Category: Junior Literary

Hello everyone, welcome back to my blog. I’ve spent the last couple of weeks on Winter Break, so I figured I would talk about that. My Winter break was tame. I was sick the first week and on Christmas, which sucked, but it is what it is. I spent the Holidays at my grandmother’s house and visiting family. How did you all spend your break? Are you all excited about the New Year? Scared?

I can see people, at least in my age range, being scared. Each day that goes by, we get closer to becoming seniors, graduating, and going off into the world on our own. I wouldn’t say that I’m scared, maybe more so relieved. I understand that there are trials that come with adulthood, but adulthood offers me more freedom than being a child ever did. I’ll be free to make my own mistakes, pave my own path, and become someone other than someone’s daughter, grandbaby, or niece. I will simply be myself, Lela Reed, and in being an adult, I get to choose who “Lela Reed” is. Maybe she’s a lawyer, an engineer, a nurse, a businesswoman. Maybe she’s an author, or a famous actor or singer. I’m not sure yet who she is, but I do know I can’t wait to choose.

On another note, being back at school feels good, refreshing even, but I’m not going to lie, my writing skills feel a little rusty. Actually, a lot rusty. I haven’t written anything in a while, and nothing I wrote before my break has met my standards. I am someone who expects perfection from myself, which includes every piece of work I put out there. and that is something I do not see changing as time goes on. I just feel like I’ve hit a standstill in my writing and that I haven’t improved in my time here. Only those who have seen my work and critiqued it will be able to tell me for sure, but if someone were to tell me, I would appreciate honesty. I believe that being “nice” when it comes to important things gets you nowhere. How is someone meant to improve if you tell them they’re doing fine the way they are when they’re not? It’s a setup for failure.

Unfortunately, I don’t have much to say on this blog. So, I’ll wrap this up by saying I hope you all had a great Holiday, happy New Year, and have a wonderful day. 

My latest obsession is a simple little show (that turns out not to be very simple) Gilmore Girls. Now at first I didn’t really like this show because it’s so long, but when I started actually watching it it blew my mind. Like the characters are so well thought out, and the episodes are always so interesting. It really makes staring at a ipad for hours at a time entertaining.

Im currently on Season 3, and LUKE AND LOR ARE STILL NOT TOGETHER!! PPPLLLLLEEEAAASSSSEEEE… Anyways I’m about to talk about Paris. I get that she is VERY disliked by many watchers but personally I like her. She has the wrong priorities but I think thats more of her parents fault. If her parents were more open to her being a kid she would be so much funner. Also her friends are SO annoying. 

And Jess? I personally don’t like him but like thats just me. I guess he’s okay for Rory but… He’s lowkey a bad influence. Plus why isn’t he going to work? FIX IT JESS.  AND LIKE DEANNNN? WHY WOULD YOU PUNCH HIM OUT OF NOWHERE? SHE ISNT YOUR GIRLFRIEND ANYMORE.

Kids, no means no.

And on another note, was is Lor constantly going back to Max and Chris… Have we learned nothing? I just wish she would realize that she doesn’t need a man to be whole. Plus Chris doesn’t deserve her. He’s lowkey evil… 

As you guys can tell, I have very strong opinions about this show and I’m glad I have friends like Robin I can talk about all of this with. I saw that Warner Bros Studio remade Stars Hallow for the 25th anniversary, and even had actually GG cast come to be there. I wish I could have went so bad!

Honestly I don’t know what I’m going to do once I finish watching this show. I mean I’ve been watching for so long that it’s now part of my day to day life. I guess that it’ll be bittersweet.

I hope that by the end of the show, Rory gets married and graduates Yale, along with Paris, Dean and Jess become cool again, and Luke and Lor are together with a million kids. Also I hope Lane finally find a way for her mom to stop being so strict. 

At the end of the day, GG is such an amazing show with such an amazing cast!

 

I see a table.

I see a plant.

I see a pen.

I see a mirror.

I see a myself.

