The world is full of conversation, opinion, and last but not least, ideologies that influence our train of thought and shape how we think as individuals. It can be difficult to balance what we think is right with the ever changing trends our society tends to undergo, and as frustrating as this can be, it's in these moments we must be bold. What is right and what is wrong in the eyes of big brother will never fully fit into our lives. We will always have disagreements with the world, in our relationships, and with ourselves.

​What we do have though, is the simplicity of nature to guide us back to our roots, out of our conformities and back into consciousness. Be aware of how you're evolving, how you think, how you judge your neighbor, how you treat yourself. Do you feel tension inside of you at the end of the day? Or are you happy with the connections you've been making lately? Do you feel as if you are losing yourself and striving to become a new "you" for the right or wrong reasons? Although facing these questions might be hard, being honest with yourself is the first step towards ditching the conformities of the ego and returning to your true self.

Allow yourself to evolve with the world for to become a better you, but try not to get caught up in the conformities of our black and white takes on topics (taking one side or the other). Venn Diagrams intersect for a reason. We are meant to be different, but we are also meant to relate. Live in the gray area, see both sides, ask questions and practice awareness.

When I took this picture I was on my way to find a fishing spot when I heard the sweetest little bird singing the catchiest tune. Wishing my mom were there with me (birdies remind me of her), I called my mom so she could hear him too. Afterwards, I sat down, closed my eyes, and took a moment to let the sounds of nature carry me deeper into its song. 

This picture isn't about my body. It's about being one with nature and being comfortable in your skin. Nature is art. Human beings are art and this was a special moment for me that I wanted to capture. This picture is symbolic of what it means to be bold in a conforming society. I am simply indulging in nature, in a yoga pose, and in my bathing suit. Our society either accepts this photo or denies it full force because I am a woman and we are sexualized through the media and in our day to day lives, whether or not we are asking for it. I do not think this is fair. I respect myself and my body, and I consider myself an artist ( I believe we all are artists and express ourselves through different outlets and specializations ), of course expression comes with judgement and art does too. That I accept, but I will not oppress my creativity and ways of expression due to the ever-changing standards of conformity. 

When I say "be bold," be your kind of bold. Each of us have our own comfort zones and lines we are not willing to cross, that is okay! If you feel there is something on your mind or create a photo that truly represents you and feel comfortable sharing, then do it. But if you find yourself questioning a post or form of expression, it could be society making you feel you have to pursue the action to fit in and feel validated. Keep in mind everything is up for interpretation, even a simple t-shirt with a saying on it can be interpreted  numerous ways. How you might see something could be completely different to how someone else might view it. Be bold but also mindful of how you are representing yourself and make sure this representation is coming from the heart. This is how society can better manage and work through these conformities together. When everyone is able to create content that is true to them, then there is no need to oppress it.

It was high noon at the Bunny Ranch. Wild horses frolicked in herds, making their way around the see-through white gates that surround the ranch. The air was warm and the feeling was calm as mountains back dropped the far landscape. Inside, red velvet covered the room from floor to ceiling, dim lights scattered throughout. Doors leading to a variety of rooms filled the halls, including the hard-to-miss ‘Pussy Powder Room’ (which purposed as the bathroom) and the boldly named ‘Hooker Booker’ ( appointment-scheduling office), positioned directly across from it.

​A couple of working girls, and a very protective dog later, an exclusive view of Dennis Hof’s legal sex brothel was made clear, but in an entirely different light one might predict. Hof's reputation for his racy HBO show, Cathouse, created himself the stigma of a “pimp” in the media. But what about the side of Mr. Hof and the girls working at the ranch not mentioned by the media? Their values, their past, the details behind the scenes that are continuously shaken off and left unasked? 
​
Barefooted and wearing a black Bunny Ranch button-down polo, Hof had the set up at his dining room table while Cooper, the cameraman, dodged Hof’s 14-year-old-dog, Domino, who had six teeth pulled the day before.
​ ​

​Shannon Orneal knows who he wants to vote for. What Shannon doesn’t know is if he will be voting in November   - and he definitely won’t be caucusing this weekend.

