What ever happened to the art of writing? The penmanship licence I got from Primary School has all but disappeared and I feel kind of sad the I don't practice my handwriting as I did when I was a girl! I remember being so proud to have been given the opportunity to write with a ballpoint pen, so I got some sticky tape and stuck it to the inside of my desk. Oh! that reminds me; those old wooden desks we had which opened up to reveal all our books; pens; pencils and of course our lunch. Even though I don't think I could sit in one today, it only takes one trip to the antique store to jolt my memory! Oh No, they are considered antiques!
What ever happened to writing a letter to someone you care about? I know! It has been replaced with the impersonal yet very handy email and I think we should all be taking a moment to reflect on what we have lost. Now that we have a letter sent to us every second via fibre optic cable, without even thinking about it, it saddens me that there will be several generations who won't even know what a posted letter looks like! They won't experience the personal pleasure one gets when someone you know took the time to write something about their life for you to read or come to think of it, viewing someones beautiful structured handwriting!
I was at my computer, AS I AM NOW, writing away when I had an epiphany. Why isn't the art of communication taught in schools? You know that art of being able to converse with our fellow man, not only face to face or on the phone but also by the writing and posting of thoughts. Considering all we see is the younger of our species with their heads buried in their mobiles texting illegitimate words and not paying any attention to the world around them. When did the achievement of one's first piece of handwritten work become irrelevant? Oh that's right, it was when the first computer entered our lives! Don't get me wrong, I love my laptop, I think it has become an extension of my brain - Yes scary! I just wish that I could receive a letter that didn't consist of key-pressed lettering or uneven printed words because the paper wasn't positioned straight.
Stamps! Oh yes they are those things that people used to put on letters! They are almost obsolete now and it seems the only time that they get used is when we send out invoices or the yearly ritual of Christmas cards! Maybe I am the only one who still does that but I think it is nice to receive them. There is a line in the movie You've Got Mail where Mr Fox says "Mail, you know stamps; envelopes!" It is kind of poignant to think that when this movie was released, the computer generation was only in its first stages and even then it was expressed that they thought they were losing something of their culture; a part of their heritage. You are probably thinking, what is your point? Well I think we have lost a part of ourselves when we cannot even express our love for one another without it being a typed message on a screen!
Yes, I am guilty of this too! I just wish it was an art that was not on the verge of extinction!
"There is no lighter burden, nor more agreeable, then a pen"- Francesco Petrarch
Friday, February 17, 2012
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
'Desire to Accomplish'
The desire to be successful cannot be described easily, however sometimes it takes an epiphany of sorts to make you think about your chosen career path; one of those moments when you are watching the world go by; especially on a Monday morning!
I was sitting in my car while waiting for my local pharmacy to open, when I realised that the hustle and bustle of the morning peak hour somehow seemed irrelevant in the scheme of things! Yes this could be considered a clique, but for that split moment I couldn't understand why anyone, including those suit-cladded individuals, would want to spend hours in their day just trying to get to their small cubicle-like offices, where of course they would drudge away at mundane tasks. Everyone to their own I am sure, but isn't life about doing what you like to do? When did we go from the idealistic teenage view of living our dreams to just finding a job to pay the bills? I can hear you all screaming, no maybe these people are doing what they like!Well maybe, but I do not think the frowns on their faces show that they are happy to be off to work.
For me, the risk to do what I love, is of course a high price to pay. Do I live my life writing because I get paid a fortune for my wonderful words? I do not think so! Although in my dreams it is true! I do it because I cannot see myself doing anything else; not even for a pay check. I guess that is idealistic and somewhat naive but if I cannot imagine my life without writing a single story; a single article, then I feel I would not be living my own truth! (Oh! That is so Oprah!)
The great thing about being a writer is that the dream of being published is always there, no matter whether you have had a hundred books under your belt, and you still feel a sense of accomplishment with every new one. Every new story and every new novel will be another challenge; there is that moment of sheer exhilaration when you are looking for the right publisher for the piece and hoping for someone (the Editor, hopefully) to love what you have written. To always desire more from yourself as a writer is exciting, and I hope that this feeling never ceases because I like the anticipation of buying that newspaper and seeing my review in print or having my story published in an anthology!
For me this is not a job but a personal journey to unknown worlds; one which continues giving me butterflies!
I hope it does the same for you!
'I hope that I may always desire more than I can accomplish'- Michelangelo
I was sitting in my car while waiting for my local pharmacy to open, when I realised that the hustle and bustle of the morning peak hour somehow seemed irrelevant in the scheme of things! Yes this could be considered a clique, but for that split moment I couldn't understand why anyone, including those suit-cladded individuals, would want to spend hours in their day just trying to get to their small cubicle-like offices, where of course they would drudge away at mundane tasks. Everyone to their own I am sure, but isn't life about doing what you like to do? When did we go from the idealistic teenage view of living our dreams to just finding a job to pay the bills? I can hear you all screaming, no maybe these people are doing what they like!Well maybe, but I do not think the frowns on their faces show that they are happy to be off to work.
For me, the risk to do what I love, is of course a high price to pay. Do I live my life writing because I get paid a fortune for my wonderful words? I do not think so! Although in my dreams it is true! I do it because I cannot see myself doing anything else; not even for a pay check. I guess that is idealistic and somewhat naive but if I cannot imagine my life without writing a single story; a single article, then I feel I would not be living my own truth! (Oh! That is so Oprah!)
The great thing about being a writer is that the dream of being published is always there, no matter whether you have had a hundred books under your belt, and you still feel a sense of accomplishment with every new one. Every new story and every new novel will be another challenge; there is that moment of sheer exhilaration when you are looking for the right publisher for the piece and hoping for someone (the Editor, hopefully) to love what you have written. To always desire more from yourself as a writer is exciting, and I hope that this feeling never ceases because I like the anticipation of buying that newspaper and seeing my review in print or having my story published in an anthology!
For me this is not a job but a personal journey to unknown worlds; one which continues giving me butterflies!
I hope it does the same for you!
'I hope that I may always desire more than I can accomplish'- Michelangelo
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