The Gift That Almost Went Unnoticed

Growing up, books were my escape. I wasn’t the child who saved pocket money for sweets or toys—I saved mine for books. I loved getting lost in new worlds, meeting characters who felt like friends, and imagining adventures beyond the walls of my home.

Before long, reading wasn’t enough. I wanted to create stories too. So, at just eight or nine, I started writing. I would fill pages with my little tales, reading them to myself, lost in the magic of my own imagination. Writing became my secret world—a place where I could be anything, do anything, and dream without limits.

But not everyone saw the magic I saw. When I tried to share my stories, they were met with indifference. To the people around me, writing wasn’t a real path; it was just a hobby, a distraction from what truly mattered. My parents wanted me to be a doctor, and in the world I grew up in, writers weren’t seen as people with bright futures. So, I stopped sharing. I kept my stories to myself, hidden in notebooks, never knowing that what I held inside was a gift.

Looking back, I sometimes wonder—what if someone had encouraged me? What if they had seen value in the words I poured onto paper? Maybe I wouldn’t have spent years trying to figure out who I was. Maybe I would have embraced my love for writing sooner instead of treating it like a guilty pleasure.

But here’s the thing: gifts don’t die; they wait.

Even after all the years of silence, writing still calls to me. It still brings me joy. And though I don’t know where this journey will lead, I know that I am walking in purpose. Today, I am not just a writer—I am a content strategist, a content developer, a storyteller. I bring light to anything that has to do with content. And that little girl who once hid her stories? She is finally being heard.

I share this because I don’t want us to make the same mistake with the children around us. Encourage their gifts. See their passions, no matter how small they seem. Fan their flames instead of extinguishing them. Sometimes, all a child needs is for someone to say, "I see you, and what you love matters."

To every young dreamer out there—keep going. Your gift is valid, even if the world doesn’t recognize it yet.