Driving down the I-94 through Montana, the wind was picking up, the windows hissing trying to keep the warm air inside the car. All around Peter Garcia were the snowdrifts left by that morning’s snowstorm. Too loud to have a conversation, he put his earbuds in and flipped through social media. Garcia saw the friends he had left in New York. The people who had believed in him.
Opening the email he had been sent a few days before, Garcia expected the grade for a project he had finished that past week. Expecting comments and a letter grade, Garcia was surprised to see his English teacher Timothy Monahan had attached a video. The next 20 minutes were a tearful shock. The video was a full breakdown of the creative writing project he had submitted prior, more thorough than he ever expected. Throughout was praise telling Garcia he was a very strong writer, ending with Monahan telling him to “keep going.”
Half a decade later, Peter Garcia is now a third year environmental science major and a stronger writer than he ever was. Monahan’s passion as a teacher created a moment of true connection that was really inspirational for Garcia, giving it the meaning it deserved.
“I stopped writing because I felt like I didn’t really have a lot to say… but through my classes I’ve learned I do have a lot to say,” said Garcia.
Now, writing is Garcia’s first response. “Journaling is definitely my go-to emotionally just because it provides a very safe space where I can work out my thoughts and then I can determine from there, like, do I want to speak to someone?”
For Garcia, experiencing the world requires deciphering it through writing. It’s caused him to keep a running journal for upward of eight years. One of his more recent poems, Everyday, helped him overcome certain social anxieties.
“I had a commute to class, and every time I got there I would be sweaty,” said Garcia. “I didn’t feel great about it until I wrote about it. Then I realized it happens to everyone. That I shouldn’t be ashamed.” Being open pushed himself to become less self-conscious.
“I have friends and people I’ve built those emotional connections with that I can talk to about things, but sometimes I overthink and it’s easier to write it all out… it makes me more vulnerable,” said Garcia.
Looking inward helped Garcia understand himself, and what he wanted to do next.
“My next stage is writing academically, even if it’s not my favorite. I still appreciate it though, as academic writing can approach the more human side of people. Sometimes we back into corners, and writing helps us see each other as the people we are.”