There was a time when creativity came naturally to me. I didn’t have to force it or plan it—it just flowed. I’d scroll through Pinterest for inspiration almost every day, draw whenever the urge hit, crochet different pieces, jot down ideas as they came, and spend hours making and writing music. Not a single day passed without my doing at least one of those things.
Lately, though, that part of me feels distant.
I haven’t been creating or even looking for inspiration. I haven’t felt the urge to make music or find ways to make my life feel more colorful. And for a while, I didn’t question it, I just let it happen.
But recently, at an event on campus, I painted for the first time in a long time, and I junk journaled. In that moment, I remembered how much I love creating. How peaceful it feels. How it allows me to slow down and reconnect with myself. I even told myself, “When I get home, I’m going to start painting again.”
But why “when I get home”? Why not now?
Somewhere along the way, I stopped doing the things I love most. Even writing, something that used to come so easily to me, has become a struggle. I used to have a list of topics ready to go. Now, finding ideas feels difficult when it comes to writing an article for Her Campus.
So, I started asking myself: Am I too busy? Has college taken up so much of my time that there’s no room left for creativity? Or have I just stopped making space for it?
The truth is, I still love these things, I just haven’t been choosing them.
It’s easy to blame stress, responsibilities, and a packed schedule. But sometimes, we slowly drift away from the things we love without even realizing it. We tell ourselves we’ll come back to them later, when life calms down, when we have more time, when we feel more like us again.
But what if now is when we need them the most?
If I have one goal moving forward, it’s to start again. To journal, even if it’s only a few sentences. To read a few pages. To draw, paint, or make music, even when I don’t feel inspired.
Because maybe inspiration isn’t something we wait for. Maybe it’s something we create.
I don’t want to lose this part of myself, the part that creates and feels the most like my true self. And I know I’m not the only one who feels this way.
If you’ve also stopped doing something you love, maybe it’s time to begin again.