Do You Mind Exercise?
Greetings to The Tribe!
I hope you all enjoyed your Halloween festivities and have made a smooth transition to November as we journey toward winter. Lately, I have taken up exercising on a regular basis for perhaps the first time in my life since before forced to take physical education in school. I have been told that the best way to ensure that you will adapt exercise regularly to your lifestyle is to make sure it is something you enjoy.
That's funny. To me, "exercise" and "enjoyment" are mutually exclusive. Much to my surprise, I found that there is a form of exercise that I actually -- GASP -- enjoy. I have taken up swimming. I have found that, in the pool, I am graceful. In the pool, I am at least 30 years younger and the boundaries aging has forced upon me no longer exist.
So, I thought ... well, now I am exercising my body - why not my mind, as well?
My little sister, Betty Jo, gave me a book recently called, Do The Work by Steven Pressfield. My sister found it inspirational in her writing endeavors and felt I would find a similar motivation. She was so right! Super Sister points for Beej!! I have FINALLY begun serious, regular work on my novel, The Gifted. I am more than 4,000 words into it. However, I find myself wanting to do something to hone my craft as I write. I have decided to chronicle my journey in my blog, but I also want to start working some mind exercises, as well.
As I did with the body, I had to consider an activity that I would enjoy; which, will make it more likely that I will continue this exercise. I think I have a solution. When I was in college, I had a creative writing professor who like to have people describe things ... anything. A moment, the entry hall to your house, your second birthday -- it didn't matter -- he just wanted us all to use as much detail as possible to make the reader see the moment, as well. So, that is what I am going to do. I have actually been doing this sort of thing my whole life. I call it word doodling. Even if it is just a paragraph. It's still good exercise.
The moment I wanted to describe today was a moment in my kitchen early this morning. So, here goes:
I love the quiet, sacred hours of early morning -- particularly just after dawn. Those moments have an actual weight. They feel different than the rest of the day. Those moments remind me of the way holidays always felt for me when I was a child. Those days were heavy with anticipation and potential. This morning, I rose early to get some writing done. I started the coffee maker and the house was soon redolent with the intoxicating scent of espresso roast -- freshly ground the night before. When the coffee was ready, I prepared a cup for myself and my still-sleeping husband. As I stirred my cup, my daughter, Whitney, sleepily shuffled into the room. At the age of 26, she has no idea how clearly I still see the little girl that she was in her tousled dark hair and sleepy, brown eyes. Whitney walked to the kitchen sink and stared out as the newborn morning for a moment before expelling an excited whisper and waving for me to come to her. When I looked outside the kitchen window, I was first stunned, for one of hundreds of moments, at how beautiful the woods are in autumn. Even as the thought came to my mind, the wind picked up and a shower of leaves fell like a rich rain of fiery color. After the enchanting onslaught cleared, I saw two deer grazing in the distance. The two deer peacefully grazing in the soft morning fog did not pay us any attention. Whitney and I held our breath as we watched, spellbound. It was like being in church. No one could have been more worshipful than we were in that moment.
Okay ... that's what I have for today. Feel free to comment with word doodles of your own. Feel free to share!
Well, that's it for now. Until next time, you all can consider yourselves hugged!
-- LA
I hope you all enjoyed your Halloween festivities and have made a smooth transition to November as we journey toward winter. Lately, I have taken up exercising on a regular basis for perhaps the first time in my life since before forced to take physical education in school. I have been told that the best way to ensure that you will adapt exercise regularly to your lifestyle is to make sure it is something you enjoy.
That's funny. To me, "exercise" and "enjoyment" are mutually exclusive. Much to my surprise, I found that there is a form of exercise that I actually -- GASP -- enjoy. I have taken up swimming. I have found that, in the pool, I am graceful. In the pool, I am at least 30 years younger and the boundaries aging has forced upon me no longer exist.
So, I thought ... well, now I am exercising my body - why not my mind, as well?
My little sister, Betty Jo, gave me a book recently called, Do The Work by Steven Pressfield. My sister found it inspirational in her writing endeavors and felt I would find a similar motivation. She was so right! Super Sister points for Beej!! I have FINALLY begun serious, regular work on my novel, The Gifted. I am more than 4,000 words into it. However, I find myself wanting to do something to hone my craft as I write. I have decided to chronicle my journey in my blog, but I also want to start working some mind exercises, as well.
As I did with the body, I had to consider an activity that I would enjoy; which, will make it more likely that I will continue this exercise. I think I have a solution. When I was in college, I had a creative writing professor who like to have people describe things ... anything. A moment, the entry hall to your house, your second birthday -- it didn't matter -- he just wanted us all to use as much detail as possible to make the reader see the moment, as well. So, that is what I am going to do. I have actually been doing this sort of thing my whole life. I call it word doodling. Even if it is just a paragraph. It's still good exercise.
The moment I wanted to describe today was a moment in my kitchen early this morning. So, here goes:
I love the quiet, sacred hours of early morning -- particularly just after dawn. Those moments have an actual weight. They feel different than the rest of the day. Those moments remind me of the way holidays always felt for me when I was a child. Those days were heavy with anticipation and potential. This morning, I rose early to get some writing done. I started the coffee maker and the house was soon redolent with the intoxicating scent of espresso roast -- freshly ground the night before. When the coffee was ready, I prepared a cup for myself and my still-sleeping husband. As I stirred my cup, my daughter, Whitney, sleepily shuffled into the room. At the age of 26, she has no idea how clearly I still see the little girl that she was in her tousled dark hair and sleepy, brown eyes. Whitney walked to the kitchen sink and stared out as the newborn morning for a moment before expelling an excited whisper and waving for me to come to her. When I looked outside the kitchen window, I was first stunned, for one of hundreds of moments, at how beautiful the woods are in autumn. Even as the thought came to my mind, the wind picked up and a shower of leaves fell like a rich rain of fiery color. After the enchanting onslaught cleared, I saw two deer grazing in the distance. The two deer peacefully grazing in the soft morning fog did not pay us any attention. Whitney and I held our breath as we watched, spellbound. It was like being in church. No one could have been more worshipful than we were in that moment.
Okay ... that's what I have for today. Feel free to comment with word doodles of your own. Feel free to share!
Well, that's it for now. Until next time, you all can consider yourselves hugged!
-- LA
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