialism of human beings. Communication, whether it's through reading, writing, or speaking, prevails, nonetheless.

For my future, I am making a permanent goal for myself to read. While there will almost always be non-preferable texts (in high school, college, work, etc.), I am vowing to myself, here and now, to always make room in my life to read for my own enjoyment. Reading is an opportunity to escape reality for a while and live the life of someone else. Or, on the other hand, reading provides a source of comfort and familiarity regarding a situation similar to one's own. Either way, I have always found that reading is calming and soothing. In fact, when I can't fall asleep, I just pick up a current read or an old favorite, and inevitably drift off soon thereafter. Another thing I love about reading, is seeing the impact it has on others. Last year, I had the opportunity to go an elementary school and teach children about tolerance and acceptance (a new approach to anti-bullying). In my lesson, I read Dr. Seuss' The Sneeches, which was a huge hit (and FYI, my personal favorite). Other than the fact that I love reading aloud, it was inexplicably special to watch the children's reactions, as well as the discussion we had together afterwards. I was shockingly and pleasingly overwhelmed with the kids' ability to interpret the novel with such depth as they did. Moreover, I think I actually learned more that day than I even taught, demonstrating the sheer power of reading and communication. I also learned that if you want kids to be more involved, it is best to give out lots of candy.

Next, I am promising to maintain writing in my literate future. I am a pretty big fanatic/master of writing lists: books, songs, To-Do's, recipes... the list goes on and on (haha!). In my actual writing though, I have always felt that expressing myself through words (on paper) comes somewhat naturally. However, I usually have to be in the mood to write. One of my greatest influences was, yep, you guessed it, my mom. When I was younger, I had asked her what she was most proud of about herself. She told me that her ability and success in writing had been such a useful tool throughout her life, that it had become one of the things in which she took the most pride. Although I had always enjoyed writing as a kid (I would go home after school in the second grade and write little poems... I was such a nerd), it wasn't until I got a little bit older, when I began writing short stories, descriptive paragraphs, and eventually essays, in school, allowing me to really excel in writing. I feel that my writing this year has ameliorated tremendously, and I will try my best to continue to improve. 

Last but not least, speaking. The verbalization of thoughts and feelings is so powerful, and crucial to relationships of all kinds. Sometimes I think that this is the most difficult form of communication. I have such strong feelings about nearly everything in life, yet even the most complex vocabulary and combinations of words cannot suffice. Learning to speak French as well as developing a knack for singing has helped me get better at speaker in front of large groups of people, and one-on-one situations. I think that with more and more life experiences, it becomes easier to speak effectively by learning to say exactly what is felt, rather than beat around the bush. Since speaking is so important, I definitely plan to improve on my on-the-spot thinking and speaking skills in the future. 

Each mode of communication is equally unique and vital toward mankind. I believe that it is never to late to begin doing any of these, and that there will always be room for improvement in each.