Rediscovering Writing

It's been about 12 years since I published my first poem on my blog. It's a slightly strange realisation to think that 12 years is more than half of the total time I've spent on this planet. Terrible time management, realisation of how little time we have, and a gradual increase in the number of books I have read over the past few months have made me nostalgic for times where I would effortlessly pen an article or a poem, purely out of my interest towards writing.

Just the other day, during a much needed cleaning session monitored by my mother's stern looks, while organising a book shelf that hangs right above my bed, I was taken back in time, to the several hours I would spend everyday poring over books or comics, as a young boy, perhaps one of the reasons that led me to writing in the first place.

It makes me a little sad to say that over the past few years this dedication towards writing (and reading too) has been dwindling. Once a day became once a month, which eventually has now become once a year. There is no exact reason I can point at for this to happen, but I do realise that as I have grown older, I have noticed this across a lot (if not all) of my hobbies. When distant family or a friend I haven't spoken to in a while asks me how my blog or writing is, it usually ashames me to tell them I haven't added anything to my blog since the last time they asked me this.

I turned 22 this year, and when I look back at the 11-year-old eager, excited and innocent boy who'd hop on to a laptop to rhyme words (not very well, mind you), I'm reminded of a time where my interests weren't bound by profession, a time where I loved doing something truly with no strings attached. Books, videos and a lot of time to think, constantly remind me about how the time we have is priceless, and it scares me to think I will look back a few years from now and regret not writing enough.

As we head into a new year, I write this as an acknowledgement of my slacking towards writing, that can now hold me accountable to write more frequently. Plus, it's said that writing down your goals gives you a 42 percent more likelihood to achieve it, so maybe this is where I rediscover the same passion the 12-year-old me had.

If you're reading this and it has been a while since you pursued your hobbies, maybe this can serve you as a reminder to work on the same.