Once upon a time, in a state of mind far, far away, young Haley Hope had dreams of becoming a Broadway star.
Well perhaps not a Broadway star. Certainly a Musical Theatre major. Because I was THAT kid, the kid whose biggest dreams always involved college.
But after a while, I didn't get picked for this or that, and the little injustices I felt inside added up little by little, culminating into a big fat, "I could NEVER spend my life on something that made me so dang MAD all the time."
And so what do I do instead? I picked a journalism major. Something I thought made me passionate, not angry. But it's really not passion that dragged me out of my bed to write this post at 1:30 in the morning. I'll admit it. I'm angry.
Maybe because I'm pursuing a career that most likely will not exist when I'm out of college. Maybe I'm angry, even more so, because of the way it's dying. The way that an unbiased view of things is not only tossed out the window, but discouraged. If I haven't quite processed my opinion on tonight's verdict on George Zimmerman, does that make me a bad journalist? Even worse, a SLOW journalist? Is what I write on the matter a few days from now worthless, even though it was written with more rational thought and sensitivity?
I'm so interested and intrigued by everyone's thoughts and opinions and where they are coming from and what they think needs to be done. But at the exact same time I'm burnt out and sad, and my heart feels heavy. I don't know if any of these feelings I have can chunk together to help me get somewhere. I can't help but wonder if I'm back to square one.
Journalism should be a bridge to understanding. It's the effort one makes to reveal another person's story. And on a deeper level, protect it. To make sure for all intents and purposes that someone else is represented truthfully and for what they are. That we all see each other in a clearer light, and hopefully it brings unity. But maybe that's my definition of the thing. Talk about a state of mind far, far away.
