I received an unexpected message the other day: It was my six-year anniversary with WordPress! I have been typing about my thoughts, feelings, adventures, trials and tribulations, and successes for 72 whole months. Where has time gone?!
I used to do a yearly review of my blog, but eventually life got in the way and I stopped. However, I always make sure to do my year in review, which isn’t so much about my blog, but rather my experiences over the last year as we enter a new one. I LOVE doing my annual end of the year post.
I am so proud of this blog. It’s nothing fancy, but it holds such a huge piece of my heart. I’m also proud of myself for keeping up with it, although it has never been “consistently.” I am trying to change that this year, though, by posting once a week. So far, so good.
Anyone who has kept up with my blog (hi Grandma and Pop Pop) has seen me study abroad twice, graduate college, earn a master’s degree, move to California, and move back to New Jersey. Anyone who has popped into my blog randomly may have seen some part of all that, and regardless, I am forever grateful for anyone who takes the time to read my thoughts. My friend recently told me she read one of my blog posts while driving which was so sweet, but I also don’t condone reading while driving.
In honor of my six year Sarawhitmanythoughts anniversary, I figured I would answer three questions I randomly found on the internet about my experiences over the last six years. Without further adieu, here are my responses.
Q: What has been your greatest success with your blog?
A: I think my greatest success with my blog is just the fact that I haven’t ditched it. Now when I start things, I usually finish them. So while I am not surprised I am still here writing, I am proud of myself for it. In terms of my writing, I think I am most proud of myself for never falling behind on blogging while in Australia, because those will be great entries to look back on.
Q: What inspired you to start your blog?
A: My lack of memory. I started my blog to write about my study abroad experience in Italy during the summer of 2016 because I have the worst memory ever and can never remember a single thing. I needed a place to have my memories forever, since I knew they wouldn’t stay in my brain!
Q: How do you keep motivated with your blog?
A: I have two answers for this. I hate when people start something (a blog, a small business, etc.), make a big deal out of it on social media, get showered with compliments from their friends and family, and then stop the endeavor after a few weeks. It’s not a good look and it’s a pet peeve of mine, and I never want to seem like a flaky person who likes to put stuff out in the world just to quit shortly after. I know that sounds harsh, but it’s how I feel.
More importantly, I just like having a place I can store my memories, write about my life, and just reflect in general. I love writing and it’s a huge mental release for me. Even when I don’t feel like it, I always motivate myself to type something up when I plan to because I know I always feel more at ease after I write.
Again, thank you to anyone who has followed me or supported me in my amateur blogging adventure! You all rock!
sarawhitmanythoughts 
I thank you for your work on the blog. Selfishly, I too like the blog as a means of refreshing and enjoying memories of some of the great experiences that we’ve shared. We are extremely interested in everything that you do and are delighted to be able to read about not only the facts of your experiences, but also your thoughts about and reactions to the experiences. Please keep up the good work!
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