Melissa Goggans

     As I was sitting back, gazing at the stars, I reminisced of how I got to where I am now. Growing up in a small country town, there was nothing to do, unless you went to the next city over, 20 minutes away (which was far to us), to watch a movie, go to the mall, or visit Wal Mart. You could also go mud slinging.

 

     I couldn't find happiness like the others there. I was a simple girl, but a girl filled with so many dreams. I always strived for my best, whether it was making the top ten percent in my class with a 4.2 GPA, or excelling in playing the flute and playing catch up as a newbie in band and being just as good within a year, winning various awards, and joining different clubs such as NHS. I wasn't satisfied and needed more.

 

     I noticed a love in the artistic sides, the creative side. I loved to write scripts and stories, sing and write my own music, play instruments, and loved to act. I'd act at home with friends, my brothers, and joined the Drama class when it opened up my senior year. The English teacher, however, was thrown into the job, not knowing what to do and was focused on bookwork. She saw my love for acting. She saw it was a big dream of mine, and she saw I wanted to thrive and excel, so she let me and my friend teach the class. We taught improv, and we did the Fall Extravaganza, where we had various acts from singing, to one act plays, to monologues, to whatever talent you wanted to showcase. The next semester, the auditorium was off limits, but that didn't stop me from keeping my love going. I took it upon myself to film a short movie with classmates that we were originally going to perform live. I had to set everything up and asked the Principal of the school if we could broadcast it over the TV. She liked it so much, that her original approval for one show, got changed to being shown many times throughout the day.

 

     After that, I knew I wanted to pursue my dreams as a career. People tried to discourage me and tell me that the field is hard, and what are the chances of someone like me making it in such a competitive field. I said, "what are the chances of anyone making it in any competitive field? Those who succeed are the ones who never give up. I've never been a quitter and have always strived for success, as well as being very successful in what I put my heart and mind to." One day, my oldest brother came home from the Army and he asked, "Missy, what do you want to do?" I told him, "I want to pursue acting, but everyone says I shouldn't. Some say to go for something stable." He then replied, "Don't listen to the nay sayers. You have always been that little go getter. You make me so proud. Reach for the stars. You can achieve anything you want to achieve. Dreams are never too far out of your reach." He believed in me and that meant so much. And since then, I've taken the steps of pursuing my dreams.

 

     I have a small town country heart, but a heart filled with dreams, hope, desires, and faith to carry it all. My background has made me who I am today. I truly believe this small town atmosphere has spawned my creative side and made me hone in on them. It amazed me when I found out, that this passion for the artistic field, runs in the genes and dates far back, and even ancestors over in England and France were highly motivated, very successful, and had go getter attitudes.

 

     This simple girl is not happy unless she is doing what she loves. I want to continue the legacy of my ancestors, make my brother proud, chase after what has always been instilled in me. I may be small, I may be a nobody, I may come from a small place, but my dreams and heart are big. People from my town would think that no one would give a shot to a simple gal, for something so big, nor do small town people ever make it big, so why bother? Bother because I am not them. I don't just dream. I do. I chase until I succeed, and once I succeed, I strive for more. Please give this girl a shot, and you won't be let down. I just need the open doors and opportunity, and hopefully with your help, you can help me achieve my dreams.

 

     Thank you so much for your time and consideration!

 

Melissa Goggans