My letter-writing experience

Going into this, I had no idea what to focus on. I don't follow a lot of local or national topics, so I don't really have that many opinions on a lot of things. After I saw the letter to the editor in the Globe about multiple sclerosis, it gave me inspiration for a letter about my multiple sclerosis.

I decided to respond to the Globe with a letter of my own. I figured the paper would love to have a college student's opinion, especially with such a personal theme throughout. I don't have too much knowledge of health care reform, so I tried to focus on how I am affected without insurance. I tried not to sound too similar to the previous letter, but I am not sure if I succeeded. I sent that one in on Wednesday, but still haven't heard back from them.

It felt good writing the letter. I felt like I was getting something off of my chest, which I wasn't expecting at all. It was depressing not hearing anything back, however, almost discouraging. What is the point of expressing your opinion if no gets to hear it? It was an odd mix of emotions throughout the whole process.

To boost my confidence, I decided to write a letter to the Daily Collegian. I again didn't know what to write about, but I since we talked about the raise that Chancellor Holub in class I figured that would be topical. I decided to put a little different spin on it and talk about how the Massachusetts state budget might come into play. Then I tried to talk about my situation as an out-of-state student and what effect it might have on my fees. Since the Collegian is a small paper, I thought that it would be easier to get published. I didn't get my letter out until late in the week, so I am not sure whether it will make it in.

I thought the experience as a whole of writing these letters was productive. It made me feel like I was adding something to the conversation, whether it was valid or not. Not getting published was a bit of a disappointment, but it strangely does not discourage me from writing again in the future. I feel like I would do this again if something really struck a chord with me.