My name is Sarah Coffey, I'm 18 years old and just joined the Review as an editor this semester. I'm from Saraland, Alabama, which is around Mobile. My mom and I are avid readers and we always have something we're in the middle of reading. However, when I was growing up, I didn't want to pick up a single book. Then, I couldn't find the interest in reading. When I moved schools after third grade, I didn't know anyone, so I picked up a book (my first chapter book I read without being forced and that I picked myself was Because of Winn-Dixie) and I was hooked. Through out middle and high school, I always had a book with me, whether it was in print or on my Kindle. For the past 4-5 years, I have had a yearly goal of how many books I can read on Shelfari.com (check it out, it is GREAT). A couple years ago I was able to read just over 40 books and this year I've recently read just over 60 and am still reading more!
I went to Saraland High School all the way from freshman year to graduation my senior year. There were times I wanted to be back at my VERY small middle school, but there were times I loved the high school and the people I met there. I was a member of National Honor Society, Mu Alpha Theta, and shot for the school's Archery team. The archery team gave me the chance to shoot at different schools and venues across the state and out-of-state with my team and other teams. Archery is now another passion of mine, along with books, art, and traveling.
People say that if you can't travel you should read because it's the next-best thing. I would agree with that, but don't think that if you can't travel right now that you never will. For now, read to your heart's desire and when you are able to in however-many-years, travel. Don't use books as a substitute for traveling. Books can take you to many different places, but I know from personal experience that they are not the whole experience. I had the chance to travel to Boston and Washington DC in middle school and they were like nothing I could have read about. Seeing something on TV or reading about it in books is not the same as seeing it in person. In books, you read and imagine the wind blowing and imagine seeing things in your mind's eye. But with traveling, I was able to sit in the Salem Commons in Massachusetts (which I've included a picture of) and actually feel the wind, see the people walking, hear the trees.
So, whether you're still in high school or in college, find some way to travel, even if it's just in the same state. Traveling can open your eyes to new things just like books can. Read. write, travel, explore, make art; don't let yourself get closed off from new experiences in the world, because there are so many that are too amazing to miss.
