On gratitude

I should have posted this a few days ago, but I was happily occupied with Thanksgiving festivities and then occupied with Christmas shopping. Needless to say, I didn’t do any writing over the holiday weekend. I did, however, decide that I should commit to writing at the desk in our office/third bedroom. Writing in front of the TV is not working for me. Go figure.

To be honest, I don’t really care that much about Thanksgiving, the day. I like the family time; I don’t like the history with the entitled settlers and the encroached-upon Indians. I love gratitude–but on a daily basis, not once a year. These authors’ words ring true no matter the day.

“Got no check books, got no banks. Still I’d like to express my thanks — I got the sun in the mornin’ and the moon at night.” — Irving Berlin

“I awoke this morning with devout thanksgiving for my friends, the old and new.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson

“The essence of all beautiful art, all great art, is gratitude.” — Friedrich Nietzsche

“Gratitude bestows reverence, allowing us to encounter everyday epiphanies, those transcendent moments of awe that change forever how we experience life and the world.” — John Milton

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Lastly, here some things I’m thankful for as a writer.

1. The Internet. When I first started writing novels, I had to trek to the library and use the card catalogs to do necessary research. Not so anymore.

2. Other writers and their blogs. It’s so nice to know I’m not alone in my frustrations, eccentricities, and stubborn passions. I’m in good company on this writing journey.

3. Print is NOT dead. Despite the rumors, I still see people reading on a daily basis.

4. Digital opportunities. For example, I just read in Poets & Writers that the novella is making a comeback because the digital world has room for it. Previously, novellas were too long for magazines/journals, too short to be published as books. In the digital world, the length of a piece is no longer as important as the attention that piece holds.

5. I have an outlet, always. Whether I’m rich or poor, happy or sad, I have this unique desire and ability to create stories that never fail to make me feel good.