I haven’t written in a while. I’d like to say it’s because I haven’t had time or that I’ve been so busy with this or with that. The truth is I haven’t written because I can’t think of anything to say. Or at least anything the world might want to read.

Yesterday was my fourth anniversary of being on WordPress, making it the fifth anniversary of me being a blogger. This blog began as an assignment for my Intro to Creative class. It was supposed to be a creativity blog and I had to make a certain number of posts during that semester. The posts could be about anything, so long as it was “creative.”

When the course was over, I kept the blog up and it eventually became the home of my portfolio, resume, and side projects. Suddenly, the online outlet for my thoughts, observations, and ideas, became a marketing tool for everything Haley. And the innocence behind my writing got lost along the way.

Now I feel this pressure to write stuff that people want to read, so I create content that I hope is engaging and interesting and relevant. But that’s not what writing should be about. I don’t want my focus to be getting internet famous or having a huge fan following or becoming a lifestyle blog that people check compulsively.

I want to make content that gives people an honest look into my world. I know that might only interest a handful of people and it might not go viral or show up in people’s news feeds, but I’d rather share my life as it is than create something artificial for others to enjoy. For my fifth anniversary I want to get back to why I started writing in the first place. And if that means I need to say nothing extraordinary for a while, then I’m okay with that.

So, here’s to the start of something ordinary. I’m ready for it.