Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Ah, spring!

The view from my porch is pure heaven this morning! Nature accidentally shipped us some weeks of May in April. The air is make-you-want-to-run-around-the-yard warm and smells extra rich with oxygen. Sequins of dew glisten in the grass. Trees wear new-baby fuzz of green and rose. The birds whistle to each other, enjoying the view from their own porches. And here I sit, queen of all I survey, pecking on Minnie, my lovable laptop.

I wasn't this happy a few weeks ago. I ran into a rough patch when I felt as if my muse had not only deserted me but had come to the wrong address in the first place. I was stuck, stuck, stuck, and I despised everything I wrote. I do not pooh-pooh fortune-cookie fortunes. The one I drew read "Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence." So I kept slogging. I also needed this quote from Ellen Potter's interview on my friend Clara Gillow Clark's neat blog: "Things I hate about writing: I guess I don’t really hate anything about writing, but there are lots of times when I slam my head down on my desk and moan, 'This is hard!'” I eventually saw where I had wandered off course. My muse and I reconnected. I learned/relearned a few things that I hope will make me a better writer. Writing is not for the faint of heart. There sloughs of despond, but there are green fields, too.

I still think I'm a pretty lucky person.