Ever since I was younger, writing has always been a passion of mine. Whether it was writing songs as a five year old, or even short stories when I was in the third grade, I turned to writing for comfort.
As a shy kid, writing was my way of self - expression. I learned how to use a computer at an extremely young age, and one of my first memories was opening up a document to type up a short story.
I grew out of my creative writing phase pretty quickly after transitioning into middle school and having to write actual essays and analytical paragraphs.
And when high school came around, I was out of place for the first two years. I didn't know what my passions were and I was confused as to what I wanted to do with my life. Then, I joined my school newspaper and everything changed for me.
I rediscovered my passion of writing in a completely new and exhilarating way. Journalism was a different, complex form of writing that required dedication and passion. Having the ability to report on a story that I was genuinely passionate about was a great experience.
I wrote countless opinion pieces on issues to me that mattered, such as new instilled homework policies and how Islamophobia was a prevalent issue on campus. I was able to open up people to new perspectives and change the way people thought about issues. This to me was inspiring.
As junior year came to an end, I was incredibly proud of all that I had accomplished within the two years that I had been in my journalism class. At this point, I considered journalism as a career option.
The summer after my junior year, I went to two summer programs: one focused on digital journalism and the other focused on print journalism. However after ending both of these programs, I faced a harsh reality. Although I loved writing and reporting in my journalism class, reporting in the real world was completely different and not something I could see myself doing.
I felt like I was back where I was freshman year of high school where I had no idea what to do with my life. I still loved writing, but I knew I wasn't cut out to go down the journalism career path.
A month into my senior year of high school, I found this amazing media outlet at the time called Coming of Faith that was looking for Editorial Interns for the fall semester. I found their motto really interesting - it focused on expressing the voices of minority millennial women around the globe.
I immediately applied, not knowing how much of an impact this company would eventually make on my life.
Starting out as a fellow was difficult because I was so used to the standard journalism form of reporting and writing. I had to shift to editorial writing, which required me to express my own personal voice through my writing. I wrote on topics such as science, news, beauty, fashion, etc., and I expanded my writing skills tremendously.
After my first semester, the company switched its name to The Tempest. I was brought back on after I took a break for a semester, and I continued to write using my voice to empower others.
Through The Tempest, I learned how to refine my writing and develop a unique voice. I put out dozens of pieces over the course of my two semesters and I had achieved a solid portfolio of writing.
Some of the most important pieces I wrote were the ones I wrote anonymously, which captured the struggles I've faced with my identity and personal experiences that I've had throughout my life.
Writing for The Tempest helped me grow as a person and become stronger as I wrote about my hardships, passions, etc. The experience I gained with this company along with amazing people I was surrounded by changed me as a person and once again made me fall in love with writing.
Writing makes me feel incredibly powered. Especially knowing that my voice is being shared with the world.
I continue to write for The Tempest, using my voice as an effort to make a difference in the world and break outside of cultural norms with the topics I choose to write about.
