Justice Page Middle School eighth grade English language art teachers Emily Olin and Angel Dwyer taught their students to hone in on a personal memory that has shaped one of their individual beliefs. Students were encouraged to show, rather than tell, by using descriptive words and phrases and personalizing their ideas. Both Olin and Dwyer studied journalism prior to entering the education profession.

Olin developed this writing assignment based on Edward Murrow’s famous “This I Believe” radio program that started in 1951. People of all ages, backgrounds, and all walks of life have taken Murrow’s challenge to think critically about what they believe and why, all based on their lived experiences.

Here is the second of two volumes of student writing, the first is published here, of what it means to be an ordinary 8th grader living their own extraordinary daily experiences.   -Angel Dwyer

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I  believe in the freedom to express my entire range of emotions

By R.L.

I  believe in the freedom to express my entire range of emotions, especially enthusiasm. My entire life people have told me to be quieter, slow down, don’t have too big of a reaction, because people are going to stare. I tried to be quieter about my emotions and reactions, but it always ended up ruining the mood, and my happiness would have faded.

Society has taught us, as women, that we should sit and smile, look perfect, and never speak up. Because who likes a woman who is loud and opinionated? Often in classes, and just places in general, when I began to speak, people talked over me almost immediately. When this happened, I would congratulate myself, because I thought it meant people thought I was a quiet and gentle girl.

The way I should be.

I would see loud and proud women in person, or on the internet, and think, “She’s so unfeminine, no one is going to like her.” I never said anything out loud, but my hateful thoughts came from a fear that no one would like me if I showed how big and loud I was.

Even though I believe in a full range of emotions, I don’t believe I should let my emotions control me. Self-control and discipline should be considered first.

I am on my journey of letting myself enjoy my big personality, without feeling embarrassed by my speech or style. One of my favorite sayings is, “Nothing is embarrassing in life if you’re not embarrassed.” Just not caring about what other people think is very freeing and I think it’s a lesson everyone needs to learn. Be your whole self, this I believe.

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Small Choices

By A.N.

I believe that small choices change the direction of the rest of our lives, even if they don’t seem significant at all when we make them.

The first time I went mountain biking I was 10 years old. I didn’t want to go. My brother and dad were going with some friends, and I thought to myself, ‘I’m not good at biking, I’m not going to like this.’ But my mom wasn’t going to be home, and my friend was going, so I decided I’d go. One small choice. All I said was ‘Fine, I guess I’ll do it.’

We loaded up the bikes and drove out to the trail. I was a bit scared, but I thought, ‘It’s too late to go back now.’ Finally we arrived. It had rained the night before, and the grass was bright green and slightly wet. We got on the trail, and I immediately loved it. All of the things I was worried about went away as we rode. I guess I made a good choice.

After that one day, I kept on mountain biking. I’ve done it every year since then. I’m on the Washburn mountain biking team, and I do it all the time. I’ve also been in five mountain bike races. Each year I get stronger and faster. Now, mountain biking is just part of my life, but sometimes I wonder, what if I hadn’t said yes? If I’d never gone mountain biking that one day three years ago, I might have joined a different sport or activity. I might have made completely different friends. Without that one small choice, much about my life would be different.

So many choices like this have altered my life. If I had never agreed to do my first theater camp one summer, I would have never been in the seven other musicals I’ve enjoyed doing so much. If I had never decided to talk to someone I had not talked to before, I wouldn’t have met any of my closest friends. If one of my parents had been somewhere else the day they first met, I may have never been born. Tiny decisions define our lives.

Sometimes when I think about my life, I think of it as a fact. I like to mountain bike. I do theater. But really, the path I’m on is one of infinite other paths I could have taken. Small choices are everywhere. When we make them, they don’t seem very significant, but a slight breeze is all it takes to knock down a whole row of dominos.

Small and seemingly insignificant decisions have the ability to change the direction of our lives. This I believe.

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I believe in myself

By A.B.

