What Defines Me

    Many things define us in life, for me these things are horror movies, videogames, and most importantly Christianity. Horror movies and videogames are more of a hobby, whereas my Christian walk is what I feel truly defines me. These aspects of my life were not engrained in me or pushed upon me, I developed an admiration for all of them on my own accord. Horror movies, videogames and Christianity aren't the only things that describe me, but they are the traits that I most closely associate myself with.

           My whole life I have been a faithful fan of horror movies.When I was a kid, every week or so my dad would take my sister and me to the local Movie Gallery. When we were there I would always beg my dad to let me rent a scary movie. I was an eight year old wanting to watch movies like "Hellraiser" and "Child's Play" (Chucky movies). Of course looking back I'm glad my parents were protective of me in this regard, because there's no telling what negative influence those movies would have had on me at such a young age. Now that I'm older I have freedom in what I watch, so I have gone back and watched all these horror classics that I so desperately longed for when I was a child. Horror fans like myself enjoy these movies because of the adrenaline rush that it gives us and the tension that leads up to the climax of the frightening moment that usually catches us by surprise. Like a drug addiction or any other addictive habits, one becomes caloused to typical fear after watching so much horror, which makes us long for it even more. Scary movies as a discourse community can range from very mild to very extreme circumstances. At the mild level, which is where I'd say I fit in, horror fans are expected to know all about the "classics" and the popular references that come from them ("Friday the 13th" movies, "A Nightmare on Elm Street" movies, and the "Paranormal Activity" movies, for instance). If someone asked me who was the killer in "Halloween" and I didn't answer back with "Michael Myers", then that person would probably not consider me a true horror fan. Even if a horror buff hasn't seen a certain movie, he still might be expected to know its background, plot, and if it's really scary or not. As strange as it sounds, horror isn't a hobby, it's a way of life.

       Another hobby that I speak the language of is videogames. Ever since I was a kid I loved playing videgames. Over the years my interests have changed, all the way from "Mario Kart" to "Grand Theft Auto". But from childhood to the present I have never played for competition, just for fun. Now I personally don't believe that I'm addicted to videogames, I just find them entertaining and, sometimes, relaxing, Now if you ask my mom or dad, they will probably say that I play way too many videogames and that those games are "rotting my brain" (4 hours of gaming really isn't that long if you ask me). There are many different types of "Gamers" who play for many different reasons. Personally I play for the stories, some play for competition, and others play because they have no life (therefore in their mind they have nothing better to do). Many people play because they can go to another world and live a life that they otherwise couldn't live. Some people find videogames a way to get away from their current hardships, so they take their anger and stress out on their friends in the virtual world where no real harm is done. No matter why one plays videogames, we all come together as "Gamers".

         The most important aspect of my life that I define myself by is my Christian walk. Sadly this is the discourse community that I probably am the least knowledgable in, therefore I don't always make it a priority when it should always be the first thing on my mind and in my heart. I grew up in church and have always been surrounded by fellow believers and strong Christian family members. Two out of my three uncles are pastors, so most of my family professes to be Christians (most of them Southern Baptists). One becomes a Christian when they recognize their sin, confess it to God, and completely turn away from this sin and humbly ask for the Lord's forgiveness of past sins and the many sins that they will commit in the future. We as Christians believe that God lives in our heart, and therefore we try our hardest to not sin, and because we are imperfect human beings we always fall short of these aspirations. Only by God's infinite grace can we do any "good" in this world because we know nothing of true perfection and being sinless (only the Lord is sinless). Christianity is something that I will always be interested in and I will always try to hold it as the first, most important thing in my life.

          My three discourse communities are not something that I feel obligated to take part in. I don't watch horror movies because my friends do, it's just something that I've always enjoyed since I was young. I don't play videogames because someone tells me to play them, they just relax me and take my mind of the stresses of everyday life. I certainly am not a Christian because of "peer pressure". I grew up in church and in a Christian family, but these things are not what make me a Christian. No, I was called on and drawn to God by his will, not by my own. Discourse Communities are not something that we are required to take part in, we take part in them because they define us as individuals.