By KAYLAN ENGE

I never would have guessed that I would end up writing publicly.

When I was a kid I hated being told what to write; I still do actually. I strongly dislike writing essays and answering homework questions that require me to explain how I got my answer. However, I do truly enjoy being able to freely write what I want. That’s something that joining this group has taught me.  

Occasionally when I was younger I would write stories that were for pure entertainment. But I used to get frustrated because I could never get them to go anywhere, which led to me throwing them aside and never getting back to them. But here’s why I decided that I would give it a shot.

I remember the second to last day of summer school in Mrs. Aranda’s government class. I was sitting in my spot scanning the room like I usually do when I space out. When she began to tell the class about Ethic and showing us the first two magazines I didn’t know what to expect. The way I saw it was “Hey! That class could give me an elective so I can fill up my schedule and still have no six period.” So I decided I would see what I would find.

I was uncertain of how I would be involved and what I would like to do. After already saying I would try it, it became official. I got into contact with my counselor and next thing I knew I found myself sitting in a telepresence class with people I don’t even know (from different schools?) doing something that was way out of my comfort zone.

After the first few articles and some good ideas, I became an editor for A&E. That gave me a reason to commit, along with getting closer to everyone in this group, and becoming comfortable writing about things that were important to me such as marching band and other things. I am grateful to Mrs. Aranda for getting me interested in this class.

What I want people to get from this story is that life has a funny way of bringing you to different paths and that you never know which path you’ll take. So if it’s a path that brings you back to a former interest or sparks a new interest just go for it, take a bit of a test run and see if you enjoy it. This is the final time I get to write something like this so I hope I had a worthwhile effect on all of you readers and that you enjoyed my articles.