0:00:29.792,0:00:31.349
I pick up the pencil,

0:00:31.959,0:00:34.108
but I ask myself, "Why?"

0:00:34.959,0:00:39.853
I have no story to tell,[br]no pain, no reason to write.

0:00:40.584,0:00:43.291
Staring at the blank page,

0:00:43.292,0:00:46.084
a thought (snaps her fingers)[br]wanders before me.

0:00:46.085,0:00:47.291
I see a spark.

0:00:47.292,0:00:51.086
Reaching out to grab it, my hands[br]stretched out as far as I can, and -

0:00:52.334,0:00:53.668
- nothing!

0:00:54.751,0:00:58.875
It's all lost: all thought, all purpose.

0:00:59.626,0:01:03.875
So I stare at the paper again -[br]for hours it seems!

0:01:03.876,0:01:06.727
As I look up at the clock shining 1 p.m.,

0:01:07.808,0:01:09.372
I was ready to take a break.

0:01:10.083,0:01:13.166
Standing up, fist clenched,[br]shoulders broadened -

0:01:13.167,0:01:17.583
until I had realized I'd started at 12:59.

0:01:17.584,0:01:21.126
And that hunched me back over[br]while releasing a sigh.

0:01:21.127,0:01:22.666
So I continue to stare,

0:01:22.667,0:01:27.418
waiting for that booklet[br]of notebook paper to work its magic,

0:01:27.418,0:01:30.658
to stare back at me, and blink.

0:01:32.000,0:01:33.334
That is what fuels me:

0:01:33.334,0:01:36.835
a sense of accomplishment[br]that I couldn't receive from the clock.

0:01:36.835,0:01:40.875
As the time slips away,[br]I realize I'm not alone,

0:01:40.875,0:01:43.217
lost and abandoned in this blank page.

0:01:43.496,0:01:46.788
So when you find yourself,[br]and you're reaching for that sparkle,

0:01:46.788,0:01:49.244
ready to grab it, but pull back;

0:01:49.244,0:01:51.703
when you have emotion[br][that] builds up inside,

0:01:51.703,0:01:55.951
but [you] can't seem to find[br]the words to release it,

0:01:55.951,0:01:57.909
and to release you,

0:01:57.909,0:02:00.908
I am trapped, my feet glued to the floor,

0:02:00.908,0:02:03.742
a cluttered closet[br]of insignificant thoughts,

0:02:03.742,0:02:06.194
searching for the one to set me free,

0:02:06.509,0:02:11.792
to fill up the emptiness[br]of that blank page.

0:02:11.807,0:02:14.622
But this time, this time,

0:02:14.646,0:02:17.852
when I look back at that page,

0:02:17.853,0:02:19.568
I see words.

0:02:19.593,0:02:23.022
So when you battle[br]with that first blank page,

0:02:23.023,0:02:26.514
those words you can't seem to find,

0:02:26.526,0:02:28.601
just pick up that pencil,

0:02:28.613,0:02:30.362
as I did mine.

0:02:31.779,0:02:33.969
(Applause)