Be Present in Your Golden Hour

BE PRESENT IN YOUR GOLDEN madison corley HOUR

MADISON CORLEY

It’s insanely easy to get wrapped up in the ebb and flow of what we know as everyday life. From working our minds into overdrive to investing more time into our peers than we would ever think to allot for ourselves, it is clear to see how we can easily get sucked into the endless cycle of mundane routines. When was the last time you did something for yourself? We’re not talking about the last time that you treated yourself to a spa day—when was the last time you did something truly beneficial to your soul? How long has it been since you stepped back from the hustle and bustle of it all and said to yourself, “Wow, I love being me”? This is what we are missing. We are collectively missing ourselves. Being present in your own life is one of the hardest things a person can do. Realizing that you hold the power to fulfill your heart’s deepest wants and desires is one of the most liberating epiphanies. Too many people have forgotten that this issue is so very relevant in each of our lives. It’s time we regained our golden hour. It’s time we reclaimed ourselves. Many of us fall under the category of people who are always putting others before ourselves. It feels so undeniably rewarding, to do something sweet for a significant other or give

up preferences in order to make friends happy. Many of us have also been the person who allowed their work to drain them so much mentally that the exhaustion started to attack physically. We end up devoting more time to our exterior life and it slowly starts to make us drift away from our inner selves. There are days when we look at ourselves and don’t even recognize our reflection because we know that we’ve been happier. It’s almost like peering into a mold that was made specifically for us, but filling it with actions and things and people that don’t exemplify what we actually want out of life. Confusion is the best way to describe the range of emotions. Slowly, those feelings begin to turn from every few days to every single day. We are being sucked into the riptide and we are knowingly allowing it to happen. We are no longer present in our own lives. It’s not an easy process learning how to accept that the life we are living is not entirely for ourselves and knowing how exactly to get out of the situation. The day you determine that you need to start living for yourself, is the day your life will begin its metamorphosis right before your eyes. Starting this process is one of the hardest personal endeavors because the gratification is not instant; if it were, then everyone would do it. The mere act of finding yourself challenges you the entire way. It most certainly makes you contemplate, “Why am I doing this?” If the answer is any reason other than for yourself, you have to let it go. If you don’t want to do something, you have the power to say “no.” The starting point hurts. Being painfully honest with yourself hurts, but to reclaim your power, you have to do what is best for you—even if it’s the hard thing. If you want to pack up everything you own and move halfway across the world, you have the ability to do so. The kicker? You need to take the first step. Regardless of what you decide to do, others are going to have opinions about your life, whether you ask for them or not. Once you open your eyes and realize that you’re not merely the supporting character in others’ lives, you can then begin becoming the main character of your own life.

Once you find yourself, you start to love the most microscopic parts of who you are. This is what it truly means to be present in your golden hour—to be completely grounded in your life and to love yourself unconditionally. Falling head over heels in love with yourself is a journey. If you are too busy getting wrapped up in negativity, you completely miss the painting in the sky. You miss the most breathtaking time of the day: golden hour. When you sit back and allow yourself to be content, you don’t miss out on the little loves. You owe it yourself to not let go of who you are. Hold it to be true that you are a radiant soul. Have your golden hour moment and revel in it.

“There is no denying the fact that you have found yourself. It will literally hit you all at once and you will most certainly know what is going on the instant you begin to feel it.”

w h o w e a r e

In dreaming up the mission behind our organization, the intention was twofold: recognize the creative talent of the individual and fuel their capacity for greatness. Voila—enkindle the human spirit through self-expression and embolden all to excel beyond their social norms. Allow us to explain:

We envisioned each written work, curated photo, and skillfully crafted graphic to be a bold platform for our community of creators to shine. Our members are the new-generation artists that grace our digital day and age with contributions of modern relevance, leaving positive imprints on our college community. Our unique trait is the A-Line print issue, a tangible representation of us that defies online standards and relights the magic behind the magazines we cherished growing up. We understand the reality we live in: those brief, quiet moments amid our busy lives are priceless. Through an effortless scroll on your device, we hope to open the door to the relatable article you didn’t know you needed, advice on being productive during a pandemic, and of course, style inspiration to bring out your inner trendsetter. A breath of fresh air in an ambiguous world, we are unified through the common interest of passion—a free kindling of the crafts that set our souls on fire.

Let’s get to creating, together.

Sincerely,