ready to slide
photo by Purple Sky Photo
My gaze wanders to our mantle, mentally redesigning the
space.
I flip through running magazines looking for new workouts
and training plans.
So when the Write On Edge prompt presented itself this week,
I hesitated and considered calling it a night without a post scheduled for the
morning.
In “On Writing” Stephen King wrote, “The
scariest moment is always just before you start. After that, things can only
get better.”
Disagreeing
with the prolific Stephen King seems ridiculous. His success is legendary, his path paved with
best sellers and respect and ownership of his genre.
My
path is unsure, a hill obscuring what is next.
And
there are moments I agree with his statement.
I
hesitate before throwing aside warm blankets on a cold morning; I shrink from
jumping into Lake Michigan at the beginning of the summer, the water still chilled,
waiting to be warmed by months of sun.
But
bigger moments? Realizing I was ready to
get married? Choosing a new career path?
Starting a family?
Those
moments don’t scare me. I relish the planning,
the anticipation, the adrenaline of putting my plan in motion.
Follow
through is what brings the fear.
What
if I made the wrong choice?
Why
was I entrusted with the two most amazing creatures on the planet?
Am
I crazy to think I’m capable of that?
Stephen
King might have a problem getting into a plane to skydive, but my doubts creep
in after I’ve leapt into the sky, as I’m spiraling to the ground.
I
can only pray that my parachute catches the wind on the way down.
the prompt:
In “On Writing” Stephen King wrote, “The scariest moment is always just before you start. After that, things can only get better.”
Write a memoir post – first-person and true – inspired by that statement.
Word limit is 300.
And while we’re talking Stephen King, don’t forget! The first Read on Edge tweetchat will be Wednesday, October 19th! Happy reading and writing!
Well played, friend. Well played, indeed.
ReplyDeleteIt *is* hard to follow through, isn't it?
The second day of a diet, a run, even reading a clunky book.
Also? Tangerine nail polish! Go you!
So true. Hindsight is 20/20, buyer's remorse and all that jazz. I'm thinking there's more folks in your court than Mr. King's as those sayings are quite popular. At least in my world ;)
ReplyDeleteI like your take on the prompt. I think I'm more like you that Mr. King. Getting started for me is not scary at all, it's everything else that follows, as I usually realize, I've taken on more than I can manage!
ReplyDeleteThanks Alison! I have written a lot lately about my struggles to write, my struggles to run consistently, etc. I thought I would have a little fun with this one :)
ReplyDeleteI need to learn to think before taking on something else!
Isn't it interesting to think about? I GET what he's saying, and I think he can be right in some situations, but for me, the beginning is the easiest :)
ReplyDeleteSee, when you only use each color once or twice, you can have colors like tangerine. The only bottle that is consistently used is a pale, pale pink!
ReplyDeleteAnd perhaps well played, but he is giving advice from his Scrooge McDuck vault of cash, and I, well, I'm not ;)
I think I have to agree with you more than Mr. King. Yes, I have done things that are scary at first, but usually my doubts creep in after I've started.
ReplyDeleteIf you apply a clear coat of nail polish before dark or bright colors, it won't stain your nails. At least that's what I've been told. We'll find out when I try to take the black off my toe nails!
Fabulous - I love how you worked in the King quote.
ReplyDelete"I
ReplyDeletecan only pray that my parachute catches the wind on the way down." - so true! Nicely worded
So, it's easy for you to take the plunge, you just question yourself after doing so. I like that. Interesting for sure! :)
ReplyDeleteYou ended this beautifully!
ReplyDeleteWell played my friend..wow that was a fantastic take on the prompt.
ReplyDeleteWhile I am like Mr King...Ican see how the opposite could be true. I am a master procrastinator. I have degrees in it.LOL but once I start I don't stop....decorating, cleaning, writing it's the actually getting started that stifles me.
Oh Ang, how I loved this! It was the perfect way to show us a part of you...the writer! YEA!
And I use pink much more than the ther colors too!
Love it! I hesitate to disagree with the king of horror too, but I think I'm with you. The scary part is following through, staying committed to whatever it is you've chosen sometimes.
ReplyDeleteI am exactly the same--the leap doesn't scare me. It's the fall to the bottom that gets me!
ReplyDeleteLet's go tell Mr. King!
So true! Like the engagement here.
ReplyDeleteSo many nights, I'm just tempted to log off. It's hard, this mothering/writing/living thing we all do. And what a great job you did capturing that!
ReplyDeleteI see your point, but I'm more the Stephen King type. Planning, always planning. Planning until the flavor has gone of it. That's me avoiding actually doing something. And it usually works.
ReplyDeleteI admire the jump and think about it later types.
I can't decide if I'm more like you or like King. I really have no idea. I guess it would just depend on what I was doing. I don't know.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean. My nerves kick in after I've decided to do something. Then again, leading up to the decision is pretty scary for me too. Maybe I'm a mixture of both? ;)
ReplyDeleteI like this post a lot. I'd like to think that wrestling with self-doubt gets better with time and experience, but perhaps it is just a part of the process. I do think some are better at camouflaging their doubt than others.
ReplyDeleteI like the way you write. I don't have trouble with the big decisions - before, during or after. I'm a gung-ho type of gal. But I have a LOT of trouble with the small decisions - clean the kitchen, respond to blogs or work out. I get so frozen sometimes I don't do anything.
ReplyDeleteOh, lady. Your parachute is full.
ReplyDeleteSo lets not think.
Let's just write and run.
Ready, set, GO!
And we're off! Yes, writing and running will fill our parachutes, I think :)
ReplyDeleteThank you! Isn't it funny how things that shouldn't matter can seem like bigger deals than the actual big things?
ReplyDeleteLike the old saying, "Fake it 'til you make it?" I do think that you can practice more self-confident behavior and have things seem more natural the longer you do them.
ReplyDeleteI think having a mixture of both is probably a very healthy combination. My husband is like SK, and I am not. So I see both sides of it "in action" so to speak, and neither way works 100% of the time :(
ReplyDeleteI think it's probaby normal to be a little bit of both. Now, if you were thinking about pom martinis, it probably wouldn't be too scary to start them ;)
ReplyDeletePlanning as procrastination...hmmm, I can see the appeal of that at times.
ReplyDeleteJump and think about it later is great when it "works." When it doesn't it involves a lot of backpedeling. And usually apologies.
Balls in the air, all the time :) It's tough to know when to say when with some of it.
ReplyDeleteThank you :) I couldn't get the prompt "right," and then realized it was because I didn't agree with it.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure he will be very interested in our opinions! In fact, I'm sure he's already read this post. Right? Right?
ReplyDeleteYes, the choosing is easy for me. Sticking with things even when they get difficult, and everything gets difficult at some point, can be what scares me.
ReplyDeleteThanks Shell! I've been pretty lucky so far :)
ReplyDeleteYes, that's it for me. I like change and "doing" things. I am not always so great with consequences ;)
ReplyDeleteThank you! If it doesn't, I'm in trouble :(
ReplyDeleteThank you!
ReplyDeleteThat normally works for me (the clear nail polish,) but the teal is a cheaper brand, and it is ridiculous in its staining abilities!
ReplyDeleteSo which one of us should go tell SK we think he's wrong? :)
I guess I'm more like you with the big decisions. They don't really scare me...probably why I didn't write on the prompt for today ;)
ReplyDelete:) Maybe they SHOULD scare me. I have a harder time deciding to buy a pair of jeans than to have a baby. What's wrong with me??
ReplyDelete