A Blogger’s Wisdom

Hi friends, welcome to Natalie Belle Blog! I’m so glad to be with you this weekend and hope it is as good for you as it was for me. It’s been busy, though, so for today’s post I’ll be pulling from the archives! I hope to use some of my own wisdom next week as I get back to posting original content 🙂

Hello friends, and welcome to Natalie Belle Blog! I hope you’ve enjoyed your week so far and are soaking up the slow, warm days of summer so far. In just three short months, it will be my three-year blogging anniversary (That sounds so crazy)! I’ve learned a lot so far over this journey, so I want to share some of those takeaways with you today! Whether you’re a blogger or not, many of these lessons are applicable to whatever hobby or occupation you have, and I’m interested to see if you have noticed similar patterns in your life!

1. It’s Okay Not To Have Ideas All The Time

Despite my running list of blog ideas that’s multiple pages long, most weeks I don’t know what I want to write about until the day I write and publish my post. In my opinion, this is the hardest part of blogging for me (more on this later). It can be frustrating to not have ideas and work off of internet prompts or recycle old posts, but sometimes it saves time and my sanity. I tend to take advantage of the times when I feel most creative and come up with ideas that can last me for a few weeks rather than going week by week. However, I’m still learning how to eliminate writer’s block and stem creativity more efficiently.

2. You Can Make Anything Interesting If You Try

I’ve run into so many instances throughout my writing process when I feel like an idea isn’t “good enough” for me to write an entire post about or won’t be as long as I want it to be. Each time I choose a topic for my blog that I feel is “lesser-than,” I always find a way to write more than I expect and make it interesting. As long as you put effort and passion into what you’re doing, you can make a cinder block wall (which is what a blank page can look like sometimes) speak volumes.

3. Consistency Is Key

After my first few posts that were published sporadically, I got onto the schedule of posting every Saturday. If I never decided on that routine, I definitely wouldn’t be writing posts every week. It’s easy to wait for inspiration to strike, take a week off because you’re too busy, or “save it for tomorrow.” It’s been a close call sometimes, but I’m proud to say that ever since I started my weekly schedule in December 2020, I haven’t missed a Saturday of blogging. It sure is hard work and discipline, but it has without a doubt made me a better, more creative, and dedicated writer. Having a schedule forces me to eventually come up with something, and some of my best posts probably would have never been written if I didn’t sit down on a Saturday and figure out what to write because it was a part of my routine.

4. Just Start/Take It And Run

Continuing with creativity, whenever you have an idea, start on it immediately and take it and run with it. I don’t know about you, but sometimes when I have a great idea and by the next few days I either forget it or think, “What was I thinking?”Turn your idea into reality and make it happen.

5. Don’t Worry About What Others May Think

I’ve learned that I don’t need to take absolutely every suggestion (although they are more than welcome), because I get to write what I want to write about. If I enjoy writing it, chances are at least someone else will as well when they read it!

6. Relate To The Reader

To be a successful writer, you need to engage with your audience. I hate to break it to you (and even myself, sometimes), but not many people enjoy reading content that is just about the author and doesn’t benefit them in any way. The reason I write is for my audience, so I try to connect them in every post, even the more personal ones.

7. Have Fun!

This is the most important lesson I’ve learned. From time to time, I find myself stressing about my blog, but then I remember I get to do this for fun— what a gift! Writing is much more enjoyable when you have a topic you love. I’ve learned not to take myself too seriously and tried not to hold myself to overly-high standards.

What have you learned from your hobbies or career? Leave it in the comments below!

❤️,

Natalie B

New York, New York

Hi friends, and welcome to Natalie Belle Blog! I hope you had an amazing week and are enjoying the warm weather and flowers in bloom. As you may recall from previous posts, including last week’s, I went to New York City for the first time this month! It was such a fun experience and I’m excited I finally get to share it with you all. The only problem is, we did so much that I don’t even know where to begin or what to write! This post is just the highlights, but feel free to hit me with any questions in the comment section below!

For some background, this trip was with my advanced choir at school, which I am a member of this year. It’s an annual tradition to have a “field trip” somewhere non-local, like New York (obviously) or London (next year’s trip). The trip was part of a “Choirs of America” Festival that many other schools got to experience as well.

