Three years ago today, I launched my first website and published my first blog post. I liked to write and I was just looking for something fun and different to do. If I didn’t like it, I could stop at any point. Over the past three years, the entire content creation process has gotten me through the darkest of times and the roughest patches. Today, it continues to push me forward to keep dreaming and persevere no matter how hard the situation gets.
I was a horrible content creator in the first few months, just as any inexperienced person would be. I never posted consistently, had trouble developing a solid brand, and didn’t ever allow my voice to shine through in my posts. I may not have been a professional, but it was a ton of fun. I found a way to express myself in a way I never had before. I found a new passion wrapped into the form of pixels and gigabytes.
Just a few short months later, I ended up losing touch with what was perhaps my lifelong greatest passion- dance. I was hurt, lost and confused. What did I do? I wrote like I was running out of time. My blog gave me an outlet, and I found a new home in communications & media. Cancelling all of my college dance auditions was perhaps one of the best decisions I ever made. I don’t believe I would be able to find the connections and growth I found in my new major and career path anywhere else. Now, instead of teaching myself about how to be a blogger and a video creator on my couch afterschool, I’m taking classes and internships and learning true professional techniques to build on top of what I’ve learned and continue to learn by myself. The year and a half I’ve been in college so far have been a terrifically wild ride.
The past year alone has been an incredible journey. I spent my blog and Instagram’s second anniversary doing what I love most – adventuring and creating. I was in the middle of my spring break, at this point visiting Disneyland Resort and Las Vegas. I still consider that week to be one of the highlights of the past few years. I spent the last pre-pandemic day at Universal Hollywood’s final day of operation to date and came home to a remote educational environment that I still find myself in. At first, it was a blessing. I had some extra time to work on my editing skills and try new techniques and expressive forms.
The months dragged on, and we’re where we are now. My anxiety has gotten far worse and I’ve had depressive moments. I definitely lost my way this winter break and I struggled to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Besides a handful of close friends who were able to support me, there was one thing that kept me from a total meltdown. I set a posting schedule for all of my pages, and I did my best to stick to that. It was the only routine I had and it helped me to keep some sort of normalcy in one of the most difficult months I’ve ever faced. It got me through the break and the strange start of the semester.
Right now, my content has become a tough spot within itself. With so little going on in my life, I’m finding it harder and harder to come up with new, fun, and innovative ideas. I’m barely editing videos anymore, and I feel like so many of my photos are just recycled images. My friends will tell you I’m just being self-critical (which I will admit that I am). Yet, I miss being able to create like I used to. I’m so thankful to have new expressive opportunities with my several jobs and internships on campus, many of which stemmed from my passion right here, but there’s a feeling that can never be matched.
Content creation saved me. When I was at my lowest points, these points on the screen raised me to places I never imagined I would be able to go. The world is a tough place to be right now, but I continue to create regardless. It allows me to escape and see both beyond and within myself at the same time. While it may not be perfect at this very moment, content creation continues to transform me and make me a stronger person every day. I wouldn’t be the person I am today without my blog.
Earlier this week, I decided to launch a rebrand of all my social media pages. Not a big one, but I shifted all of my usernames to become @terrificallytoni. For me, this was a big leap, but my social media pages weren’t just about my blog anymore. They were about me, my adventures, and all of the little moments of magic I experienced everyday. Right here, though, everyday will still be a perfectly happy pink day. Regardless of what name I have on my pages, I will continue to write like I’m running out of time, capture images and videos like I have unlimited storage space, and edit like my life depends on it. For me, it does.
Happy three years of Pink Days.