He hopes to have a home by November, but this Saturday, during the caucus, he will be homeless.
 
Despite being a Navy veteran and having strong political opinions, voting is a luxury Orneal can’t afford. He, and so many of Nevada’s homeless population, face many hurdles between them and the polls.

On any given night in the U.S. there are more than half a million people who are considered homeless. According to the Reno News and Review there was an estimated 869 homeless people in the Reno area as of January of 2013. Since then that number has increased. Gathering accurate data on these people is difficult considering their lack of a permanent residences and inefficient ways of keeping track of those who are considered homeless.
 
A myriad of reasons keep homeless people from voting. First, getting an ID can be tough. Orneal’s is expired, and says he would have renewed it long ago - if it were free.
 
“Nevada IDs didn’t used to expire, but they decided ‘Hey, we can make money off this.’ And now they do,” says Orneal.
 
Nevada DMV’s website shows that renewing an ID costs $22.25, as well as an additional $10 late fee if it’s been expired more than a month, a $4.25 fee for a change of address, and a $9.25 fee if any other information is changed. Late renewals must be made in person as well.
 
Nevada doesn’t have voter ID laws, but having a state-issued ID is still an important step to registering to vote. Registering online requires a valid Nevada driver’s license or state ID.
 
For Nevada’s homeless, registering traditionally with a paper registration form requires that the form be delivered to the County Registrar or the County Clerk, according to the State’s own website.
 
In May of last year, some Nevada lawmakers tried passing legislation like the controversial laws in Texas that require every voter to present official photo-ID at the polls, but were defeated. Laws like this would make voting impossible for anyone unable to obtain a valid, current, state-issued ID.
 
Orneal once drove nuclear submarines for the US Navy, served on a destroyer, and lived in Pearl Harbor after his service from 1992-96. He’ll be 42 this year, but his long, curly brown hair and defined features make him look much younger. This may seem extraordinary, but his present circumstances are not.
 
According to the Annual Homeless Assessment Report there are almost 50,000 homeless veterans which comprise roughly eight to nine percent of the homeless population.
 
Orneal says he became homeless after being kicked out of a room he was subletting after a roommate failed to pay rent. Losing the room kept him from getting to his job.
 
“It just snowballed,” he says.
 
The shores of the Truckee River on Reno’s east side are dotted with make-shift shelters, home to dozens of Reno’s homeless population. This is where Shannon Orneal lives, along with other veterans. At night, they build fires for cooking and warmth. Exercisers on bicycles whizz past on the bike trail that runs through the shantytown.  A weathered American flag hangs from a tree on the river’s bank.
 
Looming above the scene is the massive GSR casino, which is directly across the river - a stone’s throw away. The Grand Sierra Resort, formerly the Reno Hilton, flaunts almost 2,000 rooms in its 27 stories. The building’s windows reflect a gold tint.
 
Orneal says the location is strategic. This spot along the river straddles the line between Reno and Sparks.
 
 “Sparks doesn’t do anything for homeless people, but it’s pretty lenient about camping,” he says. “Reno won’t let you camp anywhere, but they provide services.”
 
“Reno wants to pretend we’re Spark’s problem. Sparks wants to pretend we’re Reno’s problem,” says Orneal. “Nobody wants to foot the bill.”

Other residents here face problems that more common. Being homeless can make these problems insurmountable.
 
For some, the cost of IDs isn’t everything. A couple, Kendalynn and Robert, had their IDs stolen. To get a new ID, Robert was told he would need his Social Security card and his birth certificate. They were both stolen, too. He can’t travel to California to request copies these documents.
​
Kendalynn, who isn’t a citizen, had her passport stolen. She holds out no hope of recovering any of her documentation.
 ​
For many others, like Orneal’s neighbor Rick Neibert, another veteran, felony convictions make them ineligible to vote.
 
