The first page of my new notebook contains half a sentence. For a week I wanted to cross it out. It seemed like a poor introduction to all those clean pages.
Then I wrote a shopping list beneath it, followed by a line from a conversation I did not want to forget. The notebook became useful the moment it stopped trying to be impressive.
I am keeping it that way: room for ideas before they know what they are. A place to return to, rather than a thing to finish.