Dear Journal, 

I’ve learned a lot making this game. I’ve taught myself about 
mathematical vectors, 3D modelling, animation, and so much more. I’m grateful 
for all these skills, but one of them stands out above all the rest. It’s not exactly 
a tangible skill, but I think it’s one of the most important for someone to learn. 
I used to be a really messy person. This wasn’t just in my personal life; it 
spilled into my academic life and my passion projects. In retrospect I look back at 
some of my old code and my art projects and realize how messy they are. The 
quality of the final product is still alright, but adding onto it later becomes an 
issue.  
I really realized how important organization is with this game. After I 
had most of the stand-alone systems in place, I quickly ran into issues with how I 
should structure my code. I learned that classes - how programs categorize 
objects - can be derived from one another. This was pivotal, as it meant I could 
make one class for every item, then make more specific classes for items like bows 
and swords. As I organized things, and thought them through before I made 
them, I realized it was way easier! In fact, it starts to come naturally after a 
while; I started to rewrite some of my older code so that it was more 
organized, and it even ran better! 
As I organized my code, I started to organize my life a bit. Organizing has 
a strange calming effect on me, even though it takes a bit of effort for me to 
actually go do it. I’ve cleaned out my binders, organized my room, and even 
reorganized my closet and dresser. This has effected my life a lot, because it’s 
easier to find my materials for school, and put together outfits and the like in 
the morning. Honestly, I never expected all the little time saves to add up in the 
way they do! 
 
Sincerely, 
Clare Thomason