Hello

Since this is the beginning of what I hope will be a successful and enlightening blogging experience, I think I should start off with a short introduction of myself and my goals.

My name is Lily, I'm 20, and from a small town in the eastern United States. Most of my interests tend to fall into the social studies category; political science, history, current events, international relations, and activism. Personality-wise, I'm relatively quiet, determined, calm, resourceful, peaceful, and friendly. This fall, I'm a freshman at a small university, where I'm majoring in political science and thinking about minoring in either environmental studies or international relations/development.

I've had a speech impediment my entire life, despite pretty much growing up in speech therapy classes. It's created a strain on my life, but at the same time I think it forced me to grow in other ways that I otherwise would have been oblivious to. Although I'd do anything to be able to communicate normally, I'm thankful that I had the experience of having to struggle with something more substantial than bad hair days and boy trouble.

There were a few reasons for me starting this blog. First of all, I wanted a place to vent. It's frustrating when people cannot understand you, and most of the people closest to me wouldn't understand since they don't have a problem with it (I'll explain in a future post). Second, I wanted to have a place where I could communicate with others experiencing the same problems, and come into contact with good advice and resources. And, most importantly, to inform people living with speech impediments that they aren't alone.