I have only five more weeks before I end a 42 year career in education and retire. They say that writers draw most from what they know, what they have experienced. What they are experiencing. I guess that this is true. I find that I can think of almost nothing else these days. I wish that I could just jot off a poem or two about the myriad of thoughts that have crossed my mind over these last few weeks. And I know that this will only get worse as the day draws near. There is a retirement dinner on June 10th and graduation on June 18th. I have an office to empty out, final projects to complete, goodbyes to say. I am working on re-landscaping the front of my house, a sprinkler system install on my property, a new fence to surround my backyard. I am having new front and back doors to put on this 120 year old house, a kitchen to completely renovate, all the white trim in the house to paint, and the carpet and furniture to have steam-cleaned. And I don’t even want to think about cleaning out the basement and the attic. That will have to be a retirement project.
What can I write about? Renovated kitchens? Sprinkler systems? Fences? One of the great things about this blog is that it forced me to look at a lot of my older writing, and either renovate or dispose. I was also able to bang out a few new poems as well. However, one of the main purposes of the blog was to get me to write every day, something that I really wanted to get into the habit of when I retired, but something that is becoming increasingly more difficult to do as a 42 year old door closes, and a brand new door opens. But to what? I have ideas. Lots of ideas. But no clear vision as of yet.
The other purpose was to enter into a conversation about my writing and the writing of others. So far, that is not going so well. I appreciate the few comments I have received so far, but, so far, that is all I have gotten. Well, I am determined to continue to write. And, if you feel so inclined, write back. I will listen.
Practice your art (writing!) everyday. Getting all of your ideas out and about will help you to define your vision but of course, you know this already because you're a writer! Here's my vote of confidence and encouragement, your cartoon made me laugh ;-) You are always making a difference, Chris, whether your readers let you know or not, so please keep on keeping on.
ReplyDelete