Lily Warr

Writer’s Block

While trying to come up with a topic for this assignment I was hit with quite the writer’s block. In the midst of my struggles, I looked to authors Eve Babitz and Joan Didion for inspiration. As I scanned through the retellings of the major changes in the world that these women witnessed, I was struck with the realization that my own life was… uninteresting. I couldn’t come up with anything to write about because I felt there was nothing in my life that was worth writing about. I spent some time withering away in bed, thinking about how withering away in bed was exactly what I had been doing with most of my time, even in the midst of some incredibly significant events (e.g. a global pandemic, the January 6th insurrection – I could go on). I just hadn’t thought about the impact they had on me, let alone the impact they had on everybody else. 

As my fingers hovered over the keys of my computer, I was struck with a new realization: why should’ve I been thinking about the state of the world? I was in middle school when all that was happening– I was more concerned about my upcoming test on the periodic table or who didn’t invite who to their birthday party, and rightfully so. Of course, it’s important to pay attention to the news, but it’s also important to let children be children. An 11-year-old shouldn’t have to worry about issues such as war or politics, and I mourn for those who do. There seems to be this idea that peace needs to be cultivated for our youth. We try to keep children in a bubble devoid of conflict, shielded away from the horrors of reality that they are too innocent to grasp. I thought that I had closed my mind by not being concerned about the world’s problems when in reality, I was simply living out my childhood as it’s meant to be lived out. 

However, now I’ve moved on from childhood and its bubble of peace. I’ve moved on from playdates and picture books. As I grow older I grow more conscious, more willing to open my eyes and observe the world, and grow is exactly the right word. I thought my life was uninteresting when in reality, I have my entire life ahead of me.