My Happy Place Series

My Happy Place - A New Series // Volume 1

I have wanted to start a series for my blog for awhile but haven't been able to pin point what I'd like to write about over and over. Until I was shopping yesterday at Fashion Island for my sister's birthday and my boyfriend asked me if I wanted to go in the bookstore. He knows it's one of my favorite places to go.

I think before I was able to read - I still loved it. I looked forward to when my mom would read to me and I'd dream about the day I could read a whole book from start to finish. Not just a little 100 page book but a 500+ page one. My Mom and I would sit in my bed before I went to sleep and she'd read to me and I would read to her. One of my favorite books we read together was Secret Garden when I was younger. Then when I got older I moved to more advanced books that helped my mind expand and really think more. That next book was Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone, boy was I hooked.

I went on to read every single Harry Potter novel, most of them twice.

I can't remember the first time my parents took me to a bookstore like Barnes and Noble but I do remember going to the library for the first time. I remember thinking to myself, "you can take home all these books with the swipe of a library card?!" Yeah, I was pretty mindblown at that. I would take home 3 or 4 books and my mom would always say take 1 or 2 and come back Nat.

But I wanted them all and I read them all.

As I got older, I found the bookstore and libraries places of such peace for me. Even before my accident, my life was always movinf extremely fast. Between sports, traveling, school, friends, and family, I never really had any time to relax. But I always made time to read. It helped clear my head about a lot of things and even take my brain off of some things that might have been bugging me at the time.

Reading also helped me become a better writer. I started writing for fun at age 8, I always loved to write in journals. I can honestly say I had about 100 throughout my young life. It helped me organize my thougnts, set goals for myself, and re-evaluate myself as needed. I think it's important to journal throughout life because it helps you see how far you've come and what it took to get yourself there.

I know what you're thinking...

They're just BOOKS.

People still go to bookstores?

People still read physical books?!

Why go when everything is online?

There is something about the bookstore that brings out the best version of you for however long you are there for. I know life is crazy but if you can bring yourself to a Barnes and Noble or library for one hour a month, I swear you'll find out something new about yourself. Whether it's your new choices of book selections, getting organized, or just simply relaxing.

I always pride myself on being in the "know." By that I mean always having a good idea what's going on in the world around me - to a degree. It's important as a journalist to be educated in that way. Books keep me sharp and I LOVE that. What do you pride yourself on?