What Living Louder Means To Me

I started this blog January 2, 2015, but i never really explained to everyone what living louder really meant to me. I started this blog at 18 years old, and I am now 20 years old so I have time to think and explore new things with this blog. This is something I really love doing, and has been an outlet for me. I created this blog, so I can express whatever I felt that needed to be said, so with that being said this is what living louder means to me...

Living Louder to me means exploring things that makes you wonder. 

Living Louder means doing things that seem impossible, but you know you can do them.

Living Louder means experiencing things you would never though of doing.

Living Louder means meeting new people, and making new friends from all walks of life.

Living Louder means taking risks that you never though of doing.

Living Louder means stepping out of your confront zone to pursue something.

But most importantly...

Living Louder is not just the action it's about being able to share your experience, thoughts, and feelings with other people around the world.

I started this blog because I wanted to share every part of my life with people. I do not want people to live in a little bubble for the rest of their lives. I want people to go out, and explore life and be able to share it with their love ones, friends, and anyone that comes there way. 

I vowed to myself on January 2, 2015 that I would live louder and I intend to keep that promise!

I hope I can encourage everyone to live louder, and step out of your comfort-zone today!

The Ultimate Guide To Being The New Kid At A New School

As most of you may know, I have moved multiple times. I have moved to different states, and different countries. So I have been the new kid at school multiple times, wither it was in elementary school, middle school, high school, and even going to college. Moving has taught me so many things, and made me become the person I am today. But for all those new kids, who are being the new kid for the first time, or are feeling apprehensive about moving to a new school here are some tips.

Tips:

• Be Confident: Walking into a new school can be very intimating. The goal is to just stand tall and act normal there is no need to be scared, because trust me you are not the only new kid at your school. If you are confident, and tell yourself that you will have a good day, and meet new friends you will.

• Get Involved: If you did something in your old school that you did, or was interested in doing but never did.. well this is your chance. It will also help you meet people with common interest. This can help you meet people outside your regular classes.

• Introduce Yourself: I know this may seem, very obvious but it's also one of the most important. The best part is if you don't know something you can always use the excuse that you are new to the school, and you just did not know. When starting a new school, all students are in new classes so they do not know if there friend is in that class, so introduce yourself because that person will have friends that you can be introduced to. 

• Find Good Conversation Starters: Something as simple as "I like your outfit" can be a good conversation starter. Then you can introduce yourself and then you can talk about the class you are in or how nice you think your teacher will be. You can also exchange schedules and see what classes you have together, and if you happen to have the same lunch you can eat lunch together. 

• Don't Be Afraid to Ask Questions: A new school can be pretty scary, so if you don't know where a class is or a hallway is don't be afraid to ask the teacher or another classmate.

Outfits: 

Here are some ideas for outfit on the first day of school. Your outfit should really effect who you are as a person. This will also help you make friends if someone mentions they like your outfit.

• The first outfit you can really show your personality and play around with it. 
• I had a guy option as well, if any of you fellows don't know what to wear on the first day of school. 
• The third outfit is for people who have to wear uniforms, don't worry you can always accessorize and have some pretty cool shoes.  You can also try new hairstyles, or wear hairbands, or bows. You can still play around with your outfit, even though you have a uniform.

First Day of School Outfits by livinglouderxo featuring a short sleeve tee

Now that I have given you some tips, and outfit ideas to help you conquer your first day of school, go out and be yourself and i promise you will make friends. It's only scary when you make it scary. Next thing you know, you won't be the new kid at school and you will be able to help other new kids feel less nervous on their first day because you became their friend.

My Summer Lazy Day Routine

Lets admit it, we all just have one of those days where we just want to sit on our bed and just have a lazy relaxing day. I wanted to share with you guys my favorite things to do on a lazy day. 

