Summer...

So I'm home for the summer, or at least for a little while. I've immersed myself in horseback riding once again in hopes of getting back in shape enough to join the OSU IHSA team in the fall. I've missed showing horses and IHSA is an inexpensive way to do so, and it's new and exciting things.

I've also gotten back into taking pictures. I didn't realize how much I'd missed it until the camera was in my hand and I could hear the shutter clicking. I'm following my best friend Allison around to all the lessons she's teaching and taking pictures of her students. There's also a 4-H show on July 2nd that I will most likely go take pictures of. Oh how I've missed this. So here's a little of what I've done over the past couple days:

Secrets

Here are some secrets about me:

I secretly want to be a gymnast.

I secretly wish I had more of a social life and spent less time studying, though I will never regret my good grades and GPA.

I secretly think I'm not good at anything.

I secretly wish I had super powers so I could fix everything wrong with my life.

I secretly wish that I wasn't so tall.

And I not so secretly wish I could change the world.

It has been brought to my attention in the last few days that some judges want pageant girls to be perfect. Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm not perfect. I am, however, a positive role model for youth around me. I am willing to share things about myself in order to help better the lives of those around me, and I am willing to make myself vulnerable to make those that feel they cannot feel more comfortable.

Yes, I have tattoos. Yes, I want to be Miss America. Yes, I believe the two can go together. And no, I will never regret the choice to get my tattoos. They have meaning to me, and almost anybody who hears the story of them respects that meaning, whether they like tattoos or not. They are not profane, and there is no way they can offend anyone (at least not anyone I have ever met). I cannot regret being who I am, and that is something I want to share with the world. I can do that by being Miss America, so judges, give me a chance. Ignore the black on my body and look at what's inside. Give my soul a chance to change the world.

Everyone has secrets, but only those who are willing to share theirs and make themselves vulnerable can make steps to change the world.