As I lean back into my chair and extend an arm over a concerningly tall pile of books to reach for yet another textbook, my hand accidentally brushes against a scrapbook. The cover, decorated with flower stickers and pink ribbons, reads “Junior Year!” Flipping through the pages, I look back on beloved memories I hold dear to my heart.

I have scrapbooked my life in the folds of a brown journal for years. I have been able to collect memories and tokens throughout my life journeys, and have assembled these keepsakes along with stickers, ribbons, origami paper and printed images to hold and capture these moments in my life that make me, me.

I find myself running off to Walgreens to print the newest batch of fluorescent photos as quickly as a new event in my life concludes. Anything can go into my journal, from beach days with friends to birthdays, school dances to new milestones. 

We all have noble pursuits and hobbies that we enjoy and carry closely with us. More often than not, teenagers today tend to push off these activities each weekend as “more important” activities fill our time. Although it seems difficult to balance our activities at times, we must find a comfortable medium where we are not only fostering our brains academically, but also creatively. Hobbies, when employed, act as creative outlets for each one of us, becoming a comfort, constant and joy to our everyday, ordinary lives. Even if our to-do list begins to rapidly fill with schoolwork, sports and extracurriculars, we must accompany them with our expressive pursuits. Whether it is playing an instrument, taking time in nature or practicing artistic expression, they hold just as much weight as an item you can add to your resume. Understanding that these hobbies and outlets will travel throughout our lives beyond university, serving as key parts of our identity.

So, as I pick up the book and carry it across to a bookshelf compressed with scrapbooks dating back to my early-century middle school era, I understand the importance of these activities. For me, scrapbooking allows me to make my memories and feelings tangible, something I can hold onto. I clutch onto my six booklets and sit on the floor of my room, flipping through the pages, enjoying the outcome of my devoted time. Browsing through old plane tickets, photos with friends, ribbons, flower stickers and craft paper, I smile, uplifted by the joyful feelings that surround this journey.

If I could give my younger self advice, I would say this: Keep pressing your ABC piano keys, just as loudly as you begin slamming SAT modules. Keep taking time to curate paintings with vibrant colours at the same rate you curate color-coded lists of safety, target and reach universities. Do not feel that you have to forfeit these creative pursuits just because other obligations are impending on you.

Although these tasks are valuable as we step into the next stage of our professional lives, we must not let them consume our every being. We must recognise that, through these hobbies, we are able to emerge into our true selves, fostering growth and creativity.

If we do not allow ourselves to pursue these, we hide away our personalities and our true spirit from ourselves and eliminate possibilities of who we could become.