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Titles currently hanging out on my dresser, tables, countertops...
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March 03 and if that weren't enough...re: my last post...shortly after the synchronicities mentioned there, not one but two different friends posted this video of Elizabeth Gilbert speaking about writing/creating. (She speaks as well as she writes!) It relieves some artistic burden to think of a muse/daemon/genius that is a separate entity who pays you a visit, rather than having to shoulder the weight of coming up with amazing work all alone from the meager resources of your own, neurotic mind.
synchronicityDo youever get the feeling the Universe is trying to tell you something? Sometimes it is subtle: a couple of different friends mention a book you mean to read but have been putting off. Someitmes it's direct: you're trying to type and drink tea and laugh all at the same time and end up spilling all over yourself. (Message: Get off Facebook and do the laundry!) And sometimes it's insistent, as it has been for me lately.
I've always thought of myself as a writer, and yet I don't devote nearly enough time to the craft to produce the kind of work I know I could produce. I guess the Universe has gotten tired of the wishy-washy efforts I've been putting out, because it seems to have just challenged me to step up to the plate. Within the space of 24 hours, three things happened:
*I read these words: "[there are] things you want to do and experience because only they would make your own, very special life whole, and because without them, life remains incomplete...The fear of death might be described as the fear of not being able to become whom one had planned to be." (From Night Train To Lisbon, by Pascal Mercier.)
*And then I came across the book Writing As A Sacred Path, A Practical Guide to Writing with Passion and Purpose, which is exactly the kind of writing guide I've been wanting to read...on sale, left lying on a stack of completely unrelated books in entirely the wrong section of the bookstore, but right where I would see it when I looked at the handmade things I always admire. O-kay.
*And then, a story leapt into my head, nearly complete, demanding to be written. This is NOT something that happens to me--like it has happened maybe twice before in my entire life, and certainly not in the last ten years.
Okay! Okay! I'm paying attention and taking action!
Excuse me now, I've got to go write something...
January 19 mlkIt seems especially poignant this year to be celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. today, on the eve of a presidential inauguration that marks, if not a full realization of his Dream, at least a very large step toward the equality he spoke of.
I couldn't decide which video to post, so I offer them both:
January 16 something newWith the arrival of the new year, I have started a new job--and I LOVE IT!! Okay, so yeah, I'm working two 12-hour night shifts per week...the day after a shift is a bit challenging, and my housekeeping, never stellar to begin with, is suffering on those days. But otherwise? LOVE IT. I'm working in a newborn nursery that specializes in caring for drug-exposed babies. I'm using some skills from my years in homecare nursing, and learning a lot of new things, too, about drug withdrawal and newborns in general. Even having had two of my own, there is plenty left to learn! My organizational skills are definately improving as well, since instead of the one client at a time that I've been used to, I now have roughly a dozen to assess and medicate. Yes, I'm being exposed to some sad stories and lamentable human behaviors, to be sure, but babies are babies, each and every one of them precious and adorable. It's the perfect job for a mom who really doesn't want to go through all of that again, and yet really misses the baby days in some ways...I guess you could say I'm getting my oxytocin fix! We all have our drugs of choice.  January 06 resolveHere it is 2009 already, and I'm easing into a few new habits. I love the New Year, and am always very inspired to change habits, embrace new ways of living, and generally become a new person! However, I've learned over the years that sweeping resolutions aren't all that realistic for me; the closest I've come to keeping a resolution for an entire year was when I resolved to floss my teeth every day. I know, not very sexy, but at least it made my dentist happy! Anyway, this year I'm trying to be realistic both in terms of what I intend to change and how I'm going about it. 365 days is a long time to consider when it comes to adopting a habit, so instead I'm giving myself one-month assignments. This feels more achievable, and gives me permission to re-evaluate at the end of the month, and--yay!--make new resolutions at that time.
So, are you ready? Here are my wonderful, amazing, earth-shaking goals for the month of January:
1. I am doing a load of laundry every day. Maybe by the end of the month I'll be caught up! This isn't all that new for me, but it's a habit I've fallen out of in recent months, and it shows.
2. I am keeping a daily food diary, writing down everything I eat. That doesn't mean I'm on a diet, just that I'm more conscious of what I'm choosing to eat. I've done this before, too, and have learned a lot about when I eat and why, so it seems like a good way to come down from the holiday hangover resulting from too much of everything. I'm also working toward a more plant-based diet. I've been vegetarian (except for occasional seafood--so "vegaquarian"?) for nearly twenty years, but these days I'm working on adding more raw foods to my diet and eating less cheese. However, given my love of eggs, I think it's safe to say I'll never be vegan, nor a 100% raw foodist.
3. I am cleaning off the kitchen counter every day. This might not sound like a herculean task, but given that a) just about everything that happens in our house, from eating to card games to paying bills, happens there, and b) I have a HUGE mental block against this task, this is by far the most difficult item on my list.
4. I am going to write for a minimum of 15 minutes every school day. This is a fun one, and worked so well for me in September that I want to turn it into a permanent daily habit. (Of course, more than 15 minutes is desireable, but even on really busy days I can realistically meet this goal, hence...)
Happy New Year!
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