Whatever your language is, there’s a 100% chance I want to be your friend. And even if you live a world away from the USA, even if we’ll never meet in person or exchange conversation personally, I hope that the Caroline Times will sprinkle a sparkle of joy into your day. I hope that, through the immeasurable power of words, I can lighten the burdens of both your life and mine. I hope that I can make you just a bit happier, because all of us deserve to be happy.

I hope that my words can provide for you and me alike an escape from the crushing existentialism, fear, and uncertainty that plagues us today. I hope that I wield my words to their full potential, that my words will provide you with a potent, even if temporary, cure to your woes. In other words, I want for you what I’ve failed to find myself: an escape from the pain. Writing is the place where I feel most safe, most at home, most peaceful, and I hope my words, photos, and art will become a similar such place for you.

Now you know my hopes for this blog. But what will I actually be doing with my infinite character count and creative freedom and customization abilities?

Well, during the day, I’m a high school student mildly obsessed with keeping pristine grades and getting into an Ivy League school. I’d be lying if I said the resume-strengthening ability of a blog read by thousands didn’t factor into my decision to start the Caroline Times. However, I’m trying to work on trading my fixation on the Ivies and educational prestige for a true understanding of who I want to be, what I want to do for the world, and how I’m going to do it. I know very well that my interests and passions should be led by what feels right to me, not by the cultural standard of a perfect Harvard applicant; now I just need to get myself to actually believe it. You’ll definitely be hearing more about my educational journey, my thoughts on the American education system, and my personal advice to all you students out there.

Outside of school, I do have several interests, all of which I plan to write about. Music is a huge one of them. I’ve been playing the flute for over four years, and it’s been one of the most fulfilling, defining activities of my life. From the (usually) wholesome camaraderie of band and orchestra culture to the astonishing variety of styles, sounds, and interpretations of beauty that exist within classical music, I could write for decades on classical music. But don’t worry — I’m not so high-brow that I listen exclusively to Poulenc and Mozart. K-pop has been dominating my playlists since 2018, and I apologize in advance to the K-pop-haters for all my future K-pop posts in which I will thoroughly challenge your confirmation biases.

Besides the unabashedly Asian combination of classical and K-pop, I will also be posting about fashion frequently. I love clothes — perhaps a little too much — and I’ll admit, I’m pretty proud of myself for developing a personal style that makes me feel both cute and empowered. I’ve always longed for a place where I could connect and share my favorite outfits with a community of people who also cared about fashion, and this blog is the perfect space for that. Cataloging my outfits in photos will hopefully not only inspire those of you searching for your personal style, but also help me further refine my dressing habits. Of course, numerous issues exist surrounding fashion — environmental impact of fast fashion, unequal gender and beauty standards, eating disorders in the modeling industry — and the Caroline Times will certainly explore these topics in depth and help contribute to a culture of more ethically, environmentally conscious consumers.

International politics, languages, and cultures are also a major passion of mine. Firstly, I’m a committed Duolingoer and love learning about languages and cultures, and the Caroline Times is the perfect place for me to share my love and knowledge while also keeping myself accountable for my learning. Secondly, I care a lot about what people in power are doing to our world, its economy, and its people, and I hope you do too. But, of course, you’re under no obligation to read my explanations, analyses, and opinions of the current political climate. I’ll certainly differentiate between my objective pieces and my op-ed pieces, but I think all of us would benefit greatly from bipartisan communication and understanding. Through my political writings, I seek to both further my own knowledge and world events and to help facilitate the bridge-building between communities across the political spectrum that I believe is more crucial than ever.

Last but not least, you might’ve guessed by now that creative writing is one of my favorite activities as well. That’s the largest single reason I started this blog: so I could hone my creative writing skills every day, writing about everything and anything I want and sharing it with the world. After all, the key to improving as a writer and developing a distinctive style is to simply write more. A blog specifically will provide me the platform I need to connect with other passionate writers, readers, and individuals with stories worth sharing. Ideally, the constant output of writing content from the Caroline Times will also help me overcome my main issue with creative writing: being scared to share it. I’m incredibly excited to share my writing pieces, spark new writing ideas and strategies, and find my writing community through this blog.

Now, to summarize the Caroline Manifesto, the Caroline Times will most likely feature fashion, creative writing, education, and political advocacy most heavily. Doubtlessly, a few rants, random tidbits, and personal goals, lists, and dreams will be sprinkled in there. My main goal for the Caroline Times is really just to put a smile on someone’s face. I plan to post at least twice a week, and I plan to have at least 1,000 regular readers by the time I graduate high school. Whether these plans come to fruition is something only time can tell. Until the clock releases its secret, I will be typing away, and I’m so excited for you to join me on this journey!