The video game industry is growing rapidly and is a high demand for a lot of people. I find myself taking a lot of time being very amused with them myself as well. My whole life I have found joy in gaming, my brothers would constantly ask to play with me after all. Sure, I am a girl and that might affect how much I would play compared to them but that does not take away how much I would enjoy it! As I started to grow up, I realized that I actually love the art and design in games. Drawing and sketching has become a side hobby of mine and it would be very interesting to look and admire the visual graphics of games. So, I started to become more intrigued at the process of games and decided to start an online course for my senior year. The course, which I am over halfway through completing, is called game design. It has made me realize how cool the process of creating games is and has grown my love of video games all the more. My love of art and even music both are incorporated into this. There is so much artwork and designing to do in creating a game. You have to create the characters and their models, sketch your ideas and see what might work, and plan out the visuals of the game to try and catch the player’s eye. Not only that, but the creativity required is great as well. As I am a piano and saxophone player, that creativity in music but also art has encouraged my love for creating games. There is also music which has to be made for games as well, from background music to inputting a simple sound on and off button there are many sounds and melodies which help make a game what it is. In the future, I plan to incorporate my love for video games, art, music, math, and creativity, into a future career steered towards computer science and game design. I have always looked at that occupation as some far away thing that I could never accomplish, but as I start to dig into the heart of what it is I understand that it can be done. My love for game design fuels my desire to start the journey through computer science in college. And hopefully, my other talents and abilities will steer me towards it as well.

When you look at all of your friends posting about an event you were not invited to, how can that impact you? Overall, social media can be a great tool for communication and for keeping in touch with all of your friends and family. It can let you know what they are up to without you directly asking them. Also, it can provide a few laughs from silly posts from others as well. But at the heart of it, social media is not all that good. I have moved a few times in my life, and social media has really helped me to stay in touch with friends. Especially friends I do not normally talk to much! However, there’s is a major issue with it. Almost always you will be able to find posts of highlights of someone’s life, but you rarely will find a post of someone if they are doing poorly. Why is this? There is a stigmatism that is associated with posting that we have to make ourselves look like we are doing perfect. That is the case because everyone else is doing it. So, if you decide to post about something rough you are going through, that is like a button on a shirt, there is not much out there. All of the positive posts that people make of themselves can make the people who look at their ‘perfect’ life and make them jealous. After all, nobody has a perfect life in all actuality so if there are people that are close with you that shows how great they are doing without you it can really hurt. It can lead to thoughts like, are people happier without me? Why do I not have such a good life like her? Will I ever get that kind of friendship with anyone? These kind of thoughts can ruin people’s mental health and self esteem a lot. However, as a people this can be changed. While it is still nice to post perfect pictures to try and get everyone to think of how good of a life you must have, it is important to let the truth be present. When you make any post on a social media platform, you have to think of how accurate it is to how you are doing. If you actually hated going to that event, why act like you had so much fun? If you missed being with someone, why not let them know and show how you truly felt? People desire realness and when they assume that a real fact is that everyone else's life is put together but their own, that can hurt.

Even in the depths of despair a soft melody can be heard. A small hum or the sound of crickets chirping to remind you that life goes on and you will be okay. As I sit back and think about my past, I realize that there has never been a moment of a painstaking silence. Playing the piano eased my ears and filled my spirits high, then later the violin and saxophone came to do the same. Despite the times where I heard fighting on the main floor of the house or painful words, my headphones soothed the cold inside of me and kept the embers of my heart warm. Even on the night where there were screams of agony that carried throughout the house, there was a small breeze and crickets chirping which coaxed a sense of safeness in the night. In all of the good and bad moments in life, melodies played to keep my heart alive and to keep my head up and focused on my hope for my future. Nothing is perfect, but there is no overwhelming struggle that does not have a whisper of sweetness hidden faintly in the air. With good effort, anyone can see and pursue that sweetness and even make their own little sweet tune to pass along. There’s was a moment in time where that whisper was forgotten, and then came great sorrow. How could you move through life if there is only sharp chords poking you in the chest? But thankfully, the spirit of music became the way I could remember to let feelings roam free and let the bad not overtake the good. When my fingers flow over the keys of my piano, I remember the good parts and life and how even the saddest melodies can be beautiful. So, music became all that I listened to. In the car on the way to school, music poured out. In my room when I got back from school or work, music poured out. It became so much that I almost forgot who I was without it. Silence was something that was painful. One day, my head bowed and my hands folded, I understood. Silence was scary because of how it could actually let my brain run free with thoughts. After all, thinking too much about everything can be very exhausting and is awful right? However, silence also brings another thing: peace. While it is good to have a bit of silence though, music has always been a major aspect of my life. But, balance is always the key to everything. The good and bad will come and go day after day, but there are plenty of things that won’t. Will music ever die? I do not believe that music will ever die. It is the metronome that keeps our heart pumping and the overflow of our heart and soul. As long as I live I hope to keep music alive in me and hope that I can sing those comforting melodies to others.