Hello everyone,
I am taking some baby steps to being brave this month. First endeavoring to write either here or on Instagram every day for the whole month of October.
Every year there is a Write31 days challenge. Taking every day in the month of October to write something. Whether it’s a random post on social media, 300 or 3000 words for novel, or simply responding to a prompt someone has specifically made for this writing challenge.
So here goes…
Day One
Everyone has a story, you were created and formed and living your life. Your stories are what make you who you are.
Seasons in our lives are like chapters in a book. Sometimes we are just slogging along, you know those book that have parts that get bogged down. Or the chapters that seem to be nothing but background and set up for what is to come. That’s you, that’s me.
We all have times in our lives where we feel like we are just getting by. We all have those beginning chapters, or flashback chapters that form our foundation.
Then there are the plot twists. Especially with mysteries. Things we can’t see coming as we are reading along. But we all love the stories where the main characters overcome loss and, or hardship. Where they find love, where they succeed and win at this story of life.
My story is pretty boring by some standards. Pretty fun and exciting by others. But the one prevailing thread that has always run through it, is writing, reading, singing, make believe. There was lots of make believe in my younger days, I was the youngest by 11 years. So mostly an only. I had friends but there was a lot of alone time. Time to create plays from books for our parents, time to write and read.
I still have those very early stories. Written in pencil that has faded over the years.
The writing, reading and music took somewhat of a backseat in college because I just never thought I could do that and study. Note to younger self, find some that believe you can do that and learn from them. As in a novel, sometimes the action shifts.
Deciding to follow after Jesus and realizing my need for a Savior has only enriched my life story. Still there are struggles. As with a novel there have to be some conflicts for the character, otherwise it lacks substance and growth for both the flow of the novel as well as the characters involved. It allows the reader to feel empathy or sympathy for that character. And maybe some recognizable traits within themselves. And in the case of our life stories those times give us testimonies a ‘here is how I made it through’ type offering to others who are in that place we once were.
God has a marvelous way of drawing you back, returning you to the place of dreams. Because, after all, whether you are a believer or not, He is the one who placed those dreams and gifts within you. In a story there is usually change in one or more characters. Just as in life, a good character isn’t stagnate, your life isn’t stagnate. Growth is stretching, it’s stepping out into unknown areas. Or areas that at one time felt familiar and known and possible. But as we grow up those previous things sometimes get over shadowed by simply growing up and becoming an adult. With adult responsibilities.
God has nudged me ever so gently back to creating.
I’m stepping out, taking baby steps to being brave. Some know I write, some have encouraged me beyond belief that I am a writer. Some have even taken my meager submissions and published them. So this month, I may not be consistent, I probably won’t stick to a theme. (I realized in pondering this that I have lots of ideas). I may not have pithy things to say every day. So some days will be dreck. But that comes with the territory of writing, of story, of living life. Not everything is wonderful. Many parts of life are mundane.
But I will do my best to write something. Sharing mostly this month, the honing and practice of the craft. Sharing books. Occasionally sharing my Savior and all that that encompasses.
Photo Credits:
-Book photo by James Bold on Unsplash
-Typewriter photo by Elijah O’Donell on Unsplash
-To Be Continued photo by Reuben Juarez on Unsplash
