All Of My Maybes
By Madolley Donzo
The sun rising, the birds chirping, the light morning breeze and the sweet smell of spring in the air—the narrator of my short story looks out at the melancholic scene playing out before her. All she can think about as she watches the sky is how her life could be if she wasn’t afraid of adventure. All of us have struggled with venturing out into the unknown. Like the narrator, most of us find ourselves sitting down and contemplating what life could be like. It’s fictional, but she’s still me. That’s why this represents my best work.
Process
While asleep, I dreamt I was running my hands through my hair. When I woke up, I grabbed my phone and wrote the first lines of this piece. After I started, the words kept flowing and I wrote an entire short story. A few days later, I went onto Anchor, a podcasting app, to record it. I sat on my bedroom floor with a jacket draped over my head for acoustic purposes. I was afraid at first because I didn’t like how my voice sounded over audio, but in the end, I was happy with the results.
Meet the Pair
MENTEE MADOLLEY DONZO & MENTOR ANNIE BRYAN
Madolley’s Anecdote: I have had so much fun these last few months getting to know my mentor Annie. We usually meet in cafés around Queens and contemplate what it’s like to live in New York City. When I talk to Annie, I feel as if I’m talking to a friend because she is understanding and she always guides me in the right direction. I’m glad I was given this opportunity to develop my voice through writing while sharing my thoughts about everything from school to life with someone who’s as interesting and vibrant as Annie is.
Annie’s Anecdote: Madolley is one of the most bright, intuitive, wise, joyful, and effusive people I’ve ever met. She takes her place in history every day by taking constant strides toward her goals of entering psychology and helping others. It has been an absolute pleasure working through senior year with her and witnessing her take her place in history!
Madolley Donzo
Madolley Donzo is a class of 2020 Girls Write Now mentee based in Queens, NY.
