It is what I do ...

 

“We are not called by God to do extraordinary things,

but to do ordinary things with extraordinary love. ”   

― Jean Vanier

 

 

 

In sixth grade, I received a check mark on my report card reflecting that I did not "keep profitably busy."  It truly hurt my feelings and I took the remark rather personally.  I do believe this comment still stings in reference to how I choose to spend my time.  It causes me to be defensive about my  hours of  reading and writing without showing an absolutely tangible outcome.

 

Reading Mark Nepo, THE BOOK OF AWAKENING, his writing infers that what we choose to do is more important than the sting.   My calling to share with unknown others and to devour authors  is greater than judgment.  It brings me a sense of who I am and that happens to be very important to me. 

 

It is not a secret that I spend most of my mornings writing and my afternoons reading non-fiction.  Fiction is reserved for the evenings. This is my routine and it brings me comfort to stick with it.  I am not rigid, but a bit disciplined.

 

In a discussion about my writing, I heard a skeptic ask, "Do you really believe your writing will be on the coffee table of every home, generating millions?"    I responded by quoting Alan Cohen from A DEEP BREATH OF LIFE, "It is more valuable to touch a small number of people in a quality way then to amass fame or fortune." I am not driven by any material outcome.  What flows through me during the time I write is shared with integrity as a simple gesture that makes my heart full.   It is what I do.