A good friend of mine once remarked that, “We live for the stories we can tell.” I guess people’s lives are really one big story with many vignettes along the way. Some of the stories are funny. Some are sad. Some show lessons that can be learned. Others simply entertain. Most of us love good stories.
These days my time is spent wandering and wondering–thinking about stories in the present and from the past. I wander taking hikes and/or long walks every day. That meandering gives me time to wonder not only about my surroundings but what has influenced my life.
Ever since I retired and moved to Estes Park, I have wanted to share thoughts through some type of personal reflective blog. Although I have plenty of time to do the writing, my insecurity about sharing has kept me from taking the plunge. I think I am now ready to share some stories that may be of interest to others. I’m going to give it a go!
The pandemic of the past few months has reinforced the need to be mindful daily and to stay in the moment. At the same time, I wonder what the future might hold as I reflect on where I have been. My Iowa farm roots as well as a career with abundant opportunities to teach, travel, and write has equipped me to view my world in many ways. Writing has been a way of life for me since I wrote my first (unpublished) novel when I was 6 years old. I consume quantities of information every day, and I want to create some reflections from my reading, my past life, my present reality, and my future world.
I am shooting for one post a week, maybe more and maybe less. I anticipate the pieces to be relatively short (200-1000 words). I need to write and to think out loud as I tell my stories. I hope my wandering and wondering will make you smile, remember, and/or raise an eyebrow. A writer needs to write and share from time to time. I look forward to connections that I might make through the stories I tell.