Fortunately for those homeless who are eligible, Nevada law allows homeless people to list an outdoor location on their state-issued IDs. Some states do not. Unfortunately, a lack of a traditional address still creates problems for potential voters.
 
In Nevada, according to nationalhomeless.org, a site for information about the rights of the homeless, if you live in a shelter you can consider that to be your residence for registering to vote. People who live on the street can register to vote but there is little information explaining how to go about this. There are few resources that help people go about finding a way to register to vote in Nevada. In places such as Tennessee and Colorado there are specifically stated laws helping and protecting the rights of homeless voters. Some stating things such as, “Those who cannot afford regular or adequate shelter may use a park, vacant lot, or homeless shelter as ’home base’ for registration purposes.”
 
 A mailing address is required in Nevada in order to vote. This is in direct conflict to being allowed to register to vote while homeless. There is also no written policy in Nevada explaining how a homeless voter can vote or any law protecting their rights.
 
Orneal hopes that, by November, the Veteran Resource Center, a local private organization that helps provide services to homeless veterans, will be able to provide him with a home. He remains optimistic, and is very confident that the Veteran Resource Center will come through for him.

He says he’ll “absolutely” vote if he has a home. Orneal is hopeful for the Clinton campaign.
 
“I enjoyed the Clinton years,” he says. “I think she had a lot to do with his presidency, and I think he’ll have a lot to do with hers.”
 
Another of Orneal’s motivations is keeping Donald Trump out of office. He thinks he lacks the fundamental “people skills” needed for effective foreign relations.
 
“You can’t run this country like you run a business,” he says. “Besides, even if he did, he’d sell it to somebody else.”
 
Orneal also understands Nevada’s unique role in the political cycle. He says it brings the nation’s attention to Nevada and remembers it, if only for a few seconds.
 
There is a linear correlation between income in the U.S. and voter turnout. According to the U.S. Census Bureau only 59.7 percent of people in the U.S. voted in the 2008 election. The lower the income of the average person the less likely they were to vote. There was minimal data gathered showing people who had little to no income but only 41.3% of people that made less than $10,000 a year voted in 2008.
 
 
Orneal says that many homeless people he knows want nothing to do with the political process, regardless of their eligibility to vote.
 
Shannon Orneal does have a strong desire to participate. Unfortunately he knows that, for himself, not having a home this year means not having a vote.
 
Sources:
https://www.newsreview.com/reno/8-things-you-didnt-know/content?oid=8722212
 
https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/2014-AHAR-Part1.pdf
 
http://www.nationalhomeless.org/projects/vote/Manual_2012.pdf
 
http://www.demos.org/publication/why-voting-gap-matters
 ​

I wanted to share this personal narrative piece that I made for one of my final projects. The assignment was to produce a video that tells a personal story, so I chose to show how my biological father and I have maintained a relationship by writing letters to each other over the years while he's in prison. I relate his struggle with drug addiction to the tragedies society has faced over the past couple of decades, followed by the healing we have all gone through together. ​

Every student has a specialization or talent to offer the world, but standardized tests damage the learning process for students who don't perform well on these examinations because every time they go to take a test and get their scores back, they are reinforced of their failures and further repressed of their creative abilities. Because of this, the strengths of these individuals are not being considered as important in the classroom, therefore the student feels their importance and potential contributions for society are impractical, leaving the student with only one option-- to give up. Students are forced to learn things that are so painful for them to get through they would rather drop out. When looking at this situation from an honest perspective one might argue that this kind of student is lazy and unprepared to work hard in the real world. Of course the student could study and get a bit better of a grade, but what if  they want to put their energy into something else that's important to them and their true ambitions? Is that wrong?  If a student has a hard time focusing in the classroom and instead spends their time daydreaming of producing films, coming up with useful inventions, and exploring outside (the list is limitless), this does not make them lazy, it just makes them a different type of learner. 
​
Standardized tests are created for only one type of learner, kicking the ‘day dreamers’ of our world to the side. If a student has the resources to dedicate time into learning how to ‘play the game,’ of taking standardized tests, or is able to invest in ACT/SAT prep classes, where individuals can learn how to make the best guess possible if unsure of an answer, one will most likely see improvements, but kids are inspired and driven in other areas of life too, and to ask a child to put their free time into teaching themselves how to take a test when they would rather be outside (nature having been inspiration for great inventions and discoveries throughout history), is asking a kid to stop creativity all together, let go of their inspirations and curiosity, and conform into a dull mindless person. Like the old saying goes, you can't ask a fish to climb a tree and expect it to do well at it. This concept puts things into perspective for students who don't manage standardized testing well.