Waking Up:

• On my lazy day, I wake up at the time I feel refreshed and ready to wake up. So that usually consists of me pressing the snooze button a million times.
• Then I lay in bed awake, sometimes I browse through my social media until i'm ready to get up.
• When I finally decide to wake up, I put on my comfy slipper and head to the bathroom.

Bathroom Routine:

• The first thing I do is wash my face using the Neutrogena Fresh Foaming Cleanser
• Then i'll have a nice relaxing bath, my newest obsessions are the bath bombs from Lush.One of my favorites is Big Blue it reminds me of the ocean and is super relaxing.
• When i'm in the bath I like to read, and I am  currently reading "Me Before You" by JoJo Moyes.

My Outfit:

• On lazy day, I love to lounge in my most comfortable clothes. They usually consist of sweatpants or leggings and a comfy tee-shirt. 

•  For shoes, I would either wear slippers, or fuzzy socks. Fuzzy socks are personally my favorite. 

Lazy Day Snack: These are snacks I love to eat when I'm watching Netflix and just relaxing.

• The first thing I always have on my lazy day is tea, I am such a big tea drinker. One of my favorite tea's are Harrods London English Breakfast  another one is Tazo Tea Passion.
• You can never go wrong with a Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich in bed as a snack. 
• If I want something healthy, i'll eat seaweed chips. Some people don't like it, it is an acquired taste.
• But with every lazy day, I know I always break out the junk food and candy because you can't go wrong with your favorite bag of chips, and favorite candy.

Rest of the Day: These are the activities I love to do on my lazy day.

• Number one thing I love to do on lazy day is watch Netflix or watch YouTube videos for hours. 
• As I had said before, reading is something I love to do on lazy day, wither its in the bath or in bed. 
• Another thing that I love to do is read magazines, and listen to music. I'll read Seventeen or Teen Vogue, and I love to make music playlist for my upcoming week. 
• The very last thing I do on my lazy day is write in journal, it's just relaxing to write down your feelings and things that have happened throughout your week. 

I hope you guys enjoyed my summer lazy day routine, and let me know what you guys do on your lazy day. 

"Give yourself something to look forward to that isn't a person"

My Summer Playlist 2016

Now that summer has finally started, we all have our favorite songs that we like to listen to wither we are at the beach, driving around, or just relaxing a playlist is essential. I have made a playlist with my favorite songs that I will definitely be listening to. Hope you guys like it, there is a link that has the playlist for these songs right HERE

1. Bang My Head by David Guetta ft Sia and Fetty Wap

2. Dark Necessities by Red Hot Chili Peppers

3. Don't Let Me Down by The Chainsmokers ft Daya

4. Tomorrow Never Comes by Zac Brown Band

5. Wild Things by Alessia Cara

6. I Took A Pill In Ibiza (Seeb Remix) by Mike Posner

7. Electric Love by BØRNS

8.  Work from Home by Fifth Harmony ft. Ty Dolla $ign

9. Youth by Troye Sivan 

10. Church Bells by Carrie Underwood

11. Cake by The Ocean by DNCE

12. Bailando (Español) by Enrique Iglesias  ft. Descemer Bueno, Gente De Zona

13. Pillowtalk by ZAYN

14. Young and Wild by Zac Brown Band 

15. American Money (After Dark) by BØRNS

16. I Know What You Did Last Summer by Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello

17. Wildfire by Zac Brown Band

18. History by One Direction 

19. Summertime by Kenny Chesney 

20. I'm Ready by AJR

These are just some of my favorite songs for the summer. Let me know what you think, and any other songs that you enjoy listening to this summer.

Taking On Singapore

As most of you may know my family and I have moved to Singapore. Here are some pictures and things that I have seen and visited since I have been here. Singapore is such a pretty country, very different from a place that I have lived. 

Clark Quay Riverwalk

 
This is at the Clarke Quay Riverwalk in Singapore it has several restaurants that are located near the river. I ate at the Octapas Spanish Tapas Bar, and it was very good!

