(17, NJ, USA) Chelsea - If I Could Mold the World

I’ve never really felt like I had much control over my life. I’ve never really had much control on anything, honestly. There were so many things I wish I could change about the world, and let alone my life. If only I could mold the world to my liking.

In my ceramics class, I feel a sense of control. I control everything and I cause everything. I choose the amount of clay I want to use and what type. I could choose red or white, a large amount or small. I get to control the speed. I can start slow and gradually increase, or my personal favorite, starting fast to center the clay. I get to control it all. You place two hands on the clay, one on the side, and one on top. You hold it, compressing inwards. This gets the piece of clay perfectly centered on the wheel. The next part is creating a hole in the middle and opening the gap. This creates more of an open bowl shape, open to many opportunities from there on. I get to shape the clay to my liking. Everytime something bad happens in ceramics, I am responsible for it. If the clay isn’t centered well and comes out lopsided, it's my fault. But as well as the consequences, the positives are also my doing. I could create a plate or a vase and all of it would have been done by me. I could not only control what I create, but every aspect of it. I mold the clay to my liking.