Sophia Zhao

My family told me I grew up with a pen in hand. And it is not hard for me to believe that because I started writing almost as soon as I first started reading. Writing has always held a special place in my heart. At first, I used words to create worlds of my own. But after I started attending Bronx Science, writing took on a whole new meaning for me. Joining the speech and debate team opened my eyes to a whole other world that I had been previously been blind to. I saw the social issues--poverty, racism, sexism, and every type of inequality you can name--that affect each and every one of us in our daily lives--although some more than others. I saw the disparate effects of national-level politics on local communities and its people. And the evidence of that was in the stories that never make it to the headlines of the New York Times. But, to me, those are the stories that matter the most. A famous writer once said, "The role of a writer is not to say what we all can say, but what we are unable to say". Like the writer, Anaïs Nin, I believe in the writer’s duty to tread where no man has dared to venture, and breathe life into the written word. As a writer, I want to bring issues I and my community care about to the spotlight. I have always wanted to be a part of something that will make a difference in the world, and I think The Odyssey is that special something.