Hardly. Falling, That Is.

one

    "'You are not your past.'These words are repeated more times than I have the ability to count, and while I believe some of it holds true, I view it as a paradox. Yes, we are not our pasts. We are not shattered hearts or broken dreams or uncontrollable sobbing or even laughter on the beach or adventures in the early hours. We are human. In this sense, the quote, when looked at quite literally, is true; but when we search deeper, we find that in some way, we are our pasts. If I hadn't tried to eat soap when I was four, I wouldn't use soap only for my body and hands. If I hadn't experienced sickness, I would not appreciate the quality of life nearly as much as I do now. If I had not felt heartbreak first-hand, I would not be as tentative or cautious. Our pasts are not who we are, but they chisel at us, sculpt us, and mould our mannerisms, ways of thinking, and who we are. With that being said, we can learn from this paradox and embrace, rather than reject, previous moments and life experiences."

    "Thank you, Miss Leventis," As he spoke from his desk, I returned to mine, chin resting back in my palm and elbow finding the cold desktop. "Your time was exactly one minute and thirty seconds, but believe I may have to decide that excessive pauses for dramatic effect no longer count towards your time. Try to keep that in mind for your next speech, Athene." Mr. Hamilton's voice floats across the room, a lighthearted and playful tone, but I can only manage a weak smile back at him, gaze returning back to the scribbles in my notebook.

    "Give her a hand folks as we move to our next speaker... Lewis, come on up!" I sigh, watching Lewis stumble to the front and direct my stare towards the window. His voice becomes a faint, soothing sound in the back of my mind, the droplets of rain on the glass colliding to the rhythm of each syllable. Before the seven minute bell trills, before Lewis' speech is done, I've fallen asleep, head hung limply in my left hand.
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a/n
song in the media area is "Young and Courageous" by Tides of Man. Check them out if you're looking for some cool instrumental.

"Hardly. Falling, That Is." has oFFICIALLY begun! I'm excited to start this new story and I hope you are, too. It seems I can't break my habit of writing very little at a time, so if you decide to stick around (I hope you do :)), expect shorter chapters but more updates each week. Please vote, comment, or write a suggestion if you're feeling up to it!

thanks again and until the next update,
angela