Unfortunately, since almost all of the photos from this trip include other members of my choir, for privacy’s sake I won’t be posting them. I can still give you the rundown, though! Here are some of the main things we did while we were there:

• Saw the Broadway musicals Back to the Future and Hadestown
• Went to Times Square
• Participated in various musical clinics & workshops
• Performed in Carnegie Hall
• Survived an earthquake (Not on the itinerary)
• Went to the top of Rockefeller Center

That was mostly it! We did lots of walking, shopping, eating, and other activities too. Let me know what else you want to know in the comments!

❤️,

Natalie B

Celebrate The Journey, Not The Destination

Hi friends, and welcome back to Natalie Belle Blog! I hope you had an amazing week and are enjoying this spring weather. My intention for this week was to write about my trip to NYC, but that was before I accounted for all the photos I would need to upload, which just wasn’t possible with my schedule today. I promise it’ll come next weekend though! In the meantime, I want to share with you a quick perspective I’ve been learning this week.

On Thursday, I had my final presentation and oral defense for my AP research project. Thankfully, it went well, but that’s not to say I wasn’t nervous. I worked on my script for weeks, let alone my entire research process, which took a year. Although my job is not yet completely done (I still need to turn in my paper this week), I felt a huge sense of relief once it was over. Not only because I feel like I did well, but it took a huge weight off my shoulders for something I had on the backburner of my mind for over a year at this point.

Knowing that, I thought about where I was this time last year. I decided that I wanted to take AP Research, but a 15-minute presentation at the end of it seemed quite daunting, especially when I didn’t even know what I wanted to study. By October, I had a topic narrowed down and was in the early stages of beginning my research, but I didn’t quite know what it would look like or how it would turn out yet. After a few tweaks, I started data collection (my most work-intensive part) and felt how everything was coming together, finally.

I think the reason I chose to celebrate after my presentation was not simply because I was able to stand up and talk for ten minutes, but because of the persistence I had that allowed me to complete each individual milestone to put a project like this together. In fact, I know it was! I’m much more proud of myself for those steps I took toward my goal than the presentation itself.

Needless to say, it’s the journey that counts, not the destination. You may have heard that phrase before, like I have. I’ve always liked it, but it was hard for me to appreciate it until I had a real-life example of how rewarding a process can be.

What’s the journey for you? What process are you choosing to celebrate and prioritize? Let me know in the comments below, I’d love to hear!

❤️,

Natalie B

Moments To Memories

Hello friends, and welcome to Natalie Belle Blog! I hope your week was wonderful like mine. While I would love to bring you a brand new post this week, I’m actually on my choir field trip in NYC. Plenty on that will come in the following weeks, but for now, enjoy reminiscing with me on the best day of my life that is now two years ago! (This post was originally written last year, so the timelines are somewhat different)

Tomorrow, April 2nd, will be the one-year anniversary of what I consider to be the best day of my life thus far. You’ll read more about it below, but April 2nd was the night that UNC Basketball beat Duke in the Final Four of the NCAA tournament. If you know anything about me, you know I’m a diehard Carolina fan and a dedicated Duke hater, so it makes this the most exciting event I’ve ever experienced.

A few months ago, I had an assignment in my Creative Writing class to write about a “Snapshot Memory,” so I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to write about April 2nd. That night, my mom and I attended a watch party in the Dean Dome (where UNC plays its home games), and after the Tar Heels won, we participated in the tradition of rushing Franklin Street. The entire experience was incredible, and I still get chills watching the videos I filmed to this day. I think it’ll be hard to top the emotions I felt and the memories from that night.

Although things look a lot different a year later with UNC not making the tournament, I’m no less grateful for last year’s run. If anything, I’m even more grateful, which is why I’m sharing my writing today! Honestly, I’m not even sure if I’m done yet. I like it the way it is, but there’s still more I could add from earlier, so keep that in mind. I hope you enjoy this post and have as much fun reading it as I did writing it!

Below are some videos from the evening if you’d like to visualize the event.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/JkDAMK_b99o?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en&autohide=2&wmode=transparentI certainly wasn’t there in the first two minutes, but it’s still fun to watch the progression and get an idea of how big the crowd was.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/MAOuwU-rIeI?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en&autohide=2&wmode=transparentI was here for this one, though! Absolute chaos.