Then on the picture to the right, this is the center of the riverwalk, this is where all the bars are and other restaurants. It also has a pretty fountain, that changes colors. My favorite part about this place was the color of the houses.

This is what the Riverwalk looked like at night. In the picture on the left is the bridge that lights up in different colors each night. There is also a great view of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel.

The picture on the right is the view from the Octapas Spanish Tapas Bar. There are also boats that can take you along the river.

Haw Par Villa

 This is in Haw Par Villa, this is a park that has beautiful statues of Chinese folklore and mythology. They are famous for their Chinese folklore’s 10 Courts of Hell.

One of my favorite pieces is the one above, it is so very detailed, and I feel as if every little detail tells a story. This one had an underground tunnel that you could go under and explore as well.





I loved the archways that they made. It was so very detailed and so beautiful. The park was fairly big, and had ponds where there were turtles relaxing. There was also a miniature version of the Statue of Liberty which was surprised me.

Marina Bay 

This is the famous Marina Bay Sands Hotel. This is the hotel where they have the infinite pool that looks out of all of Singapore. The day I went it was very cloudy, because in Singapore if it's not sunny it's raining.

There are boats that go out and sail, on the other side there is a mall, which has restaurants that look out to the Merlion.

This is the famous Merlion. The Merlion has a face of a lion but a body of fish.


The Merlion symbolizes humble beginnings for Singapore as a fishing village. The Merlion is the mascot of Singapore, and there are several located around Singapore.

People's Association Youth Chinese Orchestra 

I was walking around Marina Bay, and they have this event known as In Youthful Company where students show off their talents. This show was for free and the one I got to see was People's Association Youth Chinese Orchestra. This performance was directed by Ng Seng Hong. I enjoyed the variety of music they played. They played popular Singapore songs, famous Chinese music, Japanese pop, Korean pop, plus a mash up of Bruno Mars songs. 

I hope you enjoyed some photos from the places in Singapore I have been. There will definitely going to be more to come, because i'm not done exploring this beautiful place.

My New Adventure: Singapore Move

SURPRISE I AM MOVING TO SINGAPORE 

As you may know, I live in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, and attend the University of Arkansas. However, my family has a tendency to move a lot. I have lived in Dallas, Texas for about 4 years now. Before Dallas, Texas I had lived in Oklahoma, Chicago, London, New Jersey, New York, and Peru. However, I am about to embark on the greatest adventure yet.

 I am moving to Singapore! 

And yes, I know Singapore is super far! It's also half way around the world! However, I will still be attending the University of Arkansas in the states. I have never been to Singapore, so this will be a completely new experience for me, but am excited. Here are some facts about Singapore, if you are not familiar with the country.

Singapore Facts 

• Geography: Singapore is an island located off the coast of southern Malaysia

• Language: In Singapore they have four different languages; English, Tamil, Malay, and Standard Mandarin

• Currency: They use a Singapore Dollar. The one I have in this picture is two Singapore dollars. Two Singapore Dollars is $1.45 in the United States. The person on the Singapore Bill is Yusof Ishak who was the first President of Singapore.  

• Flag: Singapore Flag was adopted in 1958, when they became self governed from the British Empire. 

• Video: Here is a video I found on YouTube that shows things about Singapore.

So I will keep you guys posted on all the things that happen in Singapore. Hope you learned some interesting facts about Singapore.

Things I've Learned in My Freshman Year of College

I can officially say that I am done with my freshman year of college. It was a long and hard road but I am glad I got that done and over with. Here are some things I learned in my freshman year of college that I wish someone would have told me.

• After a while cafeteria food sucks: Going into college, I was like cafeteria food won't be that bad I have eaten it all 12 years of school. Boy was I wrong! University of Arkansas has a Meal Trade where from 7-10pm you can eat at one of the fast food places on campus and it counts as a meal in your plan. But after the first semester I could not eat anymore Slims Chicken or Papa John's Pizza or Burger King. So i went to the cafeteria and they had such weird hours, and the food wasn't as great besides a couple things. 

