A couple of weeks ago I decided it would be a good idea to keep a notebook in the car that I can write in when the mood strikes, as it sometimes does when I have leisure time away from the house. I had to start a mileage log for tax purposes anyway, so I chose a notebook I could use for both purposes.
Yesterday, as I waited in the van for my friend to meet me for a late afternoon walk, I picked up that little notebook and jotted down my thoughts of the moment. These had to do with a financial decision I had to make and some paperwork I had to fill out. But while I jotted those thoughts down I noticed something.
It was really easy to focus long enough to write a quick page while I waited. The key was that there was nothing else to do. I thought back to college when I journaled all the time, and I realized that it was easy to journal then because there were so few distractions. There were long hours or minutes between classes when I could sit down on a bench and write uninterupted, and there was no tantalizing internet access, or ipod, or housework to distract me. This information could be useful, if I can only figure out how.
Obviously writing cannot be high on my list of priorities at this time. I do have a family to care for. But it's also true that writing does matter. It's something to think about.