I think as writer I find myself watching movies and noticing things that I think normally people miss, today I want to talk about something I noticed in a show called “wayward” it’s about two best friends from different walks of life facing different various challenges of life and when various parents and neighbors become worried about their delinquent behavior the decide to send them off to “tall pines academy ” a youth mentally facility which is really a front for a cult ran by a very weird woman.  I’m not here to talk about the show itself though I want to talk about a grounding technique and what grounding techniques are used for in real life. the show is very good though I recommend it.

grounding techniques are used to deal with anxiety, stress, disassociation etc. You may have heard of them or have completed them yourself the most common ones are counting to 10, the 5 senses , and more!! they are rarely used in media but when people do use them, I think it opens the show up to more various possibilities and creates more relatable characters with personalities that seem more realistic. I think I would like to see more grounding techniques in media directed towards children though. in my opinion grounding techniques shows kids how to regulate emotions they don’t fully understand yet. I know as a kid I distinctly remember the first time I saw one I was like 11 watching steven universe and garnet had just taught steven and connie to deal with stress by bringing themselves back to earth through meditation which is another really good grounding technique. I think once find ourselves drifting or I like to say “falling into our minds” we find ourselves on a bridge and on each side of the bridge is blocked off and sometimes it seems like the only option it to fall. I think grounding techniques teach us to fly like a baby bird getting taught by our mothers grounding techniques guide us back towards the control panel aka our brains and the more we do them the more they become natural reactions for us leading to overall mindfulness and peace.

poem because I lowkey planned this like during the break:

Your 7.

The clock indicts the room at eleven.

One hour until the ceremony of age.

No witnesses.

They tell you to begin with five things you can see

as if sight has never betrayed you.

V

The door ajar

not opened, not closed

a decision deferred indefinitely.

IV

The wall’s pale aneurysms

paint blistered with secrets

it refuses to finish telling.

III

The ceiling fan’s slow verdict,

chopping the air into tolerable pieces,

each rotation decapitating the last.

II

Your reflection practices absence

in the darkened television screen

eyes learning how not to ask.

I

The clock’s second hand

stuttering like it recognizes you.

You remain contiguous to avoid rupture.

The house is not loud

it is attentive.

Every object rehearses stillness.

Every silence acquires intent.

Five things you can see.

Four walls with an avoidant geometry.

Three memories misled as dreams.

Two adults negotiating distance through doors.

One child developing an interior witness.

Time advances.

You fragment.

Ground yourself, they say.

But gravity here is nonexistent 

it pulls you inside.

It is nearly your birthday.

Something inside you has already aged out

 

Hey guys, I guess I should say welcome back. I hope y’all have been having a good new first week of the new year and hope y’all likening the new classes we got. I can say I truly like my classes. They seem cool for now at least. Let’s see what to talk about. I would talk about my Christmas break but I was sick a lot sadly, well I still had a good time. Before I got sick I went out bowling with my friends, I had my nephew for a few days when I wasn’t feeling sick, I went out to some friends houses and we did some games and stuff for Christmas. Other than that I stayed at my god sister’s house and we chilled,ate and watched a lot of baddies together.

So far this year it started off good but yea it’s not all that right now lol. I think one thing in particular I would want to happen that didn’t happen in 2025 is to find somebody to chill with without having to deal with having to not trust that person or overthink with that person. I really feel like this year should be different. I want this year to be different because last year was the worst year ever. 

I also wanna go out more this year. I have always been the type of person to visit a lot of places, I mean don’t get me wrong I went out of town and different places a couple of times last year but this year I wanna do way more and even try to learn some different things to do. I mean I am at an art school so maybe trying something new would be a good thing. 

I can start back doing nails well. I never stopped. I just did people’s nails for fun but maybe I can start doing them to get money this year. It would help me make my own money and I want to ask my mom or sister. 

But my point of saying this is, I’m hoping and praying that this year will be my year. Even if I have to change some parts of me and stop doing a lot of things I used to do, I will.

But this is my first blog of 2026, hope everyone year go good and the new school semester go well.❤️

To celebrate almost a year of guitar playing and 100 songs learned, I wanted to make a post on why I love guitar so much. Just about everyone in this class has probably seen me around campus playing guitar with a group of people. Music seems to bring a small crowd wherever it is, and I enjoy that aspect of the instrument. As I’m typing this, there are guitar tabs open on a different window haha!!

I’ve been playing guitar since January of last year. I was grounded for a few weeks because I hadn’t completed an assignment and it tanked my grades a bit. I decided to take the time I had and put it into something that I had been interested in doing since I was very little.

There’s an episode of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia where the gang ends up going to a music store. Charlie sits down at the piano and without having played one somehow understands the process saying, “I don’t really know, man. I just get keys.” That’s how I was when I took to the strings of my brothers Taylor GS Mini, which was later given to me in a series of hand-me-downs.

After learning a few songs and getting un-grounded, my dad started telling me about the many guitars that I had grown up around. Pictured to the left is a banjo that was built like a guitar so my dad would have an easier time learning how to play it. The guitar at the bottom was my grandfather’s. He didn’t play it as much, so he gave it to my dad. I’m not a fan of it though, the action is too high (meaning that the strings are high above the neck of the guitar) and it hurts my hands.

