Silence to Speech

I used to be a wuss. I think in part because I was home schooled more than half my life so I really never had to stick up for myself or anything of that nature. I went to catholic school finally from 6-8th grade and still it was a school with a little over 150 students in it so I got really close with all my classmates and there were no cliques or bullies, and we all had the same religious and ethical views, so again I didn't need to voice my opinions very much or defend myself. Then I came to Mayfair and I made friends pretty quickly. I thought I had settled in. I was quiet and shy but I saw no reason to believe that was a fault. If you had asked my to participate in Socratic Seminar during sophomore year I probably would have been one of those people who didn't say anything. However about the time near the end of junior year I kind of realized I was being a pussy. I really let people walk all over me and I just followed the crowd, never being different. I honestly hated it. I did a mini overhaul of my life over the summer and I think I am definitely a changed person. My family and friends have told me they've noticed I've become more independent, outspoken, and unafraid to put myself out there. What I'm getting at is that I was pretty miserable when I was afraid to state my opinions and be "loud" (so to speak) with my actions because I was always nervous of being disliked; I suppose that always comes with going to a new school and it became a habit. But when I came out of my shell and started living without fear of people disagreeing with my views or worrying about what people thought of me, I was happier and people seemed to like me better. I guess its more fun to be around people who aren't worried about being 100% agreeable all the time. So I guess to all those people who feel like silence is the best route, think again. Because what ever you have to say, people will like it, or at least respect you for being bold enough to say it.