When I began journaling, over a year ago, I felt like a twelve year old girl writing in her diary. Even though I felt silly for doing this, I decided to continue anyways because I knew I would want to look back on memories and reflect on different times in my life.

Journaling has been one of the best decisions I have made. As 2017 began, I was able to read a full year of my life. It was so much fun to go back and read about some of my favorite moments in my classes, all the "proma" that occurred, my trip to NYC, exploring Hawaii and my first semester of college! It was incredible to see all of the experiences I had during 2016 on paper as well as all of the small moments which I could have easily forgotten if I had not journaled them.

I wish I would have begun journaling earlier in my life, specifically when I was beginning high school. I would love to be able to read four years worth of memories, laughs, and tears. It would have been so interesting to see how much I have grown and matured over four years and laugh about situations that caused major drama freshman year but four years later does not matter at all.

Because I love journaling so much and think it is so effective, I hope you will give it a try too! If you need a creative outlet to relieve some stress or an activity which will make your head stop spinning with thoughts, I highly recommend journaling. Put on your favorite music, grab a pen and notebook and start writing. This will feel so weird at first, but after a couple of entries, you will be excited to carve out a few moments to be with yourself and journal your day or week. Life consists of trying to balance school, homework, studying, going to work, extra-curricular activities and maintaining a social life, so sometimes we do not take time to process our emotions or reflect on our lives. Journaling lets you express your fears and anxieties as well as celebrate triumphs on a day-to-day basis. It is never too late to try something new, so grab a pen and get started!