Whether or not we want to acknowledge it, there is a reason for most, if not the majority, of the things that we do. We often hear people say things like "Oh, it's not for any particular reason" or "no reason at all." Maybe you've even said something similar. I know I have. The thing is, and I know many of you will disagree, there is almost always a reason for doing something, for holding a certain belief or for loving/liking/hating something/someone, and in general, there is usually a reason why spontaneous and unplanned things happen.

One thing that we might agree on is that the reason is not always apparent in the moment, and we sometimes cannot explicitly state the reason when we are asked on the spot. We've all seen those romantic comedies where someone asks the male or female lead, "Why do you love him/her?" and his or her reply is "I don't know..." and then they get a silly grin on their face as they try to contemplate the answer to the question. No? You've never seen any movies like that? Well, okay, take my word for it just this once. Usually, when they say they don't know, they usually mean something like "I don't know...if I should tell you because maybe you'll think my reason is ridiculous or not good enough." On the other hand, when some people say they don't know, guess what: they really may not know at the moment. Though there isn't a reason at the time, that does not always have to be the case. Sociologists believe that humans act and then create their reason for acting after the fact. In the end, whenever that may be, there will be a reason. At least I want to believe that there is a reason for all the things that happens to us in our lives.

Our lives often epitomize the struggle to find the reason why: why is the world like this, why am I like this, why do people treat each other this way, why do we exist, why do we ask why. So yeah, it can get real deep really quickly. For some, it is easier than for others to find the answer to these questions. I struggled to find my reasons, and I'm still not done. The reason why we often struggle with decision-making is because of the impact our decisions may have on our lives and the lives of people around us; because we have the idea that we must only have one reason for doing something; because we believe that, for whatever reason, our decision will not be good enough; and most important, because we anticipate society's reaction with more dread than hope.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with having multiple reasons for doing something. If there was, then I'd be in big trouble, because I have multiple reasons for why I write. My brain hurts just thinking about how much it will take to condense my reasons into one hell of a run-on sentence. So here goes. This is why I write.

I write because it helps me think. I often have so many thoughts swimming around in my head that it makes it hard to think. Writing helps to purge some of those words so my mind feels cleaner and emptier afterward. This leaves room for more thoughts. My mind is like the recycling bin on your computer: every so often you toss some files into it, then you empty it and the process starts all over again. The funny thing is, as we go through the files that we intend to discard, we find some memories that we forgot that we had in the first place. For me, writing does that. It allows me to organize my thoughts, gives me a canvas to paint them on, and then time to reflect.

As much as I like the world that I live in, there is always room for improvement. It would be amazing if I had the power to write a new character into my life; to write in a hero to fix all my problems (even though I am my own hero, sometimes I need a day off); to fix all the world's problems by making simply a few edits to a manuscript, or just to edit my character a teensy bit and make my smile a little wider and my walk a little jauntier. But that's not how real life works, and that's sad, but probably for the better. When I write, I can change whatever I feel the need to. When I write, I can lament the fact that the world isn't as I'd like it to be. When I write, I can write my dreams and then turn them into reality. When I write, life shines just a little brighter. If you've never felt like I feel, don't worry: you'll understand what I mean when you find that thing that you really love to do.

I write because I can change the pace of time. Don't you just abhor how fast time moves when you need it to slow down? And how slowly it moves when you want it to speed up? Good, because I cannot be the only one. I write because I can be the master of time. It's all about perception. When I write, I get those ten extra minutes I needed to complete the exam. When I write, I can work my eight-hour shift in half the time. When I write, I can stop time so I can dodge that chatty classmate who doesn't know when to stop (if you're reading this, it's not you).

I write because...why not?

Give me a good reason why I shouldn't. And trust me, none of your reasons will be good enough to get me to stop writing. If you find one good enough, it'll take you a while, and there's no guarantee that it will convince me. Sometimes you do things because there's nothing else that you can see yourself doing. I write because there's nothing I love so much that fills the void like writing does. I write because I can. There are more reasons why I write, I just haven't found them yet. But when I do, you'll be the first one I tell.

So you see, your reasons for doing what you do don't have to be anything extraordinary. They don't have to make sense to anyone else but you. They don't have to be the same as that other person's reasons. In fact, it's even better if they aren't. That way, you can have something to talk about.

The "why" behind everything isn't always easy to find. But that's okay, don't rush it. Finding the reason behind your greatness takes time. And why shouldn't it?