That sense of calm, so self-assured in class

Being able to answer a question without second-guessing yourself

Being able to read aloud without your voice shaking

That is untouchable.

I may know my literary devices and definitions of functions and the proper way to neutralize an acid, but that means jack s*** if the rest of your brain won't shut up long enough for you to be able to answer the question.

For me, knowing the right answer, truly knowing it, only happens if I have it written down. There I can hold it, examine it, reference back to it when my brain goes off on a tangent

Otherwise, responding to teachers, particularly verbally, in a crowded classroom, is a lot like hearing someone mumble something in a loud room and needing to repeat it to someone else. There is simply too much else going on for me to be confident that I heard them correctly.

Every once in a while, though

That mumbly bumbling unsure thought has a freaking megaphone.

And it won't stop yelling until I burst out with whatever half-baked point it was so insistent on.

So yeah.

Being able to hear myself think?

untouchable.