It would be sensible to assume that anyone who writes a daily blog would know what day of the week it is. You would be wrong. All day yesterday I thought it was Sunday and when I woke up this morning I thought it was Tuesday. There are consequences to this as today has witnessed. Thinking I am meeting Angie for coffee tomorrow which was, in fact, today I then find myself running down the road to meet her. I used to run in my youth and even quite fast but running isn't really what I should be doing now. As it was a self inflicted run I will not be asking for any sympathy. So, when I can't move later everyone is to just ignore me.
Leaving the island on Wednesday has rather focused the mind in other ways though and every bit of my life has moved into top gear. My poor plants are all lined you and standing to attention ready for their surrogate parents to take over. I have shifted as much of my professional life online as I could squeeze in to my tiny virtual home and it is nestled in nicely ready for the journey. I have considered the up and coming needs of all of my children and have lists popping up everywhere. My house, on the other hand, has not done so well and is quite shocking. I expect that, on my return, it will be gleaming! Harry is a whizz at getting the troops organised when he knows I am on my way home. I wouldn't want to deny my children this pleasure so the house can stay shocking.
I may have to put my kitten in my hand luggage and if I am not allowed I will have to speak to her on the phone several times a day. I will be phoning George to discuss the days play at Wimbledon anyway so he can just put her on when we are done. A rather late coffee with Angie has helped us move forward on a joint project which is hush hush at the moment so I can leave feeling that I have dotted and crossed with pink fluffy bells on. I know what you are all thinking because I am thinking the same thing. What has she forgotten because there is bound to be something! If there is I will simply ask my very nice pilot to turn the plane round and land in the playing fields at the bottom of the hill so I can attend to it. Perfect!
Sometimes my body doesn't move when I wake up so I have to stay put for a while so that my nervous system can get with the programme. This morning was one of those mornings but thankfully my brain still works so I work while I am waiting. With the very necessary large mug of tea I began to send out messages for submissions for my new site One soul, many hearts. October will be upon us before we have had our morning coffee and I want to give people plenty of time. All day I have had offers of pieces under various headings and all day I have been stopping to reply to emails.
I am mindful of my friend Kev who is joining me as a writer on this new site. Kev's writing career began as status updates on facebook until I asked him for a guest post on this blog. Kev now has his own site and we are starting to work together for One soul many hearts. It has been a fast and enchanting journey that I have felt privileged to witness. From the correspondence today I feel we have many more similar journeys to witness. I have people offering pieces who have never thought about writing before.
You all know me well enough to know how thrilled I am about that. I am not interested in well structured, well considered but benign writing. I am interested in writing that comes from the heart and tells us something of the soul that framed it. As a light touch editor I can work with the contributor to tidy up small details to ensure maximum impact but, ultimately, the piece must maintain its own voice and integrity. So I now have a gentle queue forming of pieces that we will all be able to read on the new site later in the year.
I can tell you immediately that the memoir writing is really going to tug at the heart strings but, at the same time, leave us full of hope. Despite a day peppered with email conversations and early drafts there was one piece that stood out for me. I am clearly not going to tell you about it here but you will, perhaps, be interested to know that it is from yet another old school friend. I am not sure we were a remarkable year in school but let me tell you that tiny year roaming about in their little village secondary school has grown into some truly amazingly talented people. I would add one more word to that description and that is brave. The bravery, along with the talent, will reveal itself in due course.
I have a message for each and everyone of you reading this post. There is a writer in all of us. It is not the occupation of a favoured view. It is a medium of expression that binds us together and, as such, is available to us all. If you have something to share this is your chance. A light editorial touch means that your piece always belongs to you. Once you have written it and shared it you are a writer. I am committed to finding the writer in as many people as possible and, as such, will support you the whole way. A few short months ago Kev updated his status and now he tells me that his love for writing just keeps growing. That is what happens with writing because we all have a lot to say once we get started. So please do get in touch even if it is just to toss an idea about for a while.....
To those of you who are now working on pieces I think you understand my gratitude but just in case - thank you so very much. I will be working on the new site when I am away so drop me an email if I can be of any help.
It might be a good time to leave the island because it is suddenly a bit chilly up here. What is the weather like on the south coast? Through me my soul sister has received over 60 messages of support from all over the world and she wants me to share this - "your soul sister is moved to tears and lifted by the kind thoughts and comments of your virtual community. Today was a bad day made better. Thank you xx"
We are doing good people, we really are.
Someone once told me to listen to these lyrics often and if I ever needed him he would be there. He has been true to these words. Sometimes life is one step at a time and nothing more complicated than that.
Until tomorrow xx
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