I am not a fan of the ‘New Year Resolution’, I just never
saw the point in it. If you are going to resolve to do something then do it,
here and now, don’t wait for some social convention to come along once a year;
that is just procrastination!
When it comes to doing things I try to get on and do them
once I’ve made up my mind that way. I do agree that there is often a certain
amount pf preparation involved in many undertakings. That is just common-sense.
If you want a successful outcome to what you are going to do then you have to
pay attention to the not so interesting stuff, like organization, research,
logistics, etc. This part of any activity is not my favourite but I console
myself with the reminder that it is not going to last, that it will pass and
that it will lead to me doing the thing that I’ve set my mind to do; the
enjoyable bit in other words.
Where is all this leading? It is leading me to resolving to
getting my writing back on track. I have had a major interval of not being able
to do very much at all. It is not just the writing either, although that is the
most important aspect to me, there is also the social side of making your
presence felt as an author through the internet.
It takes time to get your name known, and your face if you
care to put it out there, but all that work can be undone by an unplanned
absence. Personally I found it very frustrating to be forced into a kind of
hiatus caused by building work and the subsequent redecoration that followed,
but I am not complaining. It happened, it was necessary and my wife is very
happy with the end result, which makes me happy too. My working environment is
still not perfect because the Christmas holidays have arrived but I love
Christmas so I am going to embrace all the work, I am responsible for the
Christmas decorations and I cook as well, the interruptions of family visits
and getting together with friends, the lack of a routine, and all that is best
in the festive season.
Most of all I am resolved at this time of year to get my
writing career back on track!
I will be doing this in as positive a way as I can, simply
because I am a very positive kind of person. I made a resolution once to write
a book and I did it…twice! I resolved to fly an aeroplane and I did that as
well. I did not wait for New Year to come round to make these resolutions, I
committed myself when they occurred to me and I the very idea of them excited
me.
The point is that life can pass you by in the waiting. Two
weeks ago I said good bye to someone and did not see them again for four days.
At the end of that interval I discovered that this person had died suddenly and
unexpectedly. This is not the first time that something like this has happened
to someone I have known but it reinforces the realisation of how fragile life
is all the more powerfully. I love life and I love living it, even when it
hurts.
I may never write an international bestseller or see one my
books turned into a movie or be lauded by the intelligentsia but I don’t do
anything for those kind of reasons. I write because I love telling a story,
using words to craft a tale, entertaining people. I draw and paint because I
love losing myself in the creation of an image. I cook because it brings
pleasure to my wife. I socialise because it gives pleasure to me to spend time
with family and friends, including those I never really get to see across the
internet. I live life because it is all we ever have, this very moment, right
here and right now, and we can lose it in a split second. I wear an ankh to
remind me of this fact.
Next year there are many things that I am resolved to do but
I am not going to wait until one minute into January 2015 to commit myself to
doing them; I’ve already made that decision. I choose to live life now and pass
through the mundane to reach those highpoints that become our memories
tomorrow.
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