Growth Through Courage

I attended Take Back the Night last night. It is a worldwide event that began in the 1800s as a way for women (and men) to stand up and say that they will not tolerate violence and that they will not live in a world that forces them to be afraid at night, especially of sexual violence. It's amazing, really.

An open mic night was held after the march across campus. One young woman read a piece of prose she wrote about the realness and strength of women. Considering the V-day movement is mostly about sexual violence, I decided to read a piece of prose I wrote about my past that really encapsulated my feelings. It was called "I Am a Healthy, Well-Adjusted Adult," and it was about my survival and not letting my past define me or hold me back. I introduced myself and told my story; it was the first time I had told it publicly. I said that my talking about it was important because victims of insect often feel ashamed, just as I still do many times, but it is so common that it needs to be discussed.

I began crying as soon as I looked at the audience, but I kept going. I was terrified, but I kept talking. I thought I was going to throw up and die, but I kept reading. It was probably the scariest thing I've ever done in my life...but I kept going. I looked out at the audience when I gathered enough courage to see the horrified faces, but I didn't see that at all. I saw strangers and friends crying with me. I saw my professors crying; that was strange. I cried and they cried. We were all getting through it together, and I had a line of hugs when I finished. It was a healing experience I never thought I needed. I am so proud of myself, and so many other people told me they were proud of me, too. A man gave the V-Day girls an extra $5 for a donation to the Family Crisis Resource Center (the center to which all the proceeds of V-Day and the Vagina Monologues went) because he could finally put a real face to a real problem. It was a phenomenal experience, and I will remember it for the rest of my life. I thank God for giving me that strength I didn't think I had in me. I wish you could have been there.



Love,

Suz

Triumph!

I am on a save-the-world high. I must brag.

There was an awful, slanderous blog that took Frostburg by storm. Titled "Frostburg Dirt," it posted all sorts of untrue and personal things about various FSU students. That hideous pink blog was on every computer screen all day in the SGA office, and it drove me nuts. Some of the things that it said was just cruel. Not only was it the worst display of 7th grade lunch table gossipy BULLcrap, it was all written by an anonymous author.

In a recent post, the author said "Ok, people, let me know if you don't want the site - I'll take it down!"

Well, people were talknig about how dumb it was, but no one has the bollocks to post a comment and say so. I did. I wrote a very polite, but to-the-point, comment telling the author how cowardly and immature he/she was being, nd that I did not want the site to exist any longer.

HOOOOOOOLY COW, it WORKED! Less than 5 minutes later, the blog was taken down. I feel fantastic that I was the only person to stand up and voice my opinion, without a curtain of anonymity, and I was listened to!

I just had to brag that I stood up for something that I believed in and action was taken to better the Frostburg community. It might be back up tomorrow with even worse postings (and probably about me), but for now...I feel triumphant!