• You are tired 95% of the time: I don't even know how this is possible, but in college I was always tired. Whether it was from staying up and studying, walking up and down hills for my classes, or 8am classes I was always tired. I would come home for christmas break and just sleep. I also learned that naps are good at the time, but bad in long term because you probably napped during your homework or study time. In the end, making you stay up late to finish and being tired the next day. 

• Don't do laundry Saturday or Sunday: Everyone does their laundry Saturday or Sunday, I would pick a time to do your laundry when you think nobody is in the dorms. Such as if you don't have a class till 1pm do it in the morning because once 3pm hits everyone will be doing laundry. Also, put a timer on your phone for when your laundry is done, don't be that person that leaves it in all day.

• Go to a teacher's office hours: This really important if you are in a class of 200 students, the teacher will never know who you are.Just go into your teacher's office hours to introduce yourself, it will help. Especially, if you need help on something going into my teacher's office hours helped me raise my essay grade from a B to an A. This will also help you if you are at a border line grade and the teacher sees that you come to class every day and went to their office hours, they might be nice enough to bump your grade up. 

• DO EXTRA CREDIT: This is probably the most important thing I have learned in my freshman year. I did so much extra credit, even when I didn't need to but let me tell you on the days that I didn't do so good on one of my papers or test that extra credit was there to balance me out. In my English class I was sitting at an 88% and I still had a paper to write, I ended up getting a B on my paper, but because I did that extra credit I ended up making an A on the paper. Which turned my 88% to an A in the class. 

• Getting a C in a class is okay: I am a perfectionist, I can deal with a couple of B's but to me a C is failing....Until i took Principles of Biology. I am an education major, so science isn't really my forte. This class however was a class that biology major had to take as their intro class, and as an education major you are required to take it. However, this class wasn't easy.. I studied so hard for these tests, went to all the tutoring sessions and was determined to get a B in the class. However that wasn't the case I ended up ending the class with a C with 2% from having a B which killed me. But after a while, I realized it was only one class. It was not going to determine whether I was going to be a good teacher or not. Getting a C is average, everyone is  either going to fail or have a C in a class it just happens... so its okay.

• Join Clubs: I know that college can be stressful at times, and you feel like you don't have time for anything. However, joining a club will help you get your mind off of things, and help you relax and have fun with friends for a bit. It is also great because you get to meet new people, and trust me, in college there is a club for everything, and if there is not make your own. I joined a club called Foundation of International Medical Relief for Children. We got to do bake sale's and went out for percentage nights. We also have a Go Fund Me, we are currently raising money for children in Uganda if you would like to donate. 

• Have some fun: Don't spend your time studying all day, go out and have some fun. My best memories with my friends are our late night iHop runs, concerts, going hiking up in the Ozark mountains, having chair races down the halls, football games, and basketball games. There are times when you just have to go out and enjoy yourself because your only going to be this young once. So go out and have some fun.

I hope this has helped you guys, and help you be a little more prepared for college because trust me I didn't know what I was walking into either.

Top 5 Ways To Get Over A Breakup

Every girl has a relationship that they think will last forever, and then once it's over it is hard to pick up the pieces. Breakups are tough but so are we. We all have our own way of getting over someone, but just remember you deserve so much more. So here are some ways to get over a breakup..

1. Treat yourself: 

• Go out with your friends- Have a girls night out or go get lunch its nice to get out and just have some fun with friends. 
• Eat your favorite food - Go out and buy some chocolate or your favorite candy and favorite snacks or just go to your favorite restaurant. 
• Do something you love- If you enjoy drawing, go draw. If you enjoy taking pictures go do it. Don't let anything hold you back from doing something you love
• Go to a spa- Go get your nails done or go get a massage. Just relax, its nice to just treat yourself with a good spa day. Even if you just want to do your own pedicure or even your own face mask.
• Go for a nice walk- Enjoy the beauty of nature, and its nice to just get you thinking and clear your head. 
• Listen to your favorite music- Don't listen to breakup music it will just make you sad. Listen to upbeat music that makes you just want to dance and get up. Music that makes you happy is just a must to have on reply.

