Lessons learned.

Dear, wonderful blog-reading friends, family, acquaintances, and strangers: may I call to your attention that it is officially April 24th. Actually, I guess I don’t need to lie to you all by now–you know me well enough to know that there’s no way I’m writing this post before midnight. It’s technically April 25th, and I am only hours away from being alive for a full 21 happily lived years. Furthermore, it should be noted that the thrill of that statement extends beyond the usual birthday cheer this time around. Not only do I get to be born 21 years ago and have a whole day to celebrate with ones that I love, I get to do so with the satisfaction of having tackled this project and seen it through to completion.

I feel pretty good about that fact. As you may note from the image above (given to me by a thoughtful friend with a good sense of humor), it hasn’t all been a dream come true, exactly. Still, I’m so glad I chose to do it, and even happier that I made it to this victorious point.

But, as with most ends and beginnings, it comes with some sad to add texture to the happy. There are many things about this blog that I’ve grown to love (although the late bedtimes are not in that category), and I’ll be sad to see them go. Some of these things I expected, like the forced creativity that comes with writing daily, but others have taken me by surprise. I guess it’s safe to say that I learned some lessons in this endeavor, which is exactly what I was hoping would take place. And, of course, what kind of blogger or type-A personality would I be if I didn’t make a list of a few of these lessons learned for your reading pleasure?

So, here it is, the final entry of three hundred and sixty five days of writing. Begin.

Lesson #1: There are no muses. Having fun and being creative are not gifts from the writing gods–you have to chase them down. And by that, I mean that when you decide to write every day for a year, you will sometimes sit down and hold your fingers poised over the keyboard, with no lightning bolts or revelations in sight. That’s when you have to ask yourself, What are my options?

I can… a) write a blog about how uninspired I am (and make everyone else feel bummed)
b) quit this mess and get a less demanding hobby
c) eat my feelings
d) think happy thoughts and write something decent

And then you choose. And it’s not really easy to choose, sometimes, when the words just won’t seem to appear. This is why it’s a lesson learned–inspiration is peripheral. Creativity is a choice.

Lesson #2: Fiction can be fun, too. This is an easy one to explain, though not always believable in practice. It’s quite enjoyable to re-read the tiny moments of characterization that I’ve created over the last 12 months. But it’s tough to make something out of nothing, to take the details of my life or the lives of people around me and make then unrecognizable–hidden in the hemline of a good story. Well, a snapshot of a story. It might be a worthwhile venture to spend a whole year just adding to one story every day… I could probably use the practice.

Really, this category should be the catch-all for the many different styles of blog entry that I tested on you folk this year. That was one of my favorite things about this experience, I think–so many different kinds of words found their way to the surface. Sometimes it seemed like the driest spells were merely a precursor to knowing exactly what to say, and how.

Lesson #3: Consistency brings community. Or, maybe just writing every day and putting it online for the whole world to see makes you feel like everyone is your friend. Either way, throughout this project, I’m not even sure how many people sent me messages or spoke to me in person about the contents of my blog. And let me tell you, this girl loved every minute of it. I have been so encouraged by the level of positive feedback that has found its way to me because of 365 days of writing. You people are a rockstar group of friends to be writing to, and I’m so grateful that you’re out there, helping me feel like this counts for something on the days when I wasn’t so sure.

Another side of the same coin is how connected I’ve felt to far away loved ones as a result of this blog. You would think that the readers of a blog, rather than the writer, would feel connected with the author, and this may also have been true. I found, however, that the opposite was increasingly more definite over time, so much so that I don’t much like the idea of splitting ways from Ty in the summer without this form of communication so readily available. Part of that, though, belongs to my next point…

Lesson #4: Stories should be remembered. This is not exactly groundbreaking, I know, but it is important. So many memories would have fallen through the cracks this year if it weren’t for the fact that I had already determined to write something that day. For this reason alone, a 365 project is worth considering, particularly if your life is exceptionally eventful. Mine clearly does not fall into such a category, but I still loved writing it down.

And, although I’m sure there are more, I have made it to a point in the evening at which I feel must finally retire (2:27AM, to be exact). Truthfully, I’d like to say first a big fat

THANK YOU VERY MUCH (please click this, it is my gift to you)

to every one of you who has been with me, reading through this journey. Honestly, I can say that I’m probably a little bit too weak-willed to have kept going if there wasn’t a soul watching, and this would have likely turned into a 124 day project if that were the case. Your participation has been of the utmost importance, and I’ve always felt honored that anyone would take the time to read my words. A double-thank you to the ones who took the time to encourage me along the way… you are saints of the blogging realm.

Now, it is possible that more will be written here, or somewhere else, soon. But with the end of this season comes a new one, and a new challenge of some kind. More details on this are forthcoming.

As for now, after a year of my words, I leave you with some of my most favorite ones from two other writers’ brains…

“If I lose the light of the sun, I will write by candlelight, moonlight, no light. If I lose pen and paper, I will write in blood on forgotten walls. I will write always. I will capture nights all over the world and bring them to you.”
[Henry Rollins]

“Develop interest in life as you see it; in people, things, literature, music – the world is so rich, simply throbbing with rich treasures, beautiful souls and interesting people. Forget yourself.”
[Henry Miller]

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a birthday awaiting me on the other side of sleep.

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