Although I have only been writing for Odyssey for a very short period of time, I cannot describe how thankful I am.
I started writing for Odyssey when I was not in the best mental state. In fact, I think it has been the worst mental state I have ever been in. However, this platform was the perfect way for me to word vomit everything from my head to a piece of paper. Although I never really wrote about my mental state, I wrote mostly about lifestyle and positivity, perhaps to GAIN the positivity I was trying to release through my articles.
I always wrote in the Gelman Starbucks because of the workers’ positivity. It was honestly one of the best times of every week, just to be able to take a couple hours off of work and hard times to write 500 words about anything.
In addition, I started appreciating writing more. Not that I didn’t like writing before, but I had not written anything that was not for my courses in five or more years. With that being said, I kind of forgot how to write what I was saying without analyzing it. However, through writing for Odyssey, I have been able to grab my journal that I haven’t touched in several months and write things that I am grateful for, or have been meaning to write about- not every sentence has to be perfect.
Although I have been reading Odyssey for a while now, I have started to appreciate the variety of articles on this platform. I have taken other author’s words to help me write my own articles, seeing what I can do with them and, maybe giving them a hint of me or pursuing them through a different lens. Being a writer of Odyssey myself has given me a new perspective on how to read these articles.
Maybe this person was super negative when they wrote the positive article. Maybe the person was not going through a breakup when she or he wrote the article but just stumbles upon a picture of their ex and all the feelings rushed back. Maybe they knew someone who needed to hear certain words but was unsure how to tell them in person, so they wrote an article about it, hoping the person would MAYBE read it. Or maybe it was just a day the author had no clue what to write about and took an idea from something completely out of the blue. Whatever the reason, I am always more than impressed when I read the thousands of articles on Odyssey's website.
Although my journey with Odyssey may come to an end, I will cherish what I’ve learned about writing. It feels good to remember why you started something, why you stopped something, and frankly, I have no idea why I stopped writing in the first place. However, it feels just as good, maybe even better, when you restart the habit you once loved.
