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Monday, November 26, 2018

"Freshman Year " by Elias A P



Throughout high school, I have been fortunate enough to have some amazing experiences that ultimately opened up my mind in one shape or form. As a football player, I learned that just simply putting in the effort to achieve a goal is a great accomplishment, even if I never achieved that goal. Even though being a part of the team allowed me to experience incredible moments, it was not the experience that impacted me the most. The class that really changed my way of thought was Drama 1 with Mr. Kyle. The decision to take drama was not actually my own.  At the start of Freshman year, I was excited and equally nervous about my classes and the different people that I would meet. I was lucky in the fact that I was able to get all the classes that I wanted and that the order in which I had these classes sat well with me. After three days my luck ran out as my mother decided that she did not like the classes that I was taking. I originally had all prep classes and wood shop as my elective. After my mom had decided what was best for me, I ended up having to take both honors English and Math but also Drama one. I dreaded this decision and begged my mom to change to my schedule to what it was before. My begging, however, had no effect whatsoever. I was now more nervous than I was excited about high school, and I especially feared Drama and the whole concept of performing to a room full of people. The next day I received my new schedule and I was happy to see that I did not have drama until third period. I then used the first and second period to prepare myself for what I thought was the most terrifying, pointless, biggest waste of time that I perceived as Drama. Although Mr. Kylie is a very passionate teacher that focuses on finding the best ways to help his students learn, he can at times be a little bit too much. As third period rolled by, I became more nervous with each step that I took on the way to the E building from the A building. As I stepped through the door, I quickly noticed that the majority of the room was all black. The walls and the stage were painted black, the chairs were black, and there were black curtains that covered the walkway that lead towards Mr. Kylie’s desk in the back. I nervously introduced myself to Mr. Kylie and took a seat in the front row. As much as I thought that I would absolutely hate my time in drama I actually started to become quite fond of the class. I began to enjoy the class because it allowed everybody to freely express themselves and put on performances that at times would bring the whole room to tears. The class was mainly made up of freshman and seniors, all who had their own hobbies like choir, water polo, football, ASB, and baseball. As time went by I saw how everyone was either completely comfortable or at least begging to become comfortable performing. In spite of everyone being nonjudgmental and even helpful to one another with constructive criticism, I was still terrified of performing. I would go up on stage and be so nervous that my hands would not stop shaking and I would not talk loud enough. I had always been insecure about a lot of things in my life and therefore I always had a fear of presenting to people, even if it was just a small group and not a classroom. I was then stuck at a crossroads, I would either continue the way I had been doing things and cower away when it came to performing or I would try and find even the smallest bit of courage and give it my all when it came to performing. Luckily, I chose the latter and decided to not let my fears dictate how I lived my life. Once I had decided to give it my all I noticed that my hands would no longer shake and that the people in the back could clearly hear my voice. I was now comfortable being on stage and allowing my creative side to be freely expressed without having any interference from fear. In one particular performance, my partner Samuel and I decided to put a twist on what was serious dialogue. For the location of where the monologue was taking place, we decided to make it an amusement park. We were two strangers that were both extremely nervous about riding a rollercoaster and we tried to ease each other's fears as we came to the drop where we ultimately just lost any progress that we had made. The whole scene was at most six to seven minutes but in that short time, I gave it my all. At the end of the semester, I felt as though I was an extremely different person thanks to Drama. I believe that the valuable lessons that I learned while in football allowed me to learn even more in Drama which in turn opened up a variety of new perspectives that I had never even considered.  


23 comments:

  1. WOW! what an amazing piece! The description in the poem is great and allowed me to feel as if i were there in that moment. I enjoyed reading this because I can relate to the feeling of being nervous when having to perform in front of any audience and I still struggle with this. I can now take on advice that you presented such as finding courage! -jayleen lupian

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  2. I like how descriptive you were talking about the feeling you felt being in that class and I also related to the way you felt being nervous in drama and learning to enjoy it towards the end.

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  3. Elias, that was an amazing personal reflection! I liked how you explained your internal struggle of presenting in front of people. This is a good inspiring passage for someone who is trying to overcome presenting in front of people. Good job in conveying the story (Nathaniel Landeros) 12/4/2018 9:42

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  4. Hey Elias! I loved reading your blog piece because I was so relatable to it in the exact same way. I am not a very good public speaker and when I was put into his class fifth period Freshmen year, I was BEYOND nervous. After reading your piece I was able to fill a sense of relief that I was not the only one who is nervous when presenting to an audience. I love how you were able to overcome you being nervous and in the end present to the class like no big deal. Mr. Kiley's class was one of my favorite drama teachers ever and I am glad that you were able to enjoy his class too. I also really like how you were able to show us readers how your overcame that obstacle in your life.
    - Tanner Antonucci

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  5. This piece was really great Elias. It just goes to show that it is the things we fear that can end up being the things we enjoy doing. Hearing you overcome your fear and deciding that you are just going to do your best is something we should always have in mind when we face those problems or fears in life. Thanks for such an inspirational piece.
    -Ivan Mejia(Per.5)

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  6. I love it! Freshman year I was placed in choir and I was so uneasy about it but it turned out to be something I loved and influenced me to learn to play several instruments. I know how hard it can be for a guy to do acting considering most others may consider it a feminine thing but I am sure you bloomed like a flower. This really inspires me to try new things. Thank you!

