I met today with my writing “group”—we
are now pretty much a group of two—and we were commiserating about how hard
writing is. She said it’s like having homework as a hobby. Spot on, my friend.
It’s lonely, complicated labor, and there is little pleasure to be derived from
it most of the time. It’s not glamorous or flashy, and none of your friends are
interested in your work until you actually get published, and sometimes not even
then. Which is why I have come to appreciate my little rug-making hobby so much.
I can see the progress of my work in real time. I know there will be a real
thing created that will bring a bit of whimsical happiness to the recipient. I’m
working with my hands in a way that I find meditative and relaxing. Writing is
hair-pullingly frustrating, and no one has the slightest empathy for your
struggle. Why should they? You have elected, entirely of your own accord, to create
some imaginary world that exists only in your head. It’s incredible to me that I choose to spend most of my free time
engaged in such an activity. Which leads me to an explanation of why this week’s
blog post is going to be a short one—I’m feeling a bit burnt out, and I just
want to work on my rug while watching mindless TV. So that is what I shall do. Here’s
the progress of my rug so far:
And here is video of a cartoon
cat:
--Kristen McHenry
2 comments:
I like that. It's pretty. I like clear, pure colors. I've never really gotten past the age of five in that regard. And I can't imagine the patience and skill it takes to make something like that.
On the issue of writing, you might check out my recent whining on the subject, Writing and the Meaning of My Life. It's kind of uplifting in a real downer of a way.
But having read what you wrote, maybe I don't enjoy writing; maybe it is just a compulsion. That's a sad thought.
Hi, Frank
I'll take a look at your link--thanks! The rugs don't actually require that much patience, which explains why I'm able to make them :) And I'm with you about the colors--I love working in color. And this rug is made up of some of my favorite colors, so it's especially pleasing to work on it.
For me, I think writing is all about escape; having some fictional world I can enter into when real life gets to be too much, which it usually always is. It might be a different thing if I wrote a lot of non-fiction, which I don't do except on my blog.
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