Everyone has inspirations. Everyone. It doesn't matter who you are, or where you are from, but you have a person-- or multiple people-- whom you admire and want to live like. I'm no different. For this week's piece I wanted to highlight five people who heavily inspire me in all that do from my poetry to my academics and though they come from different backgrounds, different places, and even different times, the following people still have a profound effect on me as a young adult.

1. Ville Valo- HIM

"Art is always criticized and always an outsider gets the blame."

Music is, without a doubt, one of my major passions, and if you know me fairly well it is no surprise as to why I would choose the front-man of the Finnish "love metal" band HIM. To those who don't, well, allow me to elaborate. I've been a fan of HIM for seven years. Out of all the various bands I have fallen in and out of love with during my turbulent teenage years, HIM, by some miracle, was the band that stayed with me even as I began to gravitate towards more darker and aggressive music. Their music, to me, has always been incredibly cathartic; it's both poetry and metal; sensual and primal. For me, HIM has been a main source of inspiration in my writing. In fact, I am quite certain they -- especially Mr. Valo, the mastermind behind the band's lyrics (poetry)-- are the very reason why I even began to write poetry in the first place. Without Ville Valo and HIM, I would be lost and who knows, perhaps I would have never really discovered my potential in writing.

Perhaps it also should be mentioned that this past Saturday I had cemented my love for Mr. Valo and his band by getting the band's logo tattooed on my left shoulder!

2. Friedrich Nietzsche (1884-1900)

"You must have chaos within you to give birth to a dancing star"

Known for the infamous "God is dead" quote, the German philosopher is another person whom I draw inspiration from.

This past semester I had written a paper on Nietzsche for my 19th century class entitled "The Death of God and Divine Politics: Nietzsche's Secular and Political Criticisms," and I both defended and clarified the often misquoted "God is dead." Also, I had argued that Nietzsche went beyond the realm of social critic and philosopher, he was also a political theorist because in many of his works, Thus Spoke Zarathustra (1883-85) and Beyond Good and Evil included, he criticizes the extremities of nationalistic governments, which also clarifies the myth that Nietzsche was a supporter of fascism (seeing as many later fascists would manipulate his work in order to push forth their agendas) to which he abhorrently opposed.

In short, Nietzsche inspires me in my work as a historian because as I was working with his works-- which I have read in the past but didn't quite understand-- I realized that I was attracted to his ideas, to what he had to argue in regards to the rise of extreme political ideologies.

In addition, Nietzsche was also a wonderful poet and composer, thus there's also the artistic aspect that also inspires me.

3. Adam "Nergal" Darski- Behemoth

"Myself am hell and hell I shall unleash" - Behemoth "Be Without Fear"

I have so much admiration for this man that I'm not entirely sure where I should start or if I can even articulate it well enough. Well, I suppose maybe I should just start with this:

Nergal, as an artist, inspires me heavily in my poetry. Much like HIM and Ville, Nergal and Behemoth is a never-ending well of inspiration. In contrast to the sensuality of HIM, Behemoth is much more aggressive and raw, and yet, just as passionate. in 2014, Behemoth released their most monumental release yet, The Satanist, and still to this day it's an album that heavily inspires me. After reading his book Confessions of a Heretic (2015), I found myself reflecting on my own person philosophies regarding religion and spirituality as well as politics and art. As I did, I came to the realization that all my views of the world are not so different than Nergal's. Two of my favorite quotes from the book have to be these (as they particularly stood out to me the most):

“We are what we watch, we are who we love, we are what we listen to; we become what we spend time with.”

"Every great idea starts out as blasphemy.’ If there is resistance, it means that the direction is right.”

And perhaps these say everything you need to know about me.

4. Voltaire (1694-1778)

"It is difficult to free fools from the chains they revere."

Born François-Marie Arouet, historian, writer, and Enlightenment thinker, Voltaire is another important inspiration for me especially in regards to political thinking. Voltaire is well known for arguing for the principles of separation of church and state, freedom of religion and expression, principles that ultimately influenced both the American and French revolutions, and principles that I hold near and dear to me.

5. Dante Alighieri (1265-1321)

"The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis." - Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy, Inferno, Third Canto

And last, but certainly not least, Dante Alighieri. The Italian poet and politician's impact on me is definitely artistic. When I was a freshmen in high school I picked up the Divine Comedy and I fell in love. Since then, I consider the Divine Comedy one of my all time favorite pieces of literature and yet another great source of inspiration.

Now, I have plenty more people that I admire and draw inspiration and influence from, but these five individuals in particular are where I most draw my own self from. Basically, all that I am and all that I do essentially leads back to the impact that their art, words and philosophies have had on me and it's beautiful.

I now pose a challenge for you to reflect on: who inspires you and why?