2. Time:
I'm not going to lie you don't just wake up one morning and you are suddenly over your ex. It will take some time to get over your ex, no matter how long you were together. This is something that everyone says "you just need time" and that's what you hate hearing no matter what, but its true!

3. Delete: 
As hard as it is you have to delete your ex from social media and your phone this is one of the hardest things to do. As much as you don't want to do it now, if you don't you will just want to text him or stalk all his social media to see if he has been hanging out with any girls. This will just make you feel worse. So just do it early it will help you out in the long run.

4. Write It Down: 
Write down your feelings on paper. This will help with getting your feelings out and not keep them from being bottled up. It can be a letter to your ex boyfriend, and you don't need to send it, or you can write it for yourself.

5. Remember You Are Worth More:

A year from now you are going to look back and laugh at this. Don't let a guy keep you down, you are stronger than that. Show him that you are better without him. You are worth so much more and he needs to realize that he lost something really special.

That are some different ways to get over a break up. Remember that you are worth so much more, and don't need him to be happy. I hope these tips have helped you. (:

My Teen Court Experience

For the past couple years I have been in this program called Teen Court. You deal with real teen cases such as theft, assault, minor in possession, minor in consumption, and ect. I have learned so much and made friends that will last a lifetime. I'm going to share my experience and hope you can take something from it or do something new and exciting.

I started teen court because one of my friends mentioned to me and she thought it was something I would like doing. So one day in the summer I decided to go to one of the training to be an attorney and I liked it. I continued going, but I was never a good public speaker. The more I went the more I got use to talking in front of people. Going up in front of my peers and debating a case really gave me confidence to go up and talk in front of crowds. The friends I had made throughout this experience as really impacted me we weren't just friends we were family. We had our wins and we had our loses and we fought our cases like crazy wither it was objections or bad cases we went through it all together. I saw them every Tuesday no matter what even if I had a big test coming up I would go just to take a breather and clear my head. It was never boring there, and I always left smiling.The ladies in charge of teen court were family to us always there to give advice and make sure we stayed out of trouble and always looking out for us. Teen court is definitely something I wouldn't have been able to do on my own but with the help of my friends I was able to step out of my confront zone and explore new things. Leaving teen court I feel I was able to help teens make wiser decisions and learn from their mistakes and be able to give back to their community. I learned so much from this experience and something I will always remember.

Court is adjourned 

My Favorite Quotes

These are some of my favorite quotes from movies, television shows, books, and people that I find motivational and relate to my life. I hope you like them...

Movies /Television Shows 

• "Spend a little more time trying to make something of yourself, and a little less time trying to impress people" - The Breakfast Club

• "Sometimes you need to step outside, clear your head and remind yourself of who you are. And where you wanna be. And sometimes you have to venture outside your world in order to find yourself." - Gossip Girl

• " The past can hurt. But the way I see it, you can either run from it or learn from it" -Lion King

Books

• "So, I guess we are who we are for a lot of reasons. And maybe we'll never know most of them. But even if we don't have the power to choose where we come from, we can still choose where we go from there. We can still do things. And we can try to feel okay about them." - Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

• "Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. Its not" -The Lorax by Dr. Seuss

• "Soon we must all face the choice between what is right and what is easy" - Harry Potter by JK Rowling

People

• “Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent” - Victor Hugo

• "Be the best version of you" - Zoella 

• "Do more of what makes you happy" - Alfie Deyes

Those are some of my favorite quotes I hope they inspire you and become one of your favorite quotes. Let me know what your favorite quotes are.

