2008 Woodie Awards
Community helps writer challenge personal beliefs
Elizabeth Miller
Issue date: 4/25/08 Section: OpEd Page
After three years, it's bittersweet to write my last Miami Student column. My first column was a cushy little piece about the Mega Fair. I compared it to a "buffet of college opportunities"-or something tragically tacky like that. At the time, of course, it seemed brilliant. There's something to be said about an honest retrospective look about how you've improved throughout college. My evolution as a writer happened in front of a 15,000 person audience-the Miami student population. Every two weeks, I was assigned to imagine something-anything-to write about for this column slot. Something to entertain all of you 18-22 year olds. It might sound easy. But really, you're a tough crowd to please. And I know: I'm one of you.
Most of my columns were pretty fluffy at first. I didn't take many chances, but they made people smile. I wrote about happy things like playing in the leaves on Academic Quad and studying abroad in Luxembourg. They were safe, easy things to write about. But column by column, I learned that my job as a writer-and my job as a human being-is not to simply appease people. My job is to stand for something. I have a responsibility to not fade into the consensus of what everyone else thinks. I have a duty to challenge and inspire others to think something new, something different. This duty comes with risking the approval of others, rejecting the acceptance of the mainstream and breeching the expectations of peers. All in a day's work.
Slowly, I learned to take chances with things I wrote. In my columns, I've written about God. If this makes me a Bible-thumper, then I'll own it. I've written about having mercy towards teen mothers needing pregnancy leave from high school. If this makes me too tolerant, then I'll admit it. I've written ad nauseam about aiding Africa, serving Katrina victims, donating to AIDS causes and ending the sex slave trade. If this makes me a bleeding-heart idealist, well, then I probably am. I've written about my personal struggles with eating disorders, relationships and identity issues at Miami. If this makes me unnecessarily confessional, then I stand by my opinion that self-preservation is selfish.
Most of my columns were pretty fluffy at first. I didn't take many chances, but they made people smile. I wrote about happy things like playing in the leaves on Academic Quad and studying abroad in Luxembourg. They were safe, easy things to write about. But column by column, I learned that my job as a writer-and my job as a human being-is not to simply appease people. My job is to stand for something. I have a responsibility to not fade into the consensus of what everyone else thinks. I have a duty to challenge and inspire others to think something new, something different. This duty comes with risking the approval of others, rejecting the acceptance of the mainstream and breeching the expectations of peers. All in a day's work.
Slowly, I learned to take chances with things I wrote. In my columns, I've written about God. If this makes me a Bible-thumper, then I'll own it. I've written about having mercy towards teen mothers needing pregnancy leave from high school. If this makes me too tolerant, then I'll admit it. I've written ad nauseam about aiding Africa, serving Katrina victims, donating to AIDS causes and ending the sex slave trade. If this makes me a bleeding-heart idealist, well, then I probably am. I've written about my personal struggles with eating disorders, relationships and identity issues at Miami. If this makes me unnecessarily confessional, then I stand by my opinion that self-preservation is selfish.
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