Your life is like writing a blog
A funny thing happens when you write a blog; people come out of the woodwork to tell you how they want to write a blog. My response, every time is, "Go For It!!"
If you have any itch to write, blogging is a great, cost-effective canvas for creativity. However, like any creative exercise, it thrives with loving attention (kind of like a puppy).
A short video prompted me to start blogging, pushing me to pay attention to how I express myself. My mom gives me grammatical feedback (though mistakes are entirely my own), and my husband lets me know if my tone is "off," but what's really pushing me most is the practice of showing up daily.
As in - - Every. Day.
Although I usually write in advance, thus avoiding late nights, I find I can't seem to stockpile ideas. I'm unable to hold onto an idea and sit with it for long. If I don't write with a sense of urgency and with a dogged consistency, I lose my way.
I have to trust the process. I have to know that there will be words and ideas available to me tomorrow. I have to show up and work for it.
Annie Dillard expresses this process beautifully.
“One of the things I know about writing is this: spend it all, shoot it, play it, lose it, all, right away, every time. Do not hoard what seems good for a later place in the book or for another book; give it, give it all, give it now. The impulse to save something good for a better place later is the signal to spend it now. Something more will arise for later, something better.”
I don't think this idea is limited to writing or blogging. I think we have to show up with the same kind of consistency in friendships, marriages, and with our kids.
We need to be present.
We shouldn't hoard what seems good for a later time or place; give it, give it all, give it now.
- Do you have an over-due thank you for someone who's helped you out? Give them a call.
- Is there a person who needs to know how they've impacted your life? Send them a text and let them know.
- Are your kids aware of how they make you proud? Slip a note in their lunch box.
- Want to make your spouse's day? Tell them what you appreciate about them.
Just a little effort - not tomorrow, but now.
Where do you need to show up today?
Don't wait. More will arise later!