Leah Q. Adult-in-Training

Perfection, it’s this unattainable goal we all strive for. To be perfect is to be without fault or, is it? We are told what we should do but are we really learning what life is really about when everything goes perfectly?             As a woman I am told time and time again the traits I must have in order to get a man, to keep a man, to keep him happy but, what about keeping myself happy? You’ve got to have a nice rack and great hair but make sure it’s not too perfect because otherwise you’ll just be portrayed as a bimbo. A woman can’t be beautiful and smart, a woman can’t be fat and beautiful, beauty is paired with nothing. It is a trait that stands on its own making all other redeemable qualities pale in comparison. Face value is all we ever take people at but in actuality individuals are the epitome of complexity, of depth. Every decision we make is backed by experience and emotion but no one ever tries to understand the why. ...

         Change, it’s a word that invokes many reactions. On one hand you have the people who run toward it, they embrace everything it embodies wholeheartedly. Whether it’s an attempt to fix their current reality into something resembling happiness or, to continue that high that allows them to adapt to an ever-changing environment. On the other hand you have people who run from change, who deem it unnecessary, those who find progress an idea of vulnerability that they are unwilling to approach. I can identify with both.             When Emaleigh died I experienced something I could never have imagined, a rush of emotion coming from all different sides that I couldn’t seem to handle. You’re given all of these issues that you need to fix but unlike a regular problem you can’t find the source. It’s something that seems to be forever unobtainable. I didn’t want change then. I wanted my reality to stay the sa...