Inspiration Strikes Again...

Inspiration strikes at the most unexpected times.  Last night, my wife and I actually had an opportunity to go on a date together, something we've not been able to do for a long time, longer than I remember.  Living in northern New Hampshire, however, affords us few options, and so, we found ourselves defaulting to the standard 'dinner and a movie'.  At least it was a chance to get out, just the two of us, away from the mounting pressures that have been looming over us.

Since the last few movies we've seen together have been more my choice than hers (much to my shame, I took her to see "I Am Legend" on our 11th anniversary...), I insisted that we see something "chick flickish".  After numerous protests on her part, we finally agreed to go see "Julie and Julia".  She was apprehensive about sitting through such a movie with me, and rightfully so, because I have an unexplained aversion to just about any program on the Food Network.  It's a character flaw, I know, but I can't seem to get through even one of those shows without squirming and sighing.

What mattered last night, though, was that we were together, sitting cozily in a warm movie theater.  I didn't expect to actually *like* the movie, but I was resolved to enjoy the moment.  Surprisingly, however, I was soon drawn into the story, and two hours later, walked out of the theater very glad that we had gone.

Anyway, watching the main character, Julie Powell, decide to write a blog about her attempt to cook all 524 recipes in Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume 1 in 365 days, I was reminded of the blogs I had previously started and subsequently left mostly unwritten.  At first, the oh-too-familiar guilt and self-condemnation set in, but with further thought, a spark of inspiration was ignited.

Elbert Hubbard once wrote, "There is no failure except in no longer trying."  As I watched the movie unfold, I realized that, as one character told Julie, Julia Child wasn't always 'Julia Child'.  Both characters, Julie and Julia, were just ordinary people who had caught a vision for something they thought they might like to do, and set off toward that goal, refusing to be dissuaded by rejections and emotional setbacks.

I love writing.  I always have, even though I suffered from writer's block for most of the last twenty years of my life.  I'm currently midway through my Creative Writing class, and I've rediscovered my passion for writing.  Past efforts to write a blog have been an attempt to find an outlet for that elusive urge to write, but have been frustrated by my own self-doubt, the harsh inner critic constantly nitpicking at my every word, and most of all, an avoidance of getting real with myself.

I'm not writing for fame or fortune, but simply because I genuinely enjoy the process.  So, having said that, I mouse over "Publish Post", and thus begin a new blog...