A blank page stares back at me. An empty canvas craves a painter’s touch. The strings of a violin wait for the bow to be drawn across them. The forlorn road wants a traveler to share its beauty with.

The world longs for you to leave something beautiful behind.

I was planning to write this article about biking; about the freedom it allows me and the part of me it brings to light.

Then I asked myself how that would benefit those of you who read this column of mine, this little piece of myself. I realized that I write these columns for you, the public, and more specifically the teens.

How have my words been affecting you? Do you read a column and murmur how cute was or how great it is for kids to be writing? Do you skim it over and conclude it wasn’t worth your time? Do you know me and therefore enjoy reading something by someone you know?

I went on to assess my motive for writing.

Is it for recognition? Is it so that my voice will be heard and my opinions aired? Is it so that I might possibly impact someone in this world in a positive way?

It’s important, in any activity or commitment in life, that we evaluate ourselves and our motives for diving into whatever venture may lay before us.

We all possess different gifts, different talents and passions to offer this torn world.

We also all misuse these passions; we twist them, degrade them and adulterate them by using them for a purpose less than what they were made for.

With each of our gifts and passions, what are we accomplishing?

We should ask ourselves: Am I giving all I have to serve and love others around me? Am I using my talents for good or to bring harm?

I’m supposed to write about activities that teens would be interested in. I’ve been trying to do just that in each of these meager offerings. Yet I don’t know how I’ve been affecting you. I wonder if it’s just futile banter.

But yet each time I write, I feel like I’ve come alive.

This is what I’m supposed to be doing. This is how I can be of use.

What is the thing in your life, that when you do it, it feels like everything in the Earth is perfectly aligned and that the melody of yourself is making sense and isn’t just clashing notes?

Whatever that thing may be, whatever activity or service or gift or hobby, find a way to do more of that. God placed things in each of us to make us connect with him and to allow us to be alive.

John Eldridge, in his book, "Wild at Heart," said, "The world needs people who have come alive." This is an extremely important truth. There are so many pursuits in this life that leave us feeling empty and worthless. Why do we still run so crazed after these things, though?

I have to write this column today because if I don’t, I won’t be living life to my fullest. I need to write to you about something that matters right now.

Whatever activities you immerse yourself in this summer, try to choose things that bring life and melt through the icy places that have become frozen from disappointment or grief or failure.

Biking, as I mentioned before, is a passion for me. It makes me feel that I am someone worthwhile. The rushing wind and noisy solitude creates a haven for me. I’m planning on going on an annual bike trip put on by Main Street Baptist Church this summer.

I’m scared that it will be hard for me, yet I need to come alive more. It’s like the lyrics from a new Switchfoot song: "I want to know that my heart’s still beating, it’s still beating, it’s beating, I’m bleeding." The song talks about people who are being awakened to their dreams and shedding the old jobs or lifestyles that have been imprisoning them in boredom or monotony.

It’s deeper than jobs, though; it’s about awakening to who you really are.

I want to dream and dream vibrant. I want to live and live loud.

Jessica Bailey will be a senior at Lighthouse Christian Academy in Oneonta.