A Girl's Guide To Not Being Bored

Every girl experiences when they are so completely bored and have no clue what to do or where to begin doing something. I know I have, so here are some fun activities you can do by yourself or with your friends. 

• Go to the movies with your friends
• Watch the sunset 
• Read a book that is highly recommended
• Go to the mall with friends 
• Draw something
• Learn a new sport
• Cook something new
• Experiment with your makeup 
• Make your own jewelry
• Learn new hairstyles
• Redecorate your room
• Do a random DIY on Pinterest
• Take pictures of random things and make it beautiful
• Volunteer at a nursing home with friends
• Bake or cook something and hand it out to the homeless people
• Watch a documentary
• Watch a new YouTuber
• Make your own clothes 
• Start a Fundraiser
• Start a YouTube Channel
• Paint on a canvas
• Learn an instrument
• Go out and make a new friends
• Attend a yoga or zumba class
• Start your own blog
• Write heartfelt letters to friends and send them in the mail
• Write a book or short story
• Shadow someone in a career you are interested in
• Visit a university
• Have a girls night with your closest friends
• Try new foods
• Listen to new music

There are so many things you can do so you don't end up laying in bed all day wishing you did something. Hope it helped let me know what you liked to do, so your not bored.

My Favorite Netflix TV Shows and Movies

Famous Logos

As any regular teenager we all have our own obsessions, and mine just so happens to be Netflix. Netflix is a website where you can watch millions of TV shows and movies for only $7.99 per month. I could honestly sit all day and watch episodes or movies all day, so I thought I put together a list my favorite TV Shows and movies on Netflix.

TV Shows:

How I Meet Your Mother:

Gossip Girl 

Friends

Orange is the New Black

Pretty Little Liars

Once Upon a Time

Heroes

American Horror Story

Movies:

Stuck in Love

Camp Takota

GBF

Family Weekend

Rent

Chalet Girl

God's Not Dead

These are just some of my favorite shows and movies and I hope you watch them. If you have any Netflix favorites share them in the comments below. You can never get to much Netflix ;)

My Favorite Spoken Word Prefomances

This is for all my poetry fanatics, spoken word is on stage performance where poets read out their poems like a story or over an issue. I enjoy watching spoken word because you can see the emotion in the person and you can really feel the passion they have for that topic. I want to share my favorite spoken word performances.

1) To This Day- Shane Koyczan: This spoken word was one of the very first that I listened to, and after this I fell in love. Shane does an amazing job telling a story, and making you feel beautiful, and strong. I promise this is a video worth watching. My favorite quote from this poem is:

"If you can't see anything beautiful about yourself, get a better mirror, look a little closer, stare a little longer. Because there's something inside you that made you keep trying despite everyone who ever told you to quit. You built a cast around your heart, and signed it yourself. You signed it "they were wrong"  

(Shane Koyczan)

2) Somewhere In America: While I was watching poetry slams I came across this one and it really opened my eyes. These three girls: Belissa Escobedo, Rhiannon McGavin, and Zariya Allen are part of a program called Get Lit that helps increase teen literacy through spoken word poetry.

"The teacher never fails, only you do. Every state in America, the greatest lessons are the ones you don't remember learning." (Get Lit) 

3) Rape Poems To End All Rape Poems: Justice Hehir, Lindsey Michelle Williams, Kate Thomas, and Michelle Williams from Rutger University expressed the topic of rape culture and their view on the topic. The poem starts off by addressing how they will preform "another rape poem" because they feel  there will be more rape poems until people will address and fix the problem. This poem speaks volume and gave me chills.

