Being a writer is not a career choice for the faint-hearted. There is a lot more to it than putting words on paper (or your computer screen). It takes courage to share what your ideas are and then there are all the extra crosses you have to bear…with computers there is help with spelling and grammar but I still recall that writing course I took years ago and the red comments at the top of my typewritten assignments…humbling, so humbling.
And there is patience. Waiting for that reply back that says either …”we are happy to accept” or “ we find your article does not fit in with our guidelines” or sometimes no answer at all and you and your article are left hanging in space for ever. A recent request to print one of my articles came five years after I had sent it. That’s really pushing things at my age.
Yes, rejection and patience are part of the job. And of course there is paper. Whoever said that computers would eliminate paper knew nothing. I am surrounded by ‘hard copies’ that get dragged from room to room (and constantly revised and edited) and paper scraps that contain those insights that come when you least expect them.
But oh the joy of seeing your words in print or on a web site! Your prayers have been answered .
Actually real life is much like a writer’s life…full of searching for answers and insights, trying hard to please God and sometimes messing up something awful. You wait and wait for answers to your prayers and are often told (usually in a kind way), that this is not the time and not particularly in God’s plans for you.
You observe life and see God in so many aspects of life…and you want to share it…the twin girls across the street, all dressed in pink, holding their Daddy’s hand. His conversation is about potty training. Now that is getting down to the basics. There is loving pride in the face of a mother as she shares her grown daughters’ visit with our bible study group. It’s her birthday and I light the big blue birthday candle and we sing together and thank God for the blessing of the years we have known her. These are all reflections of God’s love and I want to point them out and say “Look, look what the Lord has provided” and remind you of His presence in the simpler things of life.
The world is so complicated today and we are threatened on all sides. I cannot ignore the tragedies that are happening even on my own street (I live in Seniors Housing and we are all waiting for God) but He says “Fear not” and that is the message of hope that wants to flow from my fingers. With God (and my Editors) help I’ll be allowed to share that story.
Photo by Lívia Cristina L. C. via Flickr/CC
