Why write

WHY I WRITE?

“A writer i think is someone who pays attention to the world” - SUSAN SONTAG.

19th of June 2000 I was born. But unlike most “normal babies,” I didn’t cry. The Doctor that took my delivery thought I was dead, but I wasn’t. I had Asphyxia neonatorum: a failure to start regular respiration within a minute of birth. Newborn infants typically begin to breathe without assistance and usually cry after delivery. If not correctly managed, asphyxia neonatorum will lead to hypoxia and possible brain damage or death.

As weird as it sounds, this is my life. Growing up, I had difficulties talking, so instead, I used gesticulations to communicate. At a time, my grandma thought I was dumb, but I wasn’t, I was a Stammerer, so I didn’t like talking because it was very frustrating.

While in middle school, I enjoyed my own company. I didn’t associate with people because of my speech disorder. So instead of talking, I started writing notes to people I wanted to talk to, and they wrote notes to me too. Later, I started keeping a diary. I found it very easy to talk to my journal because it never made fun of my writing skills; it also didn’t care if I had a speech disorder. That’s how my writing journey began, from writing my journals to writing in the school’s magazine. The pen was my voice, the paper was my microphone, and together we made magic happen.

Now that I have started associating with people and socializing, I feel blessed because I don’t need to express myself by only talking, i can write it out and have my friends read it. Writing had a way of conveying my emotions. If I wasn’t a writer, then I probably will never have been able to express myself the right way. Like Horace rightfully said, “The pen is the tongue of the mind.”