There has been multiple times as a student where I've taken a standardized test and have come across multiple choice questions offering a few options I feel could have been argued as the correct choice, but since I was only given the option to fill in a bubble, I felt like I wasn’t able to challenge and use my knowledge of the topic to its fullest potential by not having the option to explain my reasoning and understanding for why I chose what I chose. I feel if I had an opportunity to explain the evidence provided from a different perspective, the professor would have considered what I had to say. This recurring instance in the classroom represents an analogy for how theories turn into facts and how scientific phenomenons get discovered in the real world. Questioning what is already proven is how we advance technologically worldwide, but in the classroom this open style of learning is avoided. 

A possible solution to eliminating standardized examinations would be to enhance and individualize the learning experience for students and design  a way for all kids, no matter what  their socioeconomic background may be, to succeed. We can redefine what a test is all together and  revolutionize the testing experience by allowing students to explore their ideas through open ended discussions and questions on a regular basis, giving students an equal opportunity to reflect on themselves, find their purpose, feel inspired, and show their academic intelligence in a way that has never been measured before. These new ‘tests’ will encompass questions like; “What subject do you enjoy most in school and why?; If given an opportunity to take more courses pertaining to what inspires you would you feel your experience in school would be more enjoyable?;What is something you're really good at?; What is something you're not so good at?, etc.” School is about the students, so why aren’t we asking the students what they want to learn about in school? These questions could be used to measure what kind of courses a student should be placed in at an earlier age. How many times have you said to yourself, “When am I ever going to use this in the real world,” while sitting through a class? This model of education could  potentially resolve issues for struggling students and inspire them to stay in school. 

There is a significant correlation of academic success between students coming from families with money and students coming from struggling households; this is called a child’s socioeconomic status (SES). According to buildon.org, 1.2 million students drop out of high school every year, with many falling into a cycle of poverty, unemployment and violence. Without support from the students family, mixed in with a lack of confidence in the classroom, students are left feeling unmotivated and broken, seeing school as a pointless use of time. According to an article in American Educator, By Daniel Willingham,“Disadvantaged children face a host of challenges to academic success. These challenges fall into two broad categories. First, as one might expect, wealthier parents have the resources to provide more and better learning opportunities for their children. Second, children from poorer homes are subject to chronic stress, which research from the last 10 years has shown is more destructive to learning than was previously guessed.” Americanized education requires students to pass a wide variety of subjects in order for them to find what inspires them and figure out what they want to be when they grow up, but like logic behind this method was lost a long time ago when the education system started standardizing everything. With that, creativity in school has been lost in the process resulting in lack of interest in school for individuals who're more creative thinkers. The current system of education requires students to continue this cycle of covering many different courses repetitively. As a college student majoring in broadcast journalism with a minor in anthropology, I’m still required to take math and science courses -- subjects I’ve been familiar with since elementary school and have always struggled with due to how quickly the material has to be learned. While others succeed in these courses, writing comes natural to me and I want to dedicate more time specializing in what I love to do.

