2020 – even reading this makes you sigh, doesn’t it? I feel the need to fetch a dictionary or else I would run out of words to describe the roller-coaster 2020 has been! Be it mentally, physically or emotionally, 2020 has changed us all in numerous ways. This year holds great significance in everyone’s lives and not just because of the adversities we all have been through but also because of what we have achieved and who we have become post overcoming all the obstacles that have befallen in the way.

I believe that we all are amorphous like dough, and it is life that molds us into shape at every step. We are obliged to make peace with the form it gives and the only method to do that is by changing the way of viewing our problems. When I adopted this thinking in 2020, it made everything a tad easier to get past. I immediately ceased looking at the cons and began searching for the pros. In other words, I started to look for the strengths I acquire in the face of my problems. 

The best thing that happened to me in 2020 would be the time I discovered my passion for writing. That night will always be crystal clear in my head for it was the foundation of the person I have evolved into since then. It was in April that year and of course the world was in absolute chaos and turmoil. There was a lingering feeling of uncertainty in each heart as what lay ahead seemed so hazy. It was around 12 am at night and suddenly I felt an urge to pick up a pen and paper and just scribble! So, I fulfilled this out-of-the-blue-wish of some adventurously thinking part of me and began writing. 

It felt like there was a shield around me that secluded me from all eyes and kept me in a world where I became aware of my own thoughts as forty minutes later what I saw on the paper was something I never knew I had the potential to do. I had penned down a full-fledged poem with verses that rhymed and made complete sense! When I read it over and over, I realized that I had written what I felt because I couldn’t say it. I wrote about a feeling we all needed to instill in ourselves to get through that unfavourable time and that feeling was HOPE. 

This might seem a mere incident but it was the first brick I laid down to commence my journey as a writer. I have come way far since then and writing has given me everything I need. It has given me a better way to look at life. It has taught me to experience everything more profoundly rather than skimming the surface. It has given me the belief that each day has so much beauty and I must open my heart to let it in. I have gathered such a mature outlook right from the point I began writing and I am immensely grateful for this. 

Some people are lucky enough to have something they can channelize their emotions through and today I can proudly say that writing is my way because if I won’t say it then I am surely going to write it!

// This fictional story has been penned by 13-year-old Srishti Chawla and has been chosen for publication on our platform from the weekly submissions //