A Stream of Consciousness
They come forward, but do not see me. Cars and people zipping past.
I am alone to my thoughts, fears and excitement.
Here, I am happy.
I was told as a child that you do not become what you want to become, instead, you become what is meant for you.
I thought this testament was too vague. I want to be what is meant for me but also want what I want.
This can be accomplished, I thought.
I stand on a bridge. looking out over the cement veranda and wonder deep into my own conscious.
I believe in success.
The air is cool and crisp as it whips past my face. I stand, bundled in three coats, listening to my breaths. With my hands pressed against the railing of the bridge, I look out over all of the passing people and cars. I am excited and nervous about being in such a big city all alone. I keep breathing. I let go of the cold stone rail and expose my fingertips to the open air. The wind surrounds my body. It is only when I take a step back that I feel the freedom of being alone. Free from safety nets and judgment. I do not need to lean on anything when objects and threats are coming toward me. I have had people and their ill intentions threaten my well being, my future and success. I understand what it is like to have set backs. But those do not matter anymore. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. I can hear the heartbeat of the city. It is alive. At this point, I know I can accomplish what I want without anything holding me back. What I want is to be happy and successful and this is where I will start.
Explanation:
ReplyDeleteI chose a dark background to contrast the content. While the picture is darker, it draws the eye in to look at the cars coming toward the viewer. My first segment is a stream of consciousness that I felt when I looked at this picture again. It reminded me of how I felt held back when I stood on the bridge on that day in November 2012, but then took a "leap of faith" and let go of insecurities. I added a song from Frank Sinatra to jazz up the page. To me, his music defines independence and elegance. What better than add him to my page on Chicago? My narrative is about liberation from society’s obstacles. I felt a sense of freedom when I stood on the bridge and looked over the city. In that moment I found the courage to chase my dreams.
I could really feel the energy of being in the city. The color scheme that you chose helped imbue the blog with the urban feeling. Blacks and yellows are very unnatural and very cosmopolitan.
ReplyDeleteThe way that you describe the emotions and feelings going through the narrators mind were impressive. We have all been in a situation like this. So it was smart of you to play off of that solid foundation of standard feeling.
There is a definite sense of place, the city. But we do not know what city. The Sinatra song makes the reader thing United States, but the picture is of a one way street, so this could even be Europe.
I think this contributes to the 'feeling of being alone in the city,' since we don't actually know what city we are 'in.' We all know what that feels like, we have all been there. There is a sober respect for this feeling when we get it. Like we feel that we are supposed to feel it.
I was pretty lucky to be listed above this blog, because we hit on similar themes. Both blogs seem to have a melancholy feel about them. the picture I had for my first post was of the edge of a cliff looking out over an endless lake. I love the comparison with your picture. Looking over the edge of a balcony into and endless expanse of road. These two pictures show the same thing. Two sides of the same coin. I am assuming that was the point of this exercise, so have us make connections like that. And now, my second post has now incorporated this surprising symmetry onto my blog and I think that it is better for it.