I understand that standardized testing can reduce workloads for teachers and make grading easier, as well as make collecting the data of student improvement effortless, but in reality this system is producing negative wholistic numbers, students who don’t feel confident in what they’ve learned, causing students to drop out of high school, and rely on harmful drugs such as Adderall and Vyvanse to get through courses. The government should invest more money and time in providing students with the resources they need to succeed by offering the option for students to take courses having to do with their specialization at an earlier age in order to prevent spending millions of dollars on dropouts and ‘troublemakers,’ because these ‘troublemakers’ might have taken a different path in life if they were encouraged by their role models and teachers to follow their ingenuity.  According to centerforpubliceducation.org, schools K-12 in the United States require between 175 and 180 days of school and/or between 900 and 1,000 hours of instructional time per year, depending on the grade level. That makes 12,000 hours of in-class learning, excluding the additional time students spend on homework and studying. With this amount of time dedicated to a child's young life in school, the development of how they see and understand the world in their later life relies on how they are being taught to learn now and the confidence they have in themselves to succeed in the future. We live in an evolving world and I feel standardized tests teach us to live in a world of black and white. To choose one side or the other and not consider multiple possibilities. 
​
In order to establish equality in the classroom, we need to analyze and reevaluate how the current system is affecting students and whether or not it is an effective plan towards helping them once they reach adulthood and enter the work field. Instead of forcing students to take classes and tests having nothing to do with their passions or interests, teachers should be allowed to encourage students to find a purpose they can be excited about and help guide individuals in a clear direction.Our world is expanding new concepts and ideas at an exponential rate and students are inspired, but get discouraged easily when so much time is spent doing something they dislike rather than enjoy. These kind of learners are unable to recognize where they fit in because they feel they are never given an opportunity to showcase what they care about and what they are good at. Of course the entire education system isn’t flawed, there are teachers who are passionate about their role in student education and understand the importance in evolving traditional ways of teaching. This teaching style inspires students and allows creativity to flow in the classroom. The truth is we all have different specializations and things we are good at. With that being said, how can all students expect to reach their fullest potential in school if the way students are tested remains standardized?  
​

BY, REIGHAN FISHER 
PUBLISHED IN, "THE NEVADA SAGEBRUSH," HTTP://NEVADASAGEBRUSH.COM

Our culture has familiarized itself with a wide variety of popular magazines ranging from Reader’s Digest, ESPN, Cosmopolitan, People, and Vogue; all pertaining to a certain niche of people. But now our pool of interests are expanding and it is becoming easier to discover and absorb ideas from people outside of the United States through social media and the world-wide web. With easy access to outside opinion, it’s easier to drift away from biased opinion and close-to-home propaganda. Although this is true, throughout history propaganda has been used in the media to inflict a great deal of influence on our thoughts and has seeded into our beliefs overtime without being able to easily recognize it happening. Now the same concepts are being used by ISIS to entice their readers, recruit, and be heard globally. But what does this mean for us?

​“Perhaps the grossest ongoing censorship of all is the culturally conditioned, narrow range of opinion fed to the vast majority of Americans by their own media. The differences in story lines and opinions in the “news” given by well-watched television channels such as ABC, CBS, NBC and CNN, or those of the nation’s major newspapers and newsmagazines, is minuscule,” Lawrence Davidson, a professor at West Chester University in Pennsylvania explains.

Although we may think we are well informed on worldly issues, our opinions are not a pure thought and our idea of the truth usually has another side to the story, especially if you're somebody who only gets  information from one news source.

“The difficulty we've had defeating ISIS suggests that, maybe, we don't really understand who and what they are. Everything we hear is filtered through politicians and pundits, each with their own agenda,” explains Robert Evans of Cracked news.

Perhaps Dabiq Magazine was created by ISIS with good intention (in their eyes) to show us the reasoning behind their actions that can’t be manipulated or interpreted wrongly by outside media outlets. Dabiq gives ISIS full control on the message they are eager to display and take full advantage of doing so by writing in a strategic way.

