Creative Non-fiction

I went to a reading today at the college library by (Leif) Eric Rigney on writing creative non-fiction. He talked about what creative non-fiction is and read several of his pieces about his life. I really enjoyed listening to his stories, and I realized I want to record some of my stories similarly. I've always enjoyed recording on paper my experiences--trying to recreate details that colored the story and gave it depth and a sense of realism--but I never thought about that type of writing as a genre. I'm going to start on a couple of pieces and see what happens.

Destiny is tied to the destination

Jon Weese spoke tonight about how our destiny in life is tied to our destination. In other words, what we do with our lives--our actions, our treatment of others, our attitudes and behaviors--is tied to where we are headed. If I am headed to heaven--to spend eternity in God's presence--I must live out that destination. That is my destiny.

I've never been one to live in the hope of "pie in the sky someday." Heaven is great to long for and dream about, but dreaming about it doesn't make for a very productive life. In my work as a pastor, I tried to help people see value in the right now, the moment, today. Wishing for what will come one day keeps people focused on themselves, not on serving other people, and I think that's a faulty way to live.

So Jon's words tonight got me thinking about what I'm doing of value right now. I know that my teaching has value, and I know that I make a positive difference for a lot of people most days. But I also am aware that I drift too much, that I waste a lot of time. Days go by without my ever thinking about what I need to be doing for the kingdom. I want to be more destiny focused. I know my destination; I want the destiny to be experienced moment by moment.

A new avocation

Last spring, I took an introductory acting class for fun. Little did I know just how much fun it would be! At the end of the semester, I auditioned for and got a part in the Musical Working, which the college and Studio Players put on during the summer (13 shows over 4 weekends). I played the bitter, racist teacher, Rose Hoffman, and one of the operators, Heather Lamb. I sang a solo, Nobody Tells Me How, the teacher's lament; I sang harmony on Un Mejor Dia Vendra; and I sang backup (and danced!) with 2 other singers on Cleaning Women. It was a blast!!

This fall I'm taking a physical acting class and just auditioned for another play, The Night Thoreau Spent in Jail. I got word last week that I have been cast for the role of Thoreau's mother! It's a joint production between the college and Actor's Guild and will run for 3 nights in November.

I can't believe how much I'm enjoying this new venture. I was always too shy to get up in front of people. Of course, I've taught for years, and I've led music and worship at several churches over the past 17 years, but I was never completely comfortable with myself in those roles. But something has clicked, and I love acting! I feel as if I've discovered some new part of myself.

Linus the cat

We have 9 cats and 3 dogs, and I know I'm not supposed to have a favorite "child," but Linus is just so cute! Somehow I discovered that he likes to retrieve paperwads, so I have spent many, MANY hours throwing and re-throwing paperwads for him to bring back and drop at my feet. He goes wild whenever he hears paper rustling, expecting the paper to turn into a ball that we'll throw for him to chase afer. I call him my "tabby retriever," certainly a more dignified description than alley cat!

We got him and 3 of his siblings 5 years ago from a local rescue organization, Woodstock. We got 3 of the kittens first and had them for several weeks before their scheduled spay/neuter appointment. When I went to pick them up the evening of their surgeries, I was informed that I also had to take the other 2 siblings, something I had not previously known about or agreed to. But the kittens needed a foster home, so we took all 5 home with us. After several weeks, Jason and I were so attached to them that we almost couldn't bear to take them to the adoption center, but we did. A week later, we went to see if any of the kittens were left and were shocked to see that none of them had been adopted. Those 5 sweet babies had spent an entire week of their short lives in a cage! We couldn't stand the thought of it, remembering how mischievously they had romped through our house. So we asked if we could take them home to let them get some exercise. Woodstock agreed to let us do that, so we prepared the carriers to transport the kitties back home. But before we could leave, one of the kittens, Little Hoss, was adopted. He was one of the more energetic and mischievous of the kittens, so we named him for his similarity to one of our adult cats, Hoss, who also likes to gallop and play. (He's the big, orange tabby who walks in to see what's going on in the video.) Thankfully, he got a wonderful home, and we heard later that his family absolutely loves him. Anyway, we took the other 4 home and have kept them ever since. We just couldn't bring ourselves to let them go. We had 10 cats them, certainly more than we needed, but we loved them all and couldn't part with any of them.

So this is Linus, my favorite. He's the kitty I play with; he also sleeps on my pillow and shares my breath at night. I'll share about Pelly, Hoss, Slick, Patches, Julie (who also appears in the video), Lilly, Lucy, and Felix in subsequent posts. I'm sure you can't wait!

To blog or not to blog....

I had been thinking about starting one of these things but never seriously considered it until one of nieces started a blog last week. It seemed like such an easy way to capture thoughts and share them, so here I am, starting my own.

I've always been a writer, a keeper of journals and diaries, but they've been private collections. This is a new venture, putting my words out for others to read without my overview. But it will keep me honest. It will expose me to a critical audience, one that might not really be interested in what I have to say, one that doesn't know me or, possibly, like me!

We'll see how it goes. I have several ideas I've been wanting to write about, so I'll take a few minutes over the next week and jot down some thoughts. I look forward to sharing them.