My first Friday night of college, I had the idea to start a blog titled The Girl Down The Hall. Five new friends were at dinner, all telling one another about their best friends, favorite baristas, and moms. It struck me how important these people were to us– they weren’t just our best friends but they, first and foremost, were our mentors, inspiration, and the driving force behind so much of the positive ideas and habits in our lives. When I was telling the table about my best friend Julienne, I just could not shut up. At home, everyone knew one another so there wasn’t a lot of ‘telling one another about our best friends’, but college is so unique in that everything is a blank slate. I realized that so much of who I was, right in that moment, was because of the women around me. On the other hand, I was so inspired by my new friends that I had met at college. Madeline has a beautiful food blog, Laurel is really passionate about her love for Philly, and Erin is unimaginably kind. I wanted for all of these people to meet the people I was telling them about. That night in the car ride home as we sang our hearts out to ABBA, I couldn’t stop wishing that there was a way for them all to know one another in a non-superficial sort of way.
A photo of Madeline O’Toole– the first girl I interviewed!
When I got back to my dorm, I started brainstorming. I had always wanted to start a blog but never knew what I wanted my focus to be. I’m passionate about writing, but what I want to write about has always been a little hazy for me, as far as putting my personal ideas and thoughts out there. It hit me that the reason a blog idea had never stuck was because they were all ideas that revolved around me. While there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that (in fact, my favorite blogs are personal ones) I am someone who really loves getting to know others and their stories, often times more than I enjoy talking about my own. What I am passionate about is people, and Girl Down The Hall gives me an outlet to explore that passion and love for other’s stories.
The way that Girl Down The Hall works is really simple. Each week, I interview a girl who I wish everyone knew. We talk about their passions, beliefs, and what they’re all about. At the end of every interview, I ask them the question that the entire blog is centered around. “Who is someone that you wish everyone knew?” If the girl they mention is in the area, I interview them! One day, I would love for Girl Down The Hall to be on a larger scale, where girls are reading online blog posts about other women who remind them of their best friend, mom, or aunt.
The most powerful part of this project has been girls’ reactions to their posts. I think that there is something so powerful about seeing your words online, knowing that you said those things and that what you have to say is important and that it is inspiring to others. I started Girl Down The Hall because stories are important, and the people making the everyday differences really are the girl we wish everyone knew.
To read more of the stories highlighted here, visit www.girldownthehall.com