[BLOG] [PERSONAL] The Long Journey Ahead…
It’s been a while since I’ve written anything new for the blog, and I’m sorry for that. Life has a way of complicating things. But I promise to you, dear readers, that more is coming soon and more frequently. In the meanwhile I would like to get a little personal with you, if you’ll indulge me (and of course you will).
Writing about myself has never been an easy task. What do I say? How do I say it correctly? Should I leave this in or out? How do I catch the reader’s attention when I don’t think there is enough about me that’s captivating enough to do so? Truth be told I am fairly introverted. I find discussing cinema and literature far easier than discussing myself because those subjects, and the people behind them, are far more fascinating than I am at the moment. There’s centuries long history behind movies and the literary arts, while my history only dates back thirty-one years. I believe that a man’s actions and achievements should speak for him. I would much rather people get to know me through my works rather than through my words (which is ironic considering my work centers around words).
Fifteen years ago I thought that work would be scientific research in the field of marine biology, but that never panned out. My head and my heart spent more time in the clouds than in the sea. As a child I spent most of my time reading comic books (and actual books), watching old Ray Harry Hausen films with my father, and doodling in my sketch pads. I hadn’t even considered that my calling lay in the arts, not until my third year in college where one of my professors told me that a paper I had written was too good for the school I was in. That same year a classmate of mine was impressed with another paper I had written and convinced me to write for the school newspaper. I was assigned to the Arts & Entertainment section as a film critic and I’ve been passionate about it ever since.
But passion alone cannot propel a career. One needs focus, discipline, not to mention a thick skin. Sometimes it gets hard to write, regardless of how much I love to do it. Facing rejection is not something I’m always good at (that’s where that thick skin comes into play) and there is always that voice, that gremlin in the back of my mind. Endless whispering. “You’re not good enough, no one will receive you.” “It’s too late to get started, you have too much to learn.” “Your voice and opinion won’t matter in a sea of voices and opinions that rarely matter.” Combined with the factors of the outside world and it can get a little overwhelming. And yet here I am still pushing forward. Quitting is easy, but easy is boring. Continuing to pursue my dreams is much more exciting. Life is a journey, and no good journey is without obstacles, even the ones we create ourselves.
A man’s achievements should speak for him and at the moment my achievements are minor, but that’s what the journey is for. Every small step brings me closer to something grand, and so I look ahead. It’s not always easy, and but to me it will always be worth it.