Describe an item you were incredibly attached to as a youth. What became of it?
When I was 9, my friend bought me a 5 year diary with a key. I wrote in it faithfully for years. It captured my transition from childhood to adolescence. It helped me to manouve my way through difficult friendships (which always caused conflict with my parents.
I wrote about everything my lessons in middle school, my exam results, and my teachers. I loved school.
Another important part of my life, which was put under the microscope, was my church life. I fell in love with someone new every week – mostly infatuation and rarely requited.
I found my diary about 5 years ago. It was great to read it again and to see how simple life was. To see how little empathy I had for my poor mother trying to bring up six kids on very little money – me asking to go on skiing school trip when we didn’t know if we would eat tomorrow.
I think my diary protected my mental health in those formative years, I treasured those quiet times when I could sit with my thoughts away from the noise and chaos in a large family.
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