The Originality Of Your Mind – English Essay
“Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of your own mind,” claimed Ralph Waldo Emerson. Through this aphorism, he depicts that individuality and creativity is sacred when it comes from your own mind. It is true, when a
person is able to think of a great idea one cherishes it as their own because for one, it is great, and secondly, it is their own thoughts and productive planning, thus it is appreciated on an entirely different level. As a proud architect looks at their masterpiece after it has been constructed, or a great literary composer sees their publications read world wide, one central idea in their mind is, “This came from my mind –not anyone else, it is of my own.” Originality is one of the most precious gifts people have. People can create an entirely different world in their mind if they want, and then share it to the world through a composing a novel or a unique piece of art. The human mind can be a gateway to uncharted lands or the oppressor withstanding you to conquer new levels of thinking.
Many often fear to voice their ideas out to the public in fear of harsh criticism or simply they doubt the quality of the idea itself. Anyhow, people who often hesitate to state their ideas miss out on a great opportunity to be creative and open with ideas and are depriving themselves of a chance to express their thoughts and ideas. Nothing, no one idea, is worth as much to you if you have the certainty that it come from your own mind. The integrity of your own ideas, that are mistrusted even in your own mind are sacred. No one can take away the originality of your ideas, because they are solely yours. Since they came from your mind, and unattainable by anyone else, it is worth more than anything.
My mind is constantly thinking of ideas and new spins I can take on things. Many times in certain classes a teacher will ask a question and I will have a somewhat answer that I doubt to say in fear of what my teacher and peers will think of me. However, it is completely unsatisfying to hear your idea voiced through someone else’s mouth when you were thinking of it first. On the other hand, it is completely gratifying to be able to state your ideas and in addition feel confident in what you are stating. It is even more rewarding to oneself when an idea you voiced is taken well by people. It is a feeling of satisfaction that no one can take from you to be able to state something you firmly believe in and know it is of your own and no one can take it from you.
I enjoy creating things and adding my own touch in everything I do. I take pleasure in simple things such as creating the background of my journal website or changing the colors and fonts. Although it may be something small and insignificant to others it’s nice to know you have something of your own that you made and created. I like that in my ceramics class, I can be as creative as I want with designing my own piece of art and being able to express originality in how I do things and then come home with a finished result. However, what I take most pride in when it comes to my own ideas being sacred is the center spread of the school newspaper. I seriously spend so much time making the layout as perfect as possible because it’s the only section of the newspaper that can look entirely different from the rest. I can make cut outs of the pictures, play with fonts and create a new feel. Although I am still learning and have much to learn I love that each time it improves and I can have the power to create something that everyone looks at. The feeling, “Wow, I made that” is just a feeling unlike no other because I know it came from me.
The integrity of your own mind varies from what you think you can do at what you can actually achieve. The key is to trust your mind and originality and then one can achieve greatness like no other. It may not necessarily be fame, but simply self-satisfaction in yourself, in your ideas and be able to surpass repressed feelings of doubt and flourish creative ideals that no person can take from you. It has been difficult to be able to speak up at times because I can be quite timid in general and especially shy around those I am not comfortable around. However, once I got passed that I was able to see that, one can never go wrong saying what is on their mind. Sure it can be wrong, and many are going to be wrong many times. However, greatness is not achieved with self-doubt and shyness. One has to be confident in themselves to make a difference. What would have been if Martin Luther King Jr. had said, “I have a dream, but I don’t feel like talking about it because I’m scared of how you will take it”? At a time where equality was a dream, his personal ideas from his mind is what made a difference in the world; And no matter how many times he was arrested or mocked, no one could take his ideas from his mind away from him. Everything in your mind is sacred because it comes from within you, and you are able to appreciate it on a different level.