January Thought: On Protecting the Joy of Writing

Let’s start this post with an honest admission: I keep typing and deleting the words in this post, which doesn’t sound like me at all.

I’m usually quite confident about what I want to write. I know exactly what I want to share—and then I do. Over the past ten months, you may have noticed how chatty I’ve been here, and how this blog has slowly turned into a diary of sorts (which is exciting, truly).

Recently, however, there’s been too much happening in my life. With that, an organized mind and a faithful planner have emerged. A persistent part of me insists, “Write all of it on your blog to preserve it!” But the rational part of me knows better. I’m overwhelmed. Between working (because it’s the cusp of tax season), writing, picking up reading again after a year, trying to post on my TikTok account once a day, and just living in general, I find my mind constantly getting ahead of itself. It runs quickly like it’s in a race—planning everything, leaving no room to simply go with the flow.

In a way, it’s good that I’m always reeling. But productivity should also come with wise judgment. And I desperately need to slow down.

Yesterday, my boyfriend and I went to explore a famous culinary area in town. It was a nice stroll through the city. We tried new places and revisited some old favorites. And while we were having a good time, a voice in the back of my mind reminded me not to forget to document the experience on this blog—calmly at first, then more urgently in the evening.

At night, I was already overwhelmed with quite a lot of things on my to-do list when the voice came again.

I knew I had to make a halt before it was too late.

No, I don’t mean to stop writing (or blogging) altogether. I just plan to take a break from being too consistent before something I love turns into a burden.

With this post, I want to let you know that I’ll still keep writing here. I love writing. It keeps me sane and fueled. I’ve just come to understand that it’s okay not to post every good thing here. In the end, I believe pressure drains the soul from my writing, and I would rather post a little less, with a voice stronger than ever.

Let’s slow down a little and enjoy all the things happening in our lives, shall we? I’m going to do that with a bagel in one hand and coffee in the other—because I don’t like coffee, but I know most of you do.

If you like this post, you might also enjoy A Fresh Reminder in Rush Hour and Catching the Bus: A Reminder to Slow Down.