"Until no really means NO! Until rape means crime. Until woman means human. All these rape poems will continue until there is no damn material left" (Rutger University)

These are some of my favorite spoken word poems and I hope you like them too. If you have an spoken word favorites share them in the comments, I would love to see other people's favorites,

The Truth About Senior Year of High School

As my senior year of high school comes to a close I am excited and sad at the same time. You wait twelve years for that moment when you get to walk across that stage and receive your diploma. I remember even at an early age they would tell you the year you would graduate and put them on t-shirts. But that always seemed ages from now, but as senior year comes to an end that time finally comes. So since I am almost done with high school I feel as if I should  help students who are about to start their senior year of high school and share the truths of senior year.

1. First semester senior year is a struggle: Your classes may be a super easy, but there is still a lot of things that you have to worry about: getting the right ACT/SAT score, picking colleges you want to apply to, filling out college applications, college essays, teacher recommendation, and etc. School may be a blow off but trust me your stress level will be all over the place.

2. You secretly care somewhat about your grades: You probably already got accepted into college and everyone is saying "i don't care anymore" "wait we had homework?" "there is a test?" all those kinds of statements, Its true tho, you won't work as hard as you have your previous years but you still end up doing the homework to keep that high GPA. Even though you say you don't care, but deep down inside you do.

3. Its's true you meet people you wish you had meet freshman year:
Through your four years of high school you will meet  new people and they will come and go. Maybe you meet your best friends or your worst enemies. But you will end up meeting people that you wish you meet freshman year. My school has a event called Senior Picnic towards the last few weeks of school. We went to a ranch and all hung out and  I meet some really cool people that I wish I had meet earlier.

4. Prom isn't stupid: At first I decided I was not gonna go to prom and then my friends convinced me to go last minute. Me and my friends did not have dates but we made the most out of prom and it was something special that I will always remember. It really doesn't matter if u have a date or not, it's the attitude you have, so make it memorable.

5. You learn to take in each moment: As the day comes closer to graduation, you begin to start taking in those moments you have left because you are never gonna see most of these people after graduation. I remember during prom and senior picnic I would just looked around the room and saw how everyone was having fun and how I felt at that moment and let everything sink in.

6. Time Flies: You will never really feel like a senior. I feel like it was just yesterday and I was in sixth grade writing a letter to my future self as a senior. Time really does fly, and you just have to make every moment count.

Senior year has been my favorite part of my high school experience, and I will always remember it. I will always remember the Friday night lights and painting my parking spot and all these activities that the school planned. I just hope your senior year is as memorable as mine.

Poetry Slam

Yesterday night my school had a poetry slam, and this is the first one I have ever gone to one. The amount of expression that came out of people's mouth was indescribable. Some people it was their first time up there, and they read something so personal to a bunch of strangers. That to me is stepping out of the box and as I like to say living louder. Their words were ineffable and so beautiful the amount of talent in that place was too much.  These people have walked down the same halls, sat in the same classrooms, talked to the same people, and at that very moment we were all united by words. At that moment I felt a connection was made with each and everyone that was there. We all laughed together, we all sympathized together, we were all sad together, and most importantly we all had fun together. This was a way to get people to let out their feelings onto paper and into poetry and I felt like each of them gave inspiration to everyone in the audience. Everyone who listened learned something from this slam, and what I learned is that you aren't alone people will always be there to listen, learn and help you with whatever you are going through. This poetry slam really gave me inspiration and I hope one day you will take time to write a poem, attended a poetry slam, or even preform you will not regret it.

Decisions

Everyone makes decisions from trying to find out what outfit to wear today or deciding to stop smoking. Sometimes I wonder how society makes us pick what we want to do for the rest of our lives by the time we are seventeen or eighteen. These decisions effect a person's life dramatically, yet we are always unsure that very moment what we choose. You determine every single decision you make even if it's a bad one or a good one. 

Have you ever wondered how your life would be different if you made that decision? Yes, you know exactly what decision I am talking about.

Think about it.... How would it be different? Would it have been better? Would it have been worse? Is there anything you could have done to change the outcome?

Many people have made a decision that changed their life forever. Decisions are what help us grow as a person. If you didn't make mistakes what kind of world would we be living in. Making mistakes is what makes us human. 

