The Coauthors of my Story

This blog post was a bit difficult for me this week, because I had never thought about my life being "coauthored". Thinking about that has really opened my eyes to the different people that have helped shape me into becoming the person I am today, whether our interaction be positive or negative.

 

"Adolescents are in a near constant state of constructing their lives"

 

This quote from the reading stuck out to me because it is so true! People never really stop to think that adolescents are always developing and creating. It's an every day process. Another point that was really well made in the article was that as adults in their lives, we are impacting the way they think about the world, and it is okay if their ideas do not match or conflict the ideas that we believe in.

 

For the assignment we were asked to list 10 people who helped coauthor our lives:

 

1. My parents
2. My grandparents
3. My sister
4. My nephew
5. My cousin Jess
6. Lauren
7. Danny
8. My brother
9. Mrs. Collins
10. Kaylie 

 

It is hard for me to just pick one of these examples and tell you all about how s/he shaped my life because they are all such a huge part of what makes me who I am today. Some of the people I no longer speak to, and some of them I talk to every single day. Some have impacted me in negative ways and showed me what kind of person I want to be by negative example, and some have done the same using positive examples. If I have to choose one, my mom has helped me tremendously. She has impacted my way of thinking more than anyone else on the list. She has always been open minded with me (especially when I came out) and has supported me and had my back throughout everything. She has always let me make my own decisions, while offering guidance and suggestions. That being said, she has also let me make my own mistakes, offering comfort and help instead of "I told you so." She has been a significant coauthor of my life, and on a list of many, she stands out the most.

 



Color Brave vs. Color Blind

Before this, I had previously had a similar discussion about this topic. The idea of being "color blind" never really sat well with me. I think that when some people mention that they are "color blind" they mean it in the best way possible, but the term in itself is insulting and degrading to people of color. Saying that you are color blind is directly ignoring a very big piece of someone's identity. Its pretending a part of them does not exist. To me, that is taking away from the person as a whole. According to Mellody Hobson, who presented the TED talk on being color brave, color blindness is the equivalent to running away from a problem, while being color brave is helping to face the problem head on and create change.

I found another interesting article to back up what Mellody Hobson talked about in her TED talk:

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/holder-america-should-be-color-brave-not-color-blind_796655.html

In regards to the tweet that read:

 "never trust anyone

   who says they do not see color

   this means to them,

   you are invisible"

 





This is extremely important. This has to be understood.

 

In my opinion, this just solidifies the message from the TED talk. I think the tweet is a simple and short way to convey a very important message that so many people do not seem to understand.

 

I have definitely felt invisible before, in regards to be sexuality seeming to be invisible to others. I feel like although it may not be as widespread, having a part of you ignored or denied can make you feel invisible, even if that piece of you isn't a physical attribute that you have. I think that youth spaces like  Youth In Action can really help try to end this invisibility because these members of society-regardless of their age are sharing their stories and their experiences with one another. Awareness can be spread at any age.