Unveiling the Joy of Writing

Further Thoughts on My Love of Writing

After I wrote my article on the Joy of Writing, I realized I hadn’t added the reason I have for the impulse to put pen to paper. After some reflection, I discovered my motives were more than several; furthermore, they have evolved over time.

Initially, I wrote to tell stories of my experiences or articles about interesting subjects I encountered. As the muse strikes, I will always write stories for entertainment, humor, topics of odd interest, and things that take you into the backroads of my mind. What Forrest Gump would have said if he was a writer. “Writing is like a box of chocolates; you never know what will end on paper.”

Most of these came unbidden into my mind; at times when it was inconvenient to write them down, for instance, at 3 AM. I learned quickly to get up and write the entire draft before trying to get a wink of sleep. Even when writing a weekly opinion column for the Ennis News, I would have several in draft form that had dropped out of the sky, hitting me on the head, demanding to be penned before the need arose. I don’t remember having to work on coming up with an idea to meet the submission deadline for the paper.

While writing for the newspaper, I shifted my focus to what I wanted to convey to my readers. I started writing some articles to encourage readers to ponder alternative viewpoints. Not necessarily to challenge their beliefs on a subject but to have them consider what another perspective might do to either validate, modify, or even change their minds about something after close examination. These articles are written for those curious about others’ ideas or beliefs. These thought-stimulating articles were crafted for those with an open mind who were willing to examine all aspects of a topic and embrace fresh insights. One document that began as an exercise in understanding my spiritual progression from youth to present became, as of this writing, a 14,000-word plus article, which I finally posted titled My Spiritual Journey. My effort at personal spiritual growth was rocky. If challenges are to strengthen you, I should be Charles Atlas by now.

One of the side benefits of examining diverse elements of a subject is the ability to comprehend others’ motivations. Yes, our world has individuals driven by greed, hatred, and the quest for dominance. However, my life journey involving interactions with thousands of people from various races, creeds, identities, cultures, and positions over 75 years has been overwhelmingly positive. If I’ve ever known a genuinely evil person, I remained oblivious. Most of us have flaws; we make errors and misbehave sometimes, but our core intention is for good, and we reject the notion of causing damage to others. If you ask almost anyone if they want to harm any part of life, they will say no – but they might express that their way of solving harm to life differs from yours.

Through many of my articles, I hope to deepen the understanding of our fellow humans. My personal improvement writing, an outgrowth of my experience in life, is intended to inspire you, my valued readers, to contribute towards a better world. I hope my narratives brighten your day and uplift your spirits. I urge you to connect with people who may see the world differently and listen to their stories for personal growth. I hope my continuing storytelling and spiritual journey may serve as a source of inspiration for your path, whatever that might be. And I think this should be something other than an arduous task; we are meant to have a joyful life.

Have fun, be kind, and I hope you enjoy reading my life as much as I have gotten high on living it. I can’t wait to see what the next 75 years have to offer – whoopee!