From Confusion to Clarity by Maddie Giardina

I write for clarity. I write for comprehension. I write as a way to communicate all the thoughts I was never able to properly structure through speech.  For me, it has always been this way. I used writing as a way to straighten out and fine tune all the mixed up tangles of knotted ideas in my head.

I first discovered my skills at writing when I was in middle school. With more difficult prompts requiring longer word counts, my writing was challenged to become longer and offer a more thorough thought process. I quickly found my niche. I was given ample time to formulate, document, revise and revisit all of my thoughts before anyone else was able to see them. I could structure every detail to my liking.

In my sophomore year of high school I was introduced to poetry. This is when I fell in love for the first time. Finally I was given permission for my writing to be as complex and abstract as my thoughts. I began to use writing as a tool for myself. I began writing for therapy, for headspace. I began writing as a way to ease and express the anxiety and depression that has followed me through most of my life.

I quickly began filling margins and napkins and eventually journals with the musical musings of my poems (which were quite rudimentary at first). In time though, I found a way to combine complexity and clarity in a way that could convey exactly what I wanted to.

In college, my poetry now more developed and a much larger part of my life, began to gain recognition. I was awarded first prize in the 2017 student poetry competition on campus through the American Poet’s Society.

Writing, for me, is more natural than speech. It is my preferred method of communication. It is where I find comfort.

I write for clarity. I write for comprehension. I write as a way to communicate all the thoughts I was never able to properly structure through speech.  For me, it has always been this way. I used writing as a way to straighten out and fine tune all the mixed up tangles of knotted ideas in my head.

I first discovered my skills at writing when I was in middle school. With more difficult prompts requiring longer word counts, my writing was challenged to become longer and offer a more thorough thought process. I quickly found my niche. I was given ample time to formulate, document, revise and revisit all of my thoughts before anyone else was able to see them. I could structure every detail to my liking.

In my sophomore year of high school I was introduced to poetry. This is when I fell in love for the first time. Finally I was given permission for my writing to be as complex and abstract as my thoughts. I began to use writing as a tool for myself. I began writing for therapy, for headspace. I began writing as a way to ease and express the anxiety and depression that has followed me through most of my life.

I quickly began filling margins and napkins and eventually journals with the musical musings of my poems (which were quite rudimentary at first). In time though, I found a way to combine complexity and clarity in a way that could convey exactly what I wanted to.

In college, my poetry now more developed and a much larger part of my life, began to gain recognition. I was awarded first prize in the 2017 student poetry competition on campus through the American Poet’s Society.

Writing, for me, is more natural than speech. It is my preferred method of communication. It is where I find comfort.