Pick Up the Pen, It Might Save You Too

Image Courtesy: Graphic Design

I don’t remember the exact moment when I decided to change my habits, but I do remember how I felt. I used to be one of those people who would bottle my situations up inside, not wanting to burden anyone with my problems. Or, if I did try to talk to my friends, I felt like they weren’t listening. That’s the worst feeling: not feeling like you are heard. It became tiring, stuffing every emotion and story inside, and that’s when I decided to pick up a pen and start writing. 

After all, there is no better listener than a notebook.

I have always loved words. As I’ve grown up, I’ve realized how under-appreciated they are nowadays. We use words every second of the day to communicate with one another, but often they feel robotic and emotionless. That’s why I stop in my tracks when I feel the impact of a new song with my entire body. I tear up to sentimental monologues in every movie I watch. I sit and feel my heart beat a little faster when someone I love writes a handwritten letter and reads it to me. If I could mimic this feeling by turning tragic situations into beautiful words, then that’s exactly what I would want to do. I found that I was able to capture this feeling through writing poetry. 

Finding a creative outlet for all of your emotions is the greatest benefit, but soon after I began writing I realized there was another: a sense of accomplishment. I remember how proud I felt after writing my first poem and as I kept writing, I set new goals for myself. Writing one poem every four days turned into writing one a day. Now, I want to fill a whole notebook, and one day, write a poetry book. 

Some people sing, create art, dance, or exercise. They are all the same, we just choose to express ourselves creatively in different ways. If you feel alone or like you are carrying all of your weight, find something, anything, that will clear your brain. For me, the page of paper holds all of my poetry about friendships, heartbreak, healing, and everything in between. 

It may take a year, it may take one page to heal from everything, new and old.

I know I'm still healing, but every time the pen touches the paper and scribbles ink along the page, I pick up broken pieces of myself along the way, and I encourage you to do the same. Whatever that creative outlet is for you, find it and use it, because it may save you too.

Strike Out,

Writer: Kim Rodriguez

Editor: Annika Chaves

Graphic Design: Alexis Rodriguez

Boston