Write, Write as Fast as You Can

I watched the beginning of the New York City Marathon yesterday morning.  At the exact moment it began, yours truly was on the DREADmill (refer to earlier post Trot Forrest Trot) just trying to sweat out 2 miles before fading to black, so I couldn’t fathom why anyone would, or even could, run 26.2 miles without stopping or at least passing out whichever occurred first.  Do you wonder if they’re thinking around mile 15, “Well, it sounded like a good idea at the time”?  I have to question their sanity.  If I could sit down with any one of them I would first ask not only HOW they do it, but WHY?  Why would anyone push themselves to the point of physical pain and exhaustion to reach a goal?  What could possibly be that important?

Why would any of us choose to pursue an interest that others might question?   You know like skydiving, tightrope walking, hillbilly hand fishing, or gasp, blogging?  Yes, this question was posed to me Saturday night in a noisy Mexican restaurant.  No, I was not asked about skydiving, tightrope walking or even the noble sport of hillbilly hand fishing, but about blogging.  Specifically what possessed me to start doing so.  And it was asked by none other than Legal Eagle’s ever so handsome and fantastically intelligent boyfriend sitting across the dinner table from me making small talk as I was shoving chips and salsa in my mouth.  Nice.

Here is the poetically lame answer that came out of my mouth as I gracefully tried to wipe away salsa dribbling down my chin, “Ummm…well…hmmm…uh, I like to write and it’s a creative way to do so.”  Mama Finch does not do well under pressure.

I have since had time to sleep on it and now realize how I should have responded.  I should have said blogging is actually a guise to write and writing is more than my hobby; it is my New York City Marathon.  It is the one thing besides my family and my God that I am willing to push myself to the brink for.  Writing is life and when words are fashioned together just so, it holds great power.  The written word has the ability to inspire.  It can make one laugh, cry, or get angry as it informs, entertains, changes opinions, stirs controversy, or even moves communities and/or nations to action.  The written word can change the world.  Even if your view of the world is from your kitchen table…as a blogger.  This is what I should have said.

His next question was how do I come up with topics?  Yep, I think that one is pretty much self-explanatory.