“Fortunately, it turns out that finding out what ISIS wants is like finding out what a vegan eats: They'll tell you.” Evans says.
​
Dabiq, ISIS’s propaganda magazine is published in many different languages including English, and they have a critical plan in place to recruit more followers. If an extreme religious terrorist group is able to recruit individuals around the world with a propaganda magazine, does this make us susceptible to their influence? ​
“Reading the magazine, one can see that, in a general way, ISIS wants land and resources, a recognized state, a caliphate that dominates the Middle East. It wants to slaughter Christians, Jews, and Yazidis. It wants to slaughter Muslims who do not believe in its version of Islam. It wants revenge against the Western presence in Arab lands. It wants to “defend the Prophet.” Most of all, it wants power. That is, it wants the future,” David Denby of the New Yorker says.

Dabiq, explains what ISIS wants and portrays their message through a series of lessons and stories. While we view ISIS as terrorists, they view themselves as doing God’s work and want to overthrow the current status quo, like many rulers have done in the past throughout history.

​Dabiq, gives ISIS a chance to explain their purpose from a point of view without interference from outside sources. With this being said, it is important to remain informed on their publications but also take into consideration that Dabiq can manipulate readers the same way our news outlets has presented rhetoric information to us in the past.
“In order to combat extremist groups, it is critical to understand their underlying ideology. Therefore, Clarion Project will continue to post the issues of Dabiq here as they are released,” The Clarion Project states on their website.

I want to make clear that I am not taking sides with ISIS, I’m reminding the public how propaganda has influenced everyone around the world into to picking and choosing a side to belong to. Almost every country has an army backing them up, willing to kill those who are not on their side and defend their nation without question. We are all victims of influence and our beliefs are shaped by the reality we live in. Dabiq, is able to persuade and recruit their followers by hitting relatable areas within us by using religion, power, and their idea of what God’s plan is to them to inspire incautious individuals seeking a group to belong to.

Dabiq is honest with their message and does not try to portray themselves to be on anyone’s side but their own. With that, they are able to persuade readers into potentially believing that their actions are a call from God, therefore their way is the only way to salvation. Of course this is not stated as obviously in Dabiq magazine. Their writing is done in a rhetoric way so the reader believes they are creating an interpretation of their own. ISIS believe’s their actions are God’s will and hold close to this argument truthfully through Dabiq Magazine.

One of the first questions I asked was how he became about his situation. He was an honest man who admitted that he had been struggling with alcoholism for a long time. When I asked him what his next step for his future was he explained that everyday he is able to remain sober is a win (at this time he had been sober for two years now). Homeless or not, I understand anything anyone says that might seem out there should be taken with a grain of salt, but in this case, I believed him. In addition to staying sober, Basham also hoped to find work, and soon.

After discussing potential job opportunities and discussing his previous work experience, we started brainstorming potential jobs he could go for. 

Now let's rewind real quick and look at this picture. Two blonde college girls and a mid forty year old recovering alcoholic homeless man sit at a picnic table laughing and enjoying each others conversations, learning and appreciating one another from our different experiences and backgrounds. At first glance, this may look or sound concerning, but it’s the exact opposite, infact i’d say it’s quite beautiful. 

I never feel comfortable really “looking” for a story because I feel throughout life stories find me and I find them. If I go out looking for a story it feels rushed, and when you look for a story, chances are you and 10 other journalists will stumble across the same one and produce 10 different versions of it. This is why out-of-the-box-thinking is truly a concept worth practicing. I feel these stories find me for a reason, so I can show audiences that the walls and judgments we make on people are often times over exaggerated and blown out of proportion (at the same time I am aware of dangers, I understand we do not live in a perfect world and there are indeed terrible things that happen everyday and as a journalist I too need to be careful). With that, everytime I find myself with a great story in my hands, I write it down so I can go back to it when school or future careers need me to produce work. That way, I can compile great stories that I’m passionate about and still give the boss what they are asking for.    

At first glance I'm sure you wouldn't expect this man to have copies of his resume on him along with an impressive education background. After talking for a while, Basham pulled out his resume, I still have it today (This summer I plan to make a short documentary series called ‘Breaking Stereotypes’ and I will be using his resume from three years ago to get back in touch with him along with other contacts that I have written down throughout time). 
In 1985 Robert graduated from the University of Missouri with a Bachelors Degree in electrical engineering and according to his resume has only been out of work since 2013 (I met him in 2013).

