Monday, May 28, 2012

Musing Monday - People Who Make An Impression

Today as I celebrate Memorial Day I think of my brother. He died young at 19 years old, taken out by a drunk driver the day after he completed infantry training. I remember him as a conflicted young man who partied hard with his friends and confided in me one day what he had been up to. Then I compare him in my mind to that highly focused young man who had later turned his life around and had become a Marine. He had been tapped for Secret Service training because of his excellent marksmanship. What a difference; night and day.

The mind is a powerful tool. We can squander away our time in meaningless pursuits, or we can find clarity and focus while bending our will to doing great things. My brother found purpose in his dream to become a Marine, then became highly focused after pursuing that dream.

I'd like to honor my brother today be becoming highly focused myself. I've lost steam in my writing projects and could use some new focus. I must admit I find Life2.0 a bit overwhelming at times. Disability. Divorce. Unemployment. It's hard to keep my spirits up–something that is key to staying productive for me. I have an author friend who writes sad tales who poured herself into her writing after her divorce. She wondered why I didn't do the same. I wish I could have, but haven't been able to manage it yet.

One needs faith in oneself in order to write, and faith in myself was something I had lost up until recently.

So I will spend today working on my ADHD eBook project. I am starting to believe in it again. And to warm myself up I propose the following writing exercise. Play along in the comments if you like.

Take a moment to write about a person you encountered recently who made an impression upon you. I've met quite a few. I've already told you about my brother today, but since easing into singles life is on my mind recently, I want to share the following:

I recognized her silhouette from a distance merely by the way she walked past the stairs. She didn't swing her hips as much as she rotated them, like a hula dancer in slow motion. She was graceful, poised. I was transfixed.

As I approached her, she came out from the shadows and I said "Hello, M—". She smiled in reply, driving the shadows further back, and I was struck by how piercing blue her eyes were. Oh, I've got it bad, but I'm content for now to say "Hello" and hear it echoed back. There's no sense in ruining the friendship we have with awkward advances. It is enough for me to feel her beauty move like a storm front across my heart.


~Dˢ