Most of the music I learned was alone during the beginning of the year. I didn’t know many other people who were interested in guitar, and none of my friends lived near me. I was self taught and used it as a way to calm myself or maybe just stop myself from being so bored. My parents love to hear me play, but having such a small audience made it difficult for me to push myself when it came to new songs or new techniques. I would stick to my comfort level and never move past it.

In march of last year, I auditioned to attend here at MSA just like the rest of you did. There I met Sarah and CJ. CJ wanted to start a band with the three of us plus David and my friend Em. Though this didn’t work out in the end, CJ brought back my passion to play guitar and learn more music. During orientation week, we spent a lot of time in the lounge playing guitar together. I was pushed by my peers to listen to music by artist I didn’t hear much of in my own playlists and play more complicated things. People sat and listened to us play, and really it brought me a type of happiness I hadn’t felt much. Maybe it was a bit prideful, or maybe it just felt good to make people smile when they heard music they liked. Whatever made be feel that specific type of happiness, I can thank guitar for it.

I’m getting closer to the word limit so I think it’s time for me to cut this. Now, just because I know 100 songs doesn’t mean I’m good at all of them. Some I’m still learning, and others I’m just REALLY rusty on. I think I’m going to start playing in the lounge and on the patio if possible. I miss playing around people!!!! Okay, that’s enough for now. ByeBye!!

I haven’t blogged about music in a while and due to Spotify wrapped coming out this week I feel the urge to talk about music. So that is what this blog is going to be about. I love music but I definitely haven’t been listening to music like I used to. I had a friend that I got a lot of cool music recs from but after a while I kind of just quite listening to music for myself and what I liked and I listened to music, the only way I can explain it is like a zombie. I just lost the love for it. But I have noticed this and have begun to fix it. Music is my world and I feel that I need to nurture that so I have been trying to listen to and find new songs that make me happy and fit my brain. My Spotify wrapped is pretty much all over the place so I won’t be talking a lot about that but I will say a few key things about it. I listened to 45 albums this year, 5,901 songs, and 391 genres. I listened to music for 84,578 minutes which is roughly 58 days. I think that it’s not bad, but it could be better. I also feel like wrapped this year was so random (not in content but in when they released it). Last year there was such a build up to it, which was met with, almost, disappointment by a lot. But this year it was just like whatever. But anyways this isn’t the main point of this blog. I thought since we are now in the time frame where our music isn’t really being tracked right now for wrapped, I would sort of track it here. 

So jumping into artists I’ve been listening to this week. I’ve been listening to Finn Wolfhard (not because of Stranger Things Season 5). I listen to music differently than a lot of people I think. I listen for the vibe and the feeling and what’s being said. I think that that’s what music is for. Not to say “Yeah I listen to (insert artist)”. I feel that listening to music for others approval is pretty pointless. Anyways, I’ve been listening to his “new” album. It’s great. I love the vibe and it is easy to listen to. My top song out of the songs I’ve been listening to by him is probably “Everytown there’s a darling”. Due to listening to Finn Wolfhard, you can infer I have also been listening to Calpurnia a bit (Calpurnia is a band that he is in). If I am listening to Finn Wolfhard nine times out of ten, I’m listening to Calpurnia too. They are so similar that their songs just go together well. 

I have also been listening to Malcom Todd and music like that. His music is very vibey and just easy to listen to. I think Malcom Tod’s songs that have been on repeat this week are definitely “Sweet Boy”, “Chest Pain (I Love)”, and “Roommates”. These all fit a vibe that just feels right (as I said I listen to music differently, I listen biased on feeling I guess. If it doesn’t make me feel then it’s not the song to listen to in that moment, but every moment has a feeling that can be matched with music, the right song just has to be found). But back on the topic of Malcom Tod’s music. I tried to find other artists with the same vibe and I found one that definitely is similar, Jack Murnin. The songs that I found of his were “Back N Forth”, “Terms” (my personal favorite), “Riled up”, and “IcyHot”. I definitely think that they have similar vibes, feelings, and styles. I enjoy finding new music to listen to so when I do it’s definitely a treat.  

Okay the next artist I’ve listened to a good bit is Dominic Fike. He has a new single that came out in November – “White Key” – so I’ve had that on repeat a couple of times. I really like his music. The way it flows and how the lyrics go with the beat is crazy. I think everyone’s style of lyricism is so interesting and unique. I love the lyrics in this song though. It just makes a story out of the words, the beat, the vibe and the feeling. It’s a great song. Due to this I’ve listened to a few of my other favorites from  his older stuff. 