"You don't learn an idea in college and make a million dollars off of it. You go to college to learn how to learn," Basham said that day. 

Here I am. Learning how to learn, observing the classroom beyond the textbooks. I observe the conversation, the reactions, the words that work in persuading, the ones that don’t. Advice given to me by a homeless man.

Robert was very well informed with issues going on in our country as well as the judgments people in his situation have to face everyday. "I can't help what other people think of me, I'm working my own life," He said.

I'm sure you know of somebody that is currently dealing with or has suffered from alcoholism. Just because they may be in a better living situation does not mean their addiction is any less significant compared to his. Alcoholism is alcoholism. An addiction is addiction.Robert went to college, earned a degree, and even though he did everything right up until that point, he was still faced with a battle any of us could encounter throughout our lives. Never let society judge you off of your weakness. Instead, be like Robert and show society that when life brings you down, you can depend on yourself in taking the next step to fixing it. The people who change the world are the people who inspire us to get out there and embrace the path life has given us and do good with it.

Although the conversation with Basham was not intended to become a story, the idea of talking with him caught people off guard and caught the attention of many. Overtime, a simple conversation with a man on the street soon turned into a story people were interested in. Nico, who is a professor here who is continuously working on a project called, Our Town Reno, which focuses on Reno’s homeless community and their future, reached out to me and used this story, along with the other stories I had with homeless people overtime and published it on his site. I also had an opportunity in my Narrative course to revolve a story around the homeless and the Nevada caucus which was posted on The Nevada Media Alliance. If it weren’t for these conversations with the homeless and the connections I made throughout the past few years with them, the relatability and genuine components that come along in my work wouldn’t be as clear. 

It is important to me as a journalist to do my “job” the best way I can and watch myself grow. To me journalism isn't a job, it’s an opportunity to inspire, express, and deliver impacting stories to my audience. I live it. Being a journalist involves documenting the world around you, living through the people who share their stories and being real with yourself on whether or not you're selling yourself out, or delivering the message you intended. I feel sometimes journalists tend to forget that their work literally depicts what reality is to the outside world. Our world runs on news. Our day starts and ends with information provided by journalists and storytellers. What we as journalists choose to focus and share to the world will determine what the world makes it’s reality to be. 
​

Click here tMy friend loves her job. Her family is so proud of what she does. People thank her everyday for the hero she is.

Today I woke up and so did my friend from across the sea. I left my house and she left hers. We listened to what we needed to do today and believed it with best intentions in mind. Feeling a bit nervous and lost, we did it with passion and determination. Branded by our countries, we went into battle with our uniforms on. Two shots were taken.I shot my friend and she shot me. The moment I saw that I knew this person brought me back to who I used to be.

My life re winded before me, flashes of my childhood, defining moments, and people I loved zipped through my head.

I’m the good guy right? I’m defending the right side. 

Why do we always have to be better than something? Why can’t we just accept to be different? Be equal? Instead we are taught to be the best, and to be the best comes with a price.

Thoughts flashed through my head. I've realized everything in just a single moment, but now it’s to late. 

My body starts to go completely numb.More thoughts swarm in.

I can’t help where I was born and neither can she. Our opinions are different and so are our beliefs. What are we fighting about that concerns one another? What am I fighting for? Who am I even doing this for? Certainly not for me. I collapse.

What have I done? What did she do to me? Is this it?

The thoughts rushed back in.
I start to see things more clearly. In a way I've never thought like before.

It’s where we grow up that determines what we may become. It’s what we are exposed to that defines our motives and sharpens what we think is right. Our beliefs fuel us to a point where everything becomes irrelevant to the original us. Everything subconsciously consumes us and our opinions slowly turn into something far from who we once were.

Who am I? Where am I? My breath starts to slip away.

What now? The world turns dark. I hear nothing.

This morning I woke up from a terrible nightmare. I went through my morning routine and prepared for what the day might bring. ​
​o edit.