I sometimes forget to speak up for myself. It’s hard to get anything I want to say out on time, and when I do think of what I want to say, it’s too late. Is there a reason for me to speak up anymore? Maybe there is another place I can speak up, or maybe not.
It’s getting close to the end of the year, and I can’t help but think about everything that has happened. Every good and bad, every moment in the past, and what will come of the future. Yet, I never want to talk about it. Last year, I played a game called The Beginner’s Guide by Davey Wreden and ended with a lot to say with nowhere to place those words or anyone to hear me out. Even on forums, I don’t know where my voice belongs, so I remain silent. And when I think of what is to come next year with my own life and the world around me, I don’t want people to know what I am thinking.
The worst is when people talk over you without care. While people run their mouths off, I am thinking and finding an opportunity to speak, but it never comes. And then there are those who say your words are wrong. It’s hard to say something constructive when no one values your words. It’s hard to stand up for something when someone is denying your feelings and experiences.
But we should never stay quiet and silence the words of others. We should learn to speak up for ourselves and listen to the people around us instead of just hearing silence come out their mouths.
For now, I’ll just hope for next year to be better and that life will be happier after exams and the holidays.
Ju Hyun Kim
3A Sociology and French
