Since I decided that I was going to write more often, be that in the blog, or poetry, or a handwritten journal, I have been somewhat amazed at how it has helped. I have written almost every day. I have written more poems in the last two weeks than in the last two years!
A big part of the impetus to keep me going in the last few days has come from a post that Kristen Lamb put on her blog following NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month for those that don’t follow it, the idea is to write a 50,000 word novel entirely in the month of November ), you can read the post here, it’s a great read and I got a lot from it. The basic concept is one that anyone seeking self improvement, self help, external help or any sort of change should at least think about; every journey starts with one step. My journey towards living a more positive life started with the simple action of agreeing with someone. I agreed with my mum that I needed to go to the Doctor and tell him how/what I was feeling. That one thing started me down the wobbly road with may pitfalls, cliffs, alligators, T Rexes and swamps that lead to where I am today, teetering along the narrow path of a positive life. That was almost 20 years ago now, but I can still feel the echoes and ripples of that moment.
Whatever the endeavour, a single step is always the best way to start. Want to be a writer? Write something, anything! Want to be a painter? Buy some cheap paints, some paper, and let yourself go on the page. Want to be able to run a marathon? Go for a walk first. Want to blog every single day about something people want to read about? I am still working on that one, but I am finding that just commiting to writing a few times a week is a good first step, I have usually written more without even trying really.
Does that make sense? Have you started any journeys recently? Are you well down a path that started with a small moment?
PS as I wrote the title I was reminded of a quote from my favourite series of fantasy novels “New roads demand a Hoopak”. 10 points for identifying the novels and 25 points for the character 🙂