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I recently won first place in the column category for the Connecticut Society for Professional Journalists�Ӱ�ԭ�� . The win was for a piece that I wrote called �Ӱ�ԭ��,�Ӱ�ԭ�� which was about me feeling the presence of my deceased loved ones whenever I saw that type of birds.

I wrote it for extra credit in my interpretive and editorial writing class. I didn�Ӱ�ԭ��t have to write it, but I felt as if I needed to. It was cathartic for me to write about my family members because telling this story was a way for me to keep the memory of them alive.

The win was a shock for me. I knew my professor told me that she would be submitting my pieces into contests, but I never thought I would win for an extra-credit assignment.

When I found out that I had won the category, I was on a walk with my mother at the All Saints Cemetery in North Haven, Connecticut. We recently started a tradition of going for weekly walks over there. We would order a pizza, and, in the meantime, we would walk about a mile around the cemetery.

Our starting point is always at my grandfather�Ӱ�ԭ��s grave. My grandfather dying was the origin of my belief in cardinals representing my loved ones. I feel it must mean something that I found out I won the contest while I was visiting him. To me, it could be a sign that he�Ӱ�ԭ��s watching over me or that he is proud of me. It feels as if it�Ӱ�ԭ��s a full-circle moment.

Writing is something that I�Ӱ�ԭ��ve always loved to do. Part of that comes from my mother loving to write as well. Growing up, I always volunteered to read what I had written for different English assignments in school. When I was given a ukulele on my 13th birthday, I started writing songs while learning how to play. I also have a bunch of journals filled with poems about how I felt in middle and high school.

While I�Ӱ�ԭ��ve always loved writing, I never knew if I was good at it, or at least as good as the other people in my classes. I gradually became more reluctant to share my work as the doubts I had about my writing grew over time. Discovering journalism in college changed that for me.

The recognition that I received for this piece reinforces the idea that I am on the right track in my life and my career pursuits. Additionally, it makes me feel as if people care about what I think and that my experiences should be shared with the world.

Other writers have such interesting experiences to talk about, and I never felt that way about my own writing. It is with this win that I learned that not every story has to be unique. There are times where relatability can sometimes be more important than originality.

While writers should always strive to produce content that discusses something new, I think there�Ӱ�ԭ��s also a place for writing that is nostalgic and that expresses universal feelings. It can be even more impactful to just have a reader finish your piece feeling understood.

Gabriella Pinto �Ӱ�ԭ��26 is a Communications major and editor of the .