Written by: Aimee Cash
Edited by: Wahida Ifat
I always had a hard time figuring out just where I stood when I was younger. There were a lot of things I liked to do, and there were lots of things that I was just kind of okay at. I could write pretty well, I guessed. I could play piano, sort of. I rode horses, but not amazingly.
I was so caught up in my own assessment of how well I could do things, that it stopped me from just figuring out what I liked to do. I like to do all of those things, a lot, but I never really pursued any of them with any real serious intent of finding my voice. I simply did them because they were fun.
It wasn’t until I started to sing that I realized that I really did have my own voice- literally and metaphorically. I had opinions, thoughts, and feelings that could be shared through music. It did not matter what it was- a classical baroque choral piece, a cover of a song by David Guetta, or a song that I wrote with my guitar, but never actually shared with anyone. I found myself.
At first, I got caught up in what I was not, but then I started to accept that I had my own voice. It was unique. I may not be able to do a riff like Christina Aguilera, or sing really punchy punk songs like Paramore, but my voice was something all my own.
That has translated into all of my other endeavors. With some creativity, you can make anything your own, no matter what it is, and when I do that, I share my voice, my unique, individual voice that just might have some kind of impact on others.
That is why I sing now- I love it, and I hope that I can bring others some joy as well. If a voice can positively impact another, even for a brief amount of time- why not?
Thanks for sharing something so pure and personal!
Nice post! I liked how you explained finding your voice literally and metaphorically.
I love hearing about when people first realized music was something deeply personal to them. Music truly is a unifying factor.