High School Tips

High School has always been portrayed with scary teachers, bullies, and drama. Most of the things you hear about high school are not always true. By the time you reach high school most people have matured by then. But that doesn't mean everyone has.

I started off my freshman year at this school that I have been attending since I was in sixth grade. I had already meet a lot of people and dealt with the drama that came during my middle school years. But by the end of my freshman year I had to move, and start fresh. As much as it hurt to leave I did it and will be graduating from this school. I am currently going into my second semester of my senior year of high school.These are some of thing things I would tell myself if I could relive my high school experience. I hope this helps people going into high school this year or attending it now.

1. Be yourself- I know that sounds super cheesy but its true. Don't pretend to be someone to impress people it will get you nowhere. You will find your best friends just being yourself. Don't try to be better than anyone else, just be the best you can be. Don't let grades beat you up, don't let that 50% on a test effect you. Don't think you are dumb because you failed that test that everyone thought was easy. Just use that to motivate you to be better next time.

2. GPA is everything- starting from freshman year till senior year a GPA is important. This is the average of all your classes through 9th-12th grade. When your applying to college your going to wish you had an A or B instead of that C you had. So do not procrastinate, stay on top of your work (I suggest buying an agenda ) don't EVER say no to extra credit and do all your homework. Study and don't get distracted have ten to fifteen minute break if you have to.

3. Participate- Don't be afraid to ask questions or interact with teachers I promise it helps. Join clubs and meet new people. Find friends that will go with you to the football games, because your going to look back during your senior year and ask yourself why didn't you go more often. Go to all the activities like homecoming or prom even if you don't have a date, I promise its more fun to go with all your friends.

4. If you fail to prepare, prepare to fail- this means that if you don't put in the effort to do your best you will fail. So study a little longer for that test, make sure you have all your work done, be organized and put as much effort as you can in all four years. I promise it will all be worth it at the end when you end up at the school of your dreams.

Most importantly....

5. You are worth more than a number- Don't let that grade you got on that one test or the grade you have in that class determine your worth. Don't think because you got a low score on your ACT or SAT you are dumb. A number is just a number and that is all it ever be, and you know how smart you are and how much you can accomplish. So accomplish it. Retake that test, take the ACT/SAT again, don't let a number determine who you are.

Introduction

Hello, my name is Maria I'm eighteen years old and this is my story.

I grew up in different parts of the world, meeting new people, and experiencing different cultures. By the time I was ten years old, I had already relocated five times. I would move an additional two times before finally settling in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex. Fortunately throughout my travels, I have been able to hold onto passions that are dear to me. Moreover, I have developed new ones with each adventure.

I was born in Lima, Peru and lived there for four years before moving to New York. After a brief stint in New York, my family moved to New Jersey and then London, England. After London we moved to Chicago, Illinois where we lived for four years - the longest amount of time I have ever lived in one location. From there we moved to Tulsa before finally settling in Texas the summer before my sophomore year. Everywhere I went I was able to meet different people and adapt to a new school and house. I was always good at making friends but saying goodbye is the hardest thing to do. In my last year in Tulsa, my freshman year, I found my passion for music and joined choir and show choir. While I had been singing since the age of six, I really became enthralled with music during this time. Music has always been a part of me and always will.

    Tulsa was by far one of my favorite places to live. People still ask me why, as they simply cannot understand its beauty. I learned that it is not where I live that makes a place but, rather, those I live among. I believe that you bloom wherever you are planted. In the next year I will be attending college, I do not know where I'm going yet. But I know that wherever I end up going to college it will be the right place for me.

I chose the name "living louder" because I have always been a quiet person, but I want that to change I want to be heard. I have gone through some struggles but believe that change and challenges is only whatever I make of it. But I always choose to make it work. So through this journey of mine living louder is my moto and hope it can be yours as well.