When I was around six or seven years old, I decided I wanted to try piano. I signed up for a class and soon enough, every Monday I would go to my teacher’s house and plink out “Old MacDonald” on the keys and test myself on scales. My family friend gave my parents an old electric keyboard for cheap, and I would have so much fun switching the styles and playing my piano pieces in Church Organ style or 90’s Rock. I felt good everytime I completed a piece and was able to pick out a prize from my teacher’s prize box: rubber duckies, stickers, and keychains.

After a while of practicing, my first recital arrived around the corner. I would be dueting a couple pieces with my teacher, but a few more than that, I would be doing solo. I was nervous; I didn’t want to perform in front of lots of strangers in a fancy church. I didn’t want to walk up to the wooden stage in my new H&M dress and sparkly gold flats. And I didn’t want to sit down in front of the unfamiliar piano, with real ivory keys instead of the plastic ones I was used to.

My parents persuaded me to try it. I was nervous, but a part of me was also a little excited to show off my talents. Knowing that I was one of the youngest in the recital boosted my confidence. I wouldn’t be the best, but if I could show people that little kids could play piano with passion, I would be just as happy.

My performance was towards the end of the show. I sat quietly through the first few performances, nervousness and excitement swirling around in my stomach. When it was finally my turn, I picked up my books and headed towards the stage. It was platformed, so everyone could see me clearly. My heart was beating really fast as I walked up to it and sat down on the cushioned seat with my teacher next to me.

She started playing, and I quickly followed suit. I messed up on the first couple of notes, but as I went through my songs, my fingers got used to the heavy keys and I played with confidence. It was over sooner than expected, and I took a bow, feeling amazing.

I would never have been able to have an experience like this if I didn’t believe in myself. I would have chickened out and never given myself a chance. I believe that if you have faith in yourself, you can achieve your goals.

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A Different Way of Expression

By E.B.

I believe music brings people together. Music has always been the center of my life. I’ve been listening to music since my ears were developed enough to hear. I’ve been making music since my legs were strong enough to toddle over to the piano and my voice strong enough to sing a familiar tune. One of my biggest irrational fears is becoming deaf. When I tell this to people, they shake their heads and smile, telling me that the fear of becoming deaf isn’t rational. They tell me it’s scary to not be able to hear the world around you, to have to learn a new way to communicate. But that’s not why I’m afraid, I tell them. I’m afraid of losing my ability to hear music. Because without music, who am I? That’s when they really start to look at me weird.

As I grew up, I found more and more music outlets. Places and ways to express myself how I understood best. When I was 9 years old I made a life-changing decision. I decided to sign up for “A Year With Frog And Toad,” the musical. I ended up being cast as Toad. As I performed for a crowd of people, I realized how happy music could make me. I began to realize music had a power like nothing else I’d ever experienced. Unlike words, I didn’t just hear things, I felt things.

Before I could explore this idea anymore, COVID-19 hit. Suddenly everyone in the world was isolated. All were both physically and mentally secluded by this fear of a deadly disease. Our creativity and ideas died inside us, leaving a scared and scarred mental space. The world needed an escape. I needed an escape.

Then the summer came which lifted everyone’s spirits in a way. All of a sudden theater and music lessons became available online. I wasn’t sure about it at first. It still seemed hard and different, like everything in this new world. But as soon as I started making music again, it was like someone had flipped a light switch in my mind. Instead of the barren isolated void, my head was now filled with music and light again. Music became my guardian angel. I held onto it as much as I could, taking online music and theater classes and meeting my friends outside to sing and dance, writing our own music.

Slowly our world drifted back to what we could call normal. A new normal. The world would never truly be the same, I began to understand. This epidemic had scarred us all in a way that couldn’t be healed, which made it difficult to reach out and ask for help when we needed it. Because, in times like these when people had to talk about hard stuff, words failed. As I started to notice this, I thought back to the joy I had found when performing for crowds in “A Year With Frog And Toad.” I came to the realization that music brings us together. It conveys emotions that words can’t. Music lets us truly understand one another. This I believe.