Source: photographyofthoughts.wordpress.com

For six years of teaching, I have been carrying my hobbies along with me. My hobbies are photography, writing, reading, listening to music, and traveling. I call them hobbies for they are not included in my job description as a teacher.

Finding a job that involves my hobbies is possible. There is a possibility to take job of a writer and photographer for a travel or music magazine. That can be so much fun! But I think that would not be my calling. I cannot leave teaching for good just because I want to pursue them. I am actually contented with the fact that I could do them whenever I please even though I could not be paid for them.

I am reminded of the reasons why I should not give up on my hobbies. Learning from my dad who is a hobbyist too, I go back to them whenever I want to. They are like places to escape to and hide in. I once wrote a blog about keeping the things that bring joy, Resonating with Walter Mitty (Not Secretly). Do not ever lose the things that bring you joy. For if you do, you'll end up looking for pieces that make up yourself. Do not sacrifice it for the sake of your job. Because once you get home and you want to relax, they are the ones you will end up doing.

This blog, I AM A-O-KAYE is actually a major example of a place wherein all my hobbies jive: writing, photography, reading, listening to music, and traveling. Whenever I travel, I usually take photos and I write about them. I also write about my experience listening to my favorite band/s. Sometimes, I write about what I've learned from a book or an event. Like many bloggers and writers, I do not earn from this. But I do not worry much about it.

Rommel Bundalian, a Fujifilm photographer stated, "Shoot not for others to like. Shoot for yourself." It's the same in writing. Write not for others to read. Write for yourself. It doesn't mean your writing has no purpose. You write because of your passion instead of your desire to catch attention or please people. Keep on writing even though your work is still amateur or no one reads your work. Everything gets better over time. It just begins with writing for the sake of your love for it.

When I was in elementary, my major hobby was writing poems and stories and drawing about them. The topics were crappy because they were mostly about love, family, and animals. Those writings would not make articles and books. But I wrote anyway. In high school, I joined the school newspaper. Though I quit the year after, I still enjoyed all activities that involved writing. On my third year, I wrote on my English workbook that I wanted to be a writer. My English teacher, who happened to be a rockstar and one of my favorites, told me that I should. I tore the paper out of the workbook and kept it. When senior year came, I signed up for Journalism which eventually led me to a spot in the Yearbook Team. Then, college was a time for me to mature in writing. I wrote about God a lot. I still wrote some crappy poems about love and school. But I think what I enjoyed most was writing about Him. I still do. Academic writing always get in the way though. Thesis it!

Writing is merely a hobby to me right now. I couldn't even call myself a good writer. But if I will have to turn it into a dream, I envision myself getting better at it and making a difference through it. Though I cannot give up teaching entirely, I think writing can still connect to teaching. They say teachers make good writers as well. We'll see.

If God wills these hobbies to turn into a career, then all I need to do is obey and use them in a larger scale for His glory.

Bloggers say when you want your blog to be known and be read by people, you need to write about a specific subject. It may be fashion, travel, food, religion, philosophy, history, art (various kinds), education, film, photography, and any other specific area that you enjoy.


For nine years, I have been writing mostly about what I feel or do. I jot down what I felt that day, a poem that I made, or a recent event that took place. It was mostly about my life with no relevance to other people. Another thing that I noticed was that I was writing when I only have the free time. This year, I realized that I should find a real purpose why I write and who I write for. Like a newborn blogger, I listed down some goals I would like my blogger to be and NOT to be.

1) A-OH-KAYE will focus on five themes: travel, Christianity, film, music, and events (whether in my personal life or others). My posts in the past were mostly about travel. So I will continue to write about it. I also wanted to write about education but I do not want to include my career in this blog. Maybe one mention or two will come up. I just wanted this blog to be personal showing another side of me that most people do not know.

2) The purpose of my blog will not only be for self-expression but for the Greater Good. I define the Greater Good as one that will benefit if not all but a few of mankind. Hopefully, I will write with a selfless purpose. Of course, this is quite impossible to fully write selflessly for a blogger/writer usually writes about himself/herself. But I aim for every writing to be influential or inspirational to others. I do not want it to be just a blah-blah writing that is pretentious and/or self-centered. I do pray that I will be able to achieve this.

3) Being a blogger, a serious one, requires commitment. I will attempt to write at least two entries a month. I tend to write long blogs so it usually causes me not to publish anything. In order to be able to post at least two entries a month, I have to commit publishing either a short or a long blog post. That is already fair to myself.

4) I plan to join a blog community. If I need to get serious in blogging, I also need to read other blogs and comment on their posts. This is not just about me. There is a blogger world out there that I can take part in and learn from.

5) Publish! At times, I wanted to write but then I could not finish it. So I left it unpublished in my drafts. And I never got to write about it again because the drive to continue it was gone.

6) I will edit the photos that I take consistently. This means the pictures need to contain a similar feel. Establish "Kaye's preset." #learningphotography

7) I will NOT delete this blog. I am a blogger. Period.

I pray that I will be able to do all of these goals in 2014. Let the inspiration arise!