#2- Finding Your Howl

Link to "Finding Your Howl" http://changethis.com/manifesto/show/51.01.YourHowl

In Jonathan Flaum's writing about when he was in the 5th grade, he describes interpreting a fellow classmates writing to be too entirely true about everyone. Through this, he develops that an answer to the story is to find your howl. He tries to describe what a person's howl is which is impossible considering it's up to the only you to find your own. He does describe it as being a vital part of you. Something you cannot escape, but at the same time, something that you can't live without. The reading also goes to explaining that the only true way to find your howl is to dig the deepest through you and strive towards everything you're not used to. A lonely journey that only you, along with your wisdom can completely. It can get very difficult at times but you must carry on because at some point there is no turning back. He even describes the discovery of your howl to be like a death in a way. A death followed by a rebirth as you finally find your own true Howl.

To describe one of the roots of my creativity is for me to take a lyric from one of my favorite songs. The lyric is "It's everything that is connect and beautiful and now I know just where I stand." This line just speaks to be in such an intense way and it is hard to explain exactly why, but I will try my best in this essay. The lyric comes from a song by Silversun Pickups. It is named "Kissing Families" and it can be found on their Pikul EP.

The only true way to explain how this line made such an impact on me is to tell a story about it. One night, about 2 years ago, I was sitting in my back yard with my parents surrounding a fire pit that was ablaze. It was a cool summer night with no clouds in the sky and the moon was shining on the earth with a dim overlay. Sitting on a chair, I starred at the fire as it burned slowly through logs. The flames would wave slowly and then make sharp twists as if it was only a matter of time before it tripped and fell on itself. The suburban horizon had a dim orange light above the houses in almost all directions reminding me that even in the middle of a city, the feeling of isolation could still be achieved. The distant sound of cars mobilizing and air conditioning unit blustering seemed to turn into a sort of white noise that could be easily ignored after enough exposure. At this point my parents decided to go in the house for the night, asking me to put out the fire when I was done. I agreed and just like that I was alone. I continued to stare at the fire watching its one time show. After I put it out, this fire will be dead, I thought as if the fire was living the most of the short life it has been given. The brightness of the flames shown all throughout the back yard and the constant flickering light shinned on the house with an orange tint. I glanced all around analyzing the lighting effects that the fire placed on everything around. I looked down on the brick porch and saw obscure shadows bending in all different directions as continued to flicker it's signature color. At this moment I thought to myself how interesting it was that the fire could portray a whole new perspective on the bricks. It was almost like it was combining the two to make something completely original and unrepeatable. It is as if, in any situation, a perspective is manipulated by the combination of objects in your environment and how they interact with each other.

I thought really hard about this and for no apparent reason, I took a look at the ground again and thought "Everything is connected and beautiful and now I know just where I stand" as if I had discovered that "where I stand" meant I had discovered part of my "howl" and the root of my creativity. I feel as if perspective is the most important part of being creative. Everyone sees something in their own way but sometimes it's hard to describe it to others. I also think that perspective goes hand and hand with manipulation both bad in good in media.