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  7. Thank you for sharing your experience. It is amazing how you have gone from being really nervous in Drama class from the beginning of the school year to feeling confident at the end. Great Job.

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  8. I liked how you overcame your obstacle and how when you knew that being in drama would force you to overcome that fear you still did it. I also liked how descriptive your poem was and the amount of imagery you presented. THANK YOU for sharing. (Julia Avalos)

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  9. This was a really interesting story to hear. I'm in Drama I right now and although it is something I find scary and difficult at times, I'm really enjoying it. I think you conveyed your experience really well, and I think Mr. Kiley would have loved to see this piece and how you improved in his class.

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  10. i really enjoyed reading this mainly because it was so descriptive which helped understand this personal reflection so much better

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  11. Elias, I really enjoy your piece because it is so intriguing. I enjoy the fact that you were able to recollect events from your freshman year and apply it to your life now. I also found it inspirational how you got into Drama because I feel like having a little activity or hobby that you’re passionate about can make a huge difference

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  12. Elias, I have to say I can relate to be nervous in front of a crowd. All the attention is on you and you feel like you have to get everything right or else anything could happen. I like how you provided details on how it really feels presenting in front of people especially when you know you have a certain amount of time and all you do is just focus on what you need to accomplish and then it’ll be worth the time and effort in the end. Great Job!

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  13. Ashley Sierra-TilleryDecember 5, 2018 at 6:33 PM

    Elias, your writing here is desriptive and engaging and your narrative is encouraging to all of who have had similar experiences. Great Work!

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  14. I really enjoyed your character development in your story and how you grew from an unexpected situation. Your story proves that putting yourself out of your comfort zone can have a positive impact.

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  15. This was an excellent piece that reflects the feelings you felt at that moment. I remember the times I felt like that and I can tell it was the same feeling because of all the description and detailed you put in. It really shows that everyone gets nervous at times and you put us in your shoes. Great piece.

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  16. Hey Elias! I loved reading your blog piece because I was so relatable to it in the exact same way. I am not a very good public speaker and when I was put into his class fifth period Freshmen year, I was BEYOND nervous. After reading your piece I was able to fill a sense of relief that I was not the only one who is nervous when presenting to an audience. I love how you were able to overcome you being nervous and in the end present to the class like no big deal. Mr. Kiley's class was one of my favorites and I am glad that you were able to enjoy his class too. I also really like how you were able to show us readers how your overcame that obstacle in your life.
    - Tanner Antonucci

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  17. Elias this was a great piece that was very descriptive making me really enjoy your story. I felt as if I was there to experience it along side with you because of your sentence structure and word choice. Overall this was an amazing story giving the audience a real insight into your life. -Sofia Canseco

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  18. Elias, you wrote so beautifully and I could tell that you were speaking from the heart when you wrote this. I love how you shared other things that helped you learn, but specifically the thing that you expected to learn the least from. Also, I feel that many people could relate to your struggles and hardships with insecurity, but I loved how you described how you overcame it. Great job!
    -Amber Rich

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  19. Elias, I really appreciate how much detail you put into this reflection! As an audience, we get to know exactly what led you to take Drama in the first place, and how your attachment to knew grew over time. We all have things that make us nervous and reticent, I admire your ability to be honest with the fact that class originally wasn't for you, and how to overcame that! Also, Mr. Kiley is a great teacher and I'm glad you had the chance to develop as an actor with him!

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  20. This was a great reflection on your freshman year, the feelings you described were incredibly easy to relate to as i'm still so extremely fearful of doing any kind of presentation in front of any amount of people. It is great you were able to find that confidence in yourself to get up and speak. -Leslie Rodriguez

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  21. Elias, this is amazing. I like how you found ways to get rid of your nervousness and also take many challenging classes throughout high school. Also, I like how your learned valuable lessons from football and applied it into drama. Very good use of application!
    (Mayur Chhitu, Per. 6)

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  22. This story really took me back to my freshman year when I wanted to try new things and being fearful and I applaud you for sharing us your story that we can all relate to

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  23. This was a very great story. This story really reminds me of my freshmen year and I'm sure that it was able to relate to a lot of people since I am sure that a lot of people were not able to get the classes they want. I loved how specific you were with your story. 10/10.

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