Articles

TO WRITE OR NOT TO WRITE: THAT IS THE QUESTION! – Kazi F. Eshita

by Online Editor · February , 2020

Back in childhood, I’d want to do everything, save writing. If anyone told me to write, I could even turn the world upside down to run away from that apparently horrifying task. If my teacher gave me a pencil, I’d rather chew on it instead of writing with it. I used to fill up all my notebooks with doodles and paintings, but write? Oh! No way!
At present, these flashes from the past just makes me laugh. I can’t imagine my life without writing now. Even if I get a little cut on my right hand, I start cursing myself. Why? Simply because being unable to hold my pen literally makes me seethe with rage. Unlike humans, my best friend, my pen, never betrays me. Pen and paper happens to be my biggest celebration during moments of joy and my sole source of solace on painful nights.
When I was a student of the seventh grade, there was a very popular book in my school library: Anne Frank’s Diary. No matter how hard I tried, I could never get my hands on that book, it kept circulating among young female readers. My interest in the book intensified by the popularity. One day, I asked my elder sister to buy me a copy of that. I knew she’d never say no, as all of my siblings happen to be bookworms.
The captivating events described in that book made me shiver! It was a tale of a lonely teenage girl’s daily life. Anne was hiding with her family from the Nazi soldiers during The Second World War. Anne deeply wanted a good friend to confide in, sadly she had none. Therefore, she began writing her thoughts in a diary her parents gave her as a birthday present. She named the diary Kitty.
I began writing when I was ten. Obviously, getting published means celebration, for any writer. After knowing Kitty, my love to write using pen and paper just skyrocketed, and I never even thought of bringing that love down to the ground since. Today, I’ll discuss some benefits of writing using pen and paper for my readers:

Improves your handwriting: My dear readers might think why am I even worried about handwriting in this technological era? Yes, I agree that technology has made our lives a lot easier than before, yet, there was, is and always will be a demand for legible, eye-catching handwriting. Unfortunately, lack of practice has turned my somewhat legible Bengali and English handwriting into chicken scratch! Please readers, you definitely don’t want that happening to you! Begin practice today.

You’d learn things a lot quicker than usual: If you take notes on pen and paper during a class (instead of merely typing it on a computer), you’d remember the notes better. Besides, if you have a habit of writing stories, articles or even poems, please write on paper first, then start typing. It will also improve the flow of any writing. Moreover, paper makes the grueling task of editing nicely breeze past you.

Improves your memory: At first, I wouldn’t pay heed if elders in my family told me to write something immediately after reading it. After a few years, I began getting the positive results of this practice, though. Writing helped me retain important academic terms in my memory a lot longer than usual. I also learned turning bookish language into my own words through regular writing. Finally, I could reap out all the fruits of these childhood habits when I became a teacher myself. Writing helped me break down the seemingly monotonous areas of the English language into catchy, interesting points that would appeal to my adult students. I’m an ESL teacher, by the way.
Keeps your brain active: Do you know that your brain is like a muscle? The more you keep it active, the better it is. Crosswords, Math games, Quiz cards or puzzles and obviously, writing – these are all great ways of keeping your brain active. Elderly or retired people can use these habits to keep unwanted stress, depression and many other mental demons away.
How to begin writing? Just start small. Write two or three lines a day. Ask yourself a question and write the answer. If you want those creative juices flowing and if you are multilingual, try writing something in one language, then translate it using another language. This will also increase your ability to express yourself well, if you are an introvert and have trouble expressing yourself in public. This is an easy confidence booster.
So, what say? Do you want a paper friend like Kitty? Go ahead and make one. I promise, you’ll not be disappointed at all. Happy Writing!