I do not consider myself a professional website designer by any means, but ever since the creation of this blog I’ve had to learn how to do it. It’s a hobby and passion of mine I don’t talk about as much, save for the fact that I redesign this blog constantly and have lived to tell about it here. I have been thinking more about this hobby of mine, though, especially as I consider college programs and potential careers I want to pursue. And I have been reflecting on just how much I’ve learned through life by embracing this hobby and through having fun redesigning my blog countless times over the years.
My calligraphy skills need some work, though, as you can see
I have countless memories of the joy and frustration—staying up late at my grandparents’ house experimenting with new color combos and new templates, trying to see how many looks I could create while still sticking to my branding, spending all my free time on the weekends in my early years of writing this blog mainly working on the design, more so than anything else. Was that really necessary at that point? Uh, no, but I loved it, and I began to develop an eye for what worked and what didn’t. I also learned more about myself and my “brand” and how I wanted to be reflected through seemingly more shallow things like color palettes, web templates, and fancy graphics. I also remember the deep frustration I would feel when I first began—when I was following tutorials, checking and re-checking each step I made to implement some new code, and it just would not cooperate. But I also have such fond memories of the rewards it really brought to me when I would finally figure something out I had been struggling with. I think life is very much similar to this process.
And then, looking back, you realize how you are gaining so much knowledge and new skills that have not only made you happy to practice but also have practical, meaningful use. I never saw myself as a coder or web designer or anything remotely technical like that, and I don’t think I even knew that’s what I was learning until I had. But I felt like I had to learn because things did not work out with the person I had hired for a website, and I got bored in the waiting process—figures—so I began doing things on my own. It just goes to show how God was preparing me—for this. When you need something, He gives it, oftentimes before you even know you need it or that’s what you want.
So I guess if I’ve learned anything from embracing this unexpected hobby, it reminds me of that. How God knows what you need and want long before you even figure that out. I have seen many examples of that in my life I will write about in later posts. I used to be terrified of uncertainty and always thought I needed to know exactly what I want in life, but I’m learning to relax my grip. I took every rejection so personally when now, looking back, I see how it is a blessing, even if I don’t exactly know why. Because God has worked everything to my good for His glory, and He can do the same for you, too. I talk about this here, but this hobby actually came to be when something else I wanted fell through for whatever reason. But how much better is this? I did not think I would be a blogger, but I thank God I can be for His glory. I never thought I would do this in my spare time while I wait on becoming an author, but I cannot imagine my life without it now, because it as an outlet God has used to help others, and that’s what I want more than anything.
It definitely wasn’t what I imagined or would’ve chosen as my plan, but God knew it would fit me better, even though it took some heartache for me to realize that. But it’s also proof that He does care about what you care about—who knew there was a purpose in me creating a bunch of pink, glittery images?
And as for web design? That was the first step He took in preparing me. Follow His prompting like that and what He’s laid on your heart, and you don’t know exactly where it will take you when you trust Him with it! As for me, I’m sure I’ll be redesigning this blog another twenty times over the next five years. 😉
