
My freshman English teacher, on practically the first day of college, taught us about the evils of the “dawn of time” opening, and 15 years later I still think about it every time I write an essay. She explained that freshmen almost always start an essay the same way: with vast, all-encompassing vagueness. “Since the dawn of time, mankind has enjoyed music. However, Linkin Park’s ‘Numb’ was only discovered quite recently.” 1/ #writing