“And even if they do win, we are not rushing Franklin Street- so don’t get any ideas”, my mom made clear during the watch party in the Dean Dome filled with thousands of fans. A mere hour later, that statement was completely irrelevant.

The warmth of the blood rushing through my veins overpowered the slight, crisp chill of the early April evening. In disbelief, I was walking hurriedly across the changing landscape of grass and brick pavement of the UNC campus, realizing I’d get my first experience crowd-rushing Franklin street. 

I had just witnessed the North Carolina Tar Heels, my ride-or-die basketball team, win against their most hated, bitter rival- part of quite arguably the biggest rivalry in all of college sports. 

This wasn’t just any win against the Duke Blue Devils. It was the tournament game that sent the Tar Heels to the National Championship that was set to take place a mere 48 hours later, and marked the ending of Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski’s 40-plus year reign of terror. 

For decades, rushing Franklin Street- one of Chapel Hill’s central points- has been the tradition following a victorious win against Duke. Fueled by the jubilant energy of fellow Tar Heels and filled with adrenaline, my mom and I trekked the mile from the Dean Smith Center to Franklin Street. 

Following the vast crowd in the moonlight who confidently led the way, the murmur of the larger gathering in the distance gradually grew louder. 

As we approached an alley-like entrance to the road, parked ambulances and police cars were surrounded by law enforcement officers monitoring the event. My heart skipped a beat as my eyes followed the movement of first responders rushing to wheel a woman on a stretcher to the ambulance. In that moment, it hit me that I was living in what I had always watched and heard about on social media in awe. Excited and rambunctious college students were crowding the corner, climbing street poles, and partying until injury or alcohol poisoning- exactly what was before my eyes. 

Following this epiphany, I approached the end of the alley, where I could see a section of the road illuminated by white-orange glowing streetlights. People were jubilantly walking to the intersection to join the larger party ahead of them, which was just steps away from the brick building I was walking beside. I noticed the slight haze over the street, triggering my brain to register the pungent smell of smoke and fireworks in the air. 

Anticipating to see an ocean of blue celebrating together, I rounded the corner to see exactly what I imagined – but even more. 

Taken aback by the sight but wanting even more badly to continue faster, my breath was instantly taken away. Turning to my mom as we walked toward the intersection, we both remarked that it was as if we were watching a scene straight out of a movie. Fans loudly celebrated in shouts, chants, and screams. Fireworks were loudly being set off from the top of a building, and onlookers cheered loudly in response. Gazing upward, news helicopters were hovering above, capturing birds-eye images of the scene. It hit me once again that I was actually involved in the famed event rather than just watching it behind a screen. 

As my mom and I hesitantly continued toward the center of the intersection, the energy grew more intense. College kids gathered in circles around bonfires to watch each other jump over the flames. Multiple people were climbing the same tree. Crushed beer cans and Carolina blue confetti was scattered across the street. 

The experience was euphoric. We soon realized that we weren’t just watching a movie scene; we were in the movie. Embracing my “main character moment,” I raised my arms in the air as confetti continued to fall so my mom could capture a picture. 

The crowd grew thicker, and my mom and I held each other’s hand or shoulder, careful not to get separated. 

Finally, we were at the center of it all. It was the most out-of-body experience. Among other shouts, the entire crowd kept singing the “ohhh-oh-oh-oh-ohhh-ohh’s” from the song “Seven Nation Army,” and there was an electric call-and-response, “Taaar…Heels!”

We neared one particular bonfire at the corner with the biggest crowd, with people repeatedly chanting “F— Coach K! F— Coach K!” Remembering again that UNC retired Duke’s coach that night, the moment stood out to me that not only was this a celebration of the Tar Heels’ victory, but it was also UNC’s version of what would later earn the moniker of “Coach K’s Retirement Party.”

I can still taste the mint chocolate chip ice cream I bought from the Ben and Jerry’s across the street that night. Due to the association I now have with that flavor of ice cream, I will never taste it the same way again.

That night, everything fell into place, and I felt purely victorious. Ten months later, I can still say with confidence that April 2, 2022, was the best day of my life.”

Thanks so much for reading this post, and let me know what you think in the comments below!

❤️,

Natalie B