Evening meditation time. The third Tuesday of each month is always a full dose of creativity for me. First, I meet with my monthly writing group for lunch. This inspires me with all of the word-related areas of my brain. Some of the writers work on non-fiction, others on fiction. Some are writing memoirs. Others are delving into mysteries. We talk about how real-life situations can then bring a book to life. We explore how characters interact with each other. How details make a scene pop. We talk a lot about how reading a book can have an enormous impact on a person’s daily life.
I’m sure we all have a book which resonates with us. Which changed the way we view each day. Books have that kind of power. As authors, we know we have a responsibility to respect a reader’s time and to give them the very best experience we can. One which is is worthy of the precious investment of their time.
Then, in the evening, I meet with the Blackstone Valley Art Association. This group has an amazing collection of photographers, oil painters, acrylic painters, watercolorists, illustrators, sculptors, and pretty much any other kind of art you can image. Each person brings a different view to things. Some love realism. Others are more abstract. Some create idyllic worlds while others want every detail exactly accurate. Talking with each artist there gives a person a fresh view on the possibilities out there. It is a continual learning process.
Learning and growing is just so key in life. It’s what keeps our brain healthy. It lets us improve and expand.
We only have one precious, short life. Our time here is a mere blip on the cosmic scale. The universe as a whole is about 14 billions of years old. Our Earth came into being about 4.5 billion years ago. Humans as a genus of creatures first came about only about 2 million years ago. We only began to have city-like groups in 3000 BC. And the average human life in modern times in the US? About 79 years. That’s it. A mere 79 years. If you’re a teenager, 79 years might seem like a long, long time. But really, 79 years is an eye-blink. It’s a hiccup. It flashes by and it’s gone. Heck, Haley’s comet comes by every 79 years or so. A person sees it once and then they’re gone. The comet keeps coming back and back.
So we should make the most of every day we have. Every day is precious. Every day is a chance to create something unique to us, to our view, to our stage in life. Something which can outlive us and show to others what we thought of the world around us.
Namaste.