…is a children’s book I am quite familiar with. The story goes something like this:

There is a sweet old couple who lives on a farm and is getting their picture taken with one of those old throw-a-black-sheet-over-the-photographer cameras. But each time, right before he takes the picture, they think of another and another and another thing they could put in it. Eventually, they have their whole hat collection on, produce selection in their laps, and cats by their feet… and then a bull gets loose and blocks the entire picture when it finally does get taken. “Simple pictures are best” warned the photographer.

Recently I’ve been writing for several scholarship applications, and I’ve seen a trend in the prompt questions. It goes something like, “Why do you want to go to college? What are you going to gain from it? How is a post-highschool education going to further your career?”

And it’s a good question.

Maybe less so for future Doctors and Lawyers and Engineers because their answers are obvious: “I’m going because it’s required for my career to have an education beyond high school.” For an artist the question is really fun.

I can’t for the life of me remember what the events (that already exist) are called when a group of people gather, often for a business-induced workshop, and come up with ideas for a day. Plenty of incredible ideas come out of this, and have led to some of the big-name companies of today. I know that much.

I’d like to do that with a big group of teenagers and cardboard, and call it “The Thought Box”.

When I started this blog post, I had recently been tasked with writing an “Original Oratory” speech for a class, and I chose the topic: “Audacity”.

This post was initially going to contain my process of brainstorming for that speech, but the semester is now over and I’ve both written and performed the speech. So instead, here is the speech, and afterwards, some relevant thoughts and takeaways.

I highly doubt this concept is new, but it doesn’t have to be for me to use it and make something cool out of it.
What is an “Idea Box”? It’s a box. With ideas. inside on bits of paper.

It is human nature to pursue purpose. People dedicate their lives to different things, and do those things well because of intention behind their actions. For example: a person has to have something beyond motivation to choose running as a sport, and be competitive in it.

Our cross country team has a motto this year, and that motto is one word:

“Purpose”

The thought of college (as a high school senior) is one of immense weight and pressure. The source of the pressure is hardly whether or not to attend college, as I fully expect to, but rather where to attend college.