20190613 Dear HARU,

Hi, HARU! Good day, wherever you are. So... this is the first time I'm doing this. But you know, doing this as if I'm just telling you a story about my day is like doing the same to a friend. Sad to say, we all got separated. I don't even know if I have someone I could consider a friend, to be honest.

This is not a pity party, just to let you know. One thing I decided when I did this is to tell you 'most' of the truth about my life. That it, while a lot more people would be reading this, as well. But you know, I don't mind. If other people will become an instrument for me to finally know you, then maybe the exposure was a small prince to pay.

I know I'm only calling you HARU here. I wanted to call you Sunrise. But... that would actually become similar to a story I just started writing. It's called "Letters to Sunrise", and it's more or less an epistolary novel I intend to write in which the protagonist addressed her letters to someone she called "Sunrise". Thus, the source of the story title. Was that something cringey, HARU? I hope not. But I still want to refer to you as "Sunrise," though I have to do it a bit differently this time. So I checked online to see any names associated with sunrise. And I want it to be gender-neutral. The name HARU was one of the choices I saw.

And so, my unresponding, seemingly Daddy-Long-Legs-like letter receiver named HARU is born!

Today is the day after the Philippine Independence Day celebration. And it's also the day I bought a journal, after a long time! To be honest, the last time I even had a journal was back in 2008 and I was a fourth year high school back then. My last entry was in April of 2009. After that, I haven't written in a journal until now. That's kind of sad, you know. But maybe... Maybe doing this would bring my groove back to journaling. Since all of what I'm about to write to you will come from my journal, anyway. Isn't that amazing? I would end up having two places to document my life. And I hope that HARU would be able to read it and would help you know me more.

As per usual, I ended up complaining about my boring life as my first entry on that journal. Gosh! Did I really have to do that? Yes, my life is ordinary. But I don't have to complain about it all the time, you know? Okay, maybe not ALL the time, but MOST of the time. It's still too much, I know. But even with all that, I wanted to write in my journal in hopes of recording the changes about my life. Anything that could become a catalyst to change my life in more ways than one.

At this point, I did feel disappointed that I wasn't even able to write much today. By the way, did I even mention that I'm a writer? An aspiring author, at that. I did have a few published ones, but I wasn't able to keep up on doing it because of a lot of reasons. Today, I still haven't done anything to finish Francis and Ilsie's story. Or at least, the part that I should've finished two weeks ago. I mean, I hate to admit it, but I was starting to lose touch of the story plot. I don't like that!

Sorry for whining like that, HARU. Now that I thought about it, I wonder what you do as a hobby. Was it something quiet like mine? Or are you the adventurous type that likes outdoor activities and such? I hope we have similar hobbies in a way. That could be a good way to connect. A little warning, though. I'm not an exciting person, to begin with. I'm quite simple, with a shy personality, as well. But it only applies when I would be in a "getting to know you" stage with someone. It would be different once I finally become close or at least acquianted to someone. The clue there is the word "comfortable".

Do you already have someone you're comfortable with, HARU? I hope you treasure that person, and that person treasures you the same way. But don't be too clingy to the point that it would end up becoming suffocating to someone. Okay? Anything that is too much can be suffocating and annoying. Even if it's just an emotion meant for a friend or a significant other.

Wow! I didn't think it would end up to be this long. But it's better this way, I guess. At least, even in here, I want to feel comfortable sharing bits and pieces of my life that can be a far cry from all the writing stuffs I'd usually put in this blog. I want to feel comfortable sharing all of these so it would be easy for me to know you in some way.

I hope our day tomorrow would be great, if not better. See you! 😊💕

Waiting here with love and appreciation,

Florence Joyce