Next is CThruRio. I don’t know how to pronounce his name or even really what it means but the way I found his music was TikTok. I listen to a range of genres as stated previously and this is a genre that I think many don’t think I listen to, hip-hop. Now my favorite song of his is a bit more of a mix of rap and rock, which I find interesting, but still hip-hop. I haven’t listened to any of his newer stuff yet but I have recently went back to his song “Before the Morning” because of the unique style it has. 

And of course I’ve listened to more than that but I listen to so many individual songs that it’s pointless to try and talk about all of them but those are – what I think are- my top artists this week. 

*I watched stranger things season 5 Volume one and will be doing a blog about it, but I feel like I want to wait until the whole season is out so until then it’ll be music and other shows or movies* 

Anyways thanks for reading and until next blog. 

Hello everyone, in this week’s blog post, I’m going to talk about someone very special. Me. I’m going to get vulnerable, sort of, and if you know me at all, you will know vulnerability is not my thing. But for the sake of getting some advice, here I go. 

My problem is that I’m a girl who likes a lot of things, who wants to do a lot of things, but I can’t seem to pick just one to be my thing. I mean, I used to be a dancer- ballet to be precise, and then I quit to come to MSA to write. Sometimes I still like writing, I know that I’m going to write an essay for fun as soon as I get all my work done. Sometimes I want to be an astronomer, other times a lawyer. I guess what I’m trying to say is I have a passion for everything and nothing. Society tells you to grow up and go to college, which I fully intend to do, but society also tells you to pick just one degree and go live your life invested in this one field. How can I do that when there are so many different paths to go down? I have a million lives I want to lead, and still I’m stuck with just this one. 

I won’t lie and claim that money is not going to be a motivator in whatever path I choose. I do not want to be broke. Sure, money isn’t the only thing I care about, but it sure is up there! Whether we like it or not, money is what makes this world go round. I certainly wouldn’t be surprised if we woke up one day and suddenly had to pay for the air we breathe. Which is why when people say that stupid phrase, “follow your heart”, I want to gag. I would rather follow my brain, my brain makes more sense, and it’s telling me that I need to go for what will support me, my future cats, and, I guess, my family members. (That was a joke.)  (Not really.) 

So, if anyone reading this has any advice, drop it in my comment section. Until next time, bye. 

Welcome back! So, it finally getting colder and winter has vastly approached, and been awhile of the ber months as we are in the last one of the year. Thugh it is just getting colder now the fun winter is commonly associated with Christmas, colder weather, New Years, exam season and many more! Theres two common season that come up when you ask someone’s favorite season and that’s usually summer and winter. 

Winter is such a busy month but a cozy peaceful one at last to it you get out of school, and all your breaks roll in. You get Thanksgiving Break and Christmas Break. Theres so much to do ice skating ricks open (in some places idk about the south) Tree lightings, Parades, Christmas fun runs, and hot coco by the fire pit. Light fluttery snow in the mornings trying to make a man but your hands get so cold, snowball fights. A wintery snow day in Washington and Germany were my favorite.  

Catching a train to the town over, Christmas markets meeting new people, and most of all exploring a new place for the day. People seem more cheerful during the holiday spirt, could be because the weather is changing, schools out, or even their exams are over I know I’m going to be excited when that is over. The sense of peace and I can finally relax and know I’m done for a few weeks. Watch a Christmas movies and sleep in. 

If you have not figured out already, I’m so ready for winter break and having time to just relax and not worry about work. Though for a lot of people this is the time for some people who are in school to take up some extra shifts of work and make a bit more cash over the break. My personal favorite thing to do is shop the way you can just roam isles and not worry about time or anything then find the perfect gift for your family or friend. Even better is when you go shopping with that friend of yours who loves it as much as you do it makes y’all can do so much more and have such of an adventure playing games in the stores looking at outfits we would wear in the future and acting stupid, half of the time we will just window shop and go out for the fun of it, my favorite person to shop with is my older sister we go out and don’t even look at time.

With this magical time of year, the question I am going to end the blog with is: What is your favorite season? I know this may sound crazy since I just hyped-up winter so much, but my favorite season is Fall the way the leave change colors and we slowly change into winter is magical. It is such a gorgeous mix of summer and winter and what’s next to come. I’m so exacted for this winter break coming up though and I hope y’all are too! Have a wonderful winter and see y’all next week.