December 2014-The 365-Day Writing Challenge (well, maybe not ALL 365 days…’cuz we all know how often we really ARE able to keep our New Year’s resolutions completely!)

     How did you end up there? That’s the question a friend recently asked me about my move from a small tropical island in the Pacific Ocean to the NW United States. I’ve actually been answering that question for years concerning my initial life altering move from Alabama to the Marshall Islands (and the answer is not all that interesting), but I honestly didn’t expect to be asked that when moving back to my home country (btw, the answer is still not that interesting).  My family’s move from the atoll to the Evergreen state famous for its apples happened like most major life changes….quickly, which is why this blog has laid dormant for so long. I’ve been busy adjusting to life back in the “fast lane,” so to speak. 

     As part of this “new life,” I’ve wanted to get my blog back up and running again for the last few months, but I wasn’t exactly sure how to start. A blog title change was definitely in order, check! And a blog focus change is next.  The last time I blogged, I was writing my way through the Bible, devotional style.  So, to get my writing blood pumping again, I downloaded a 365 Days of Writing Prompts e-book (for free, I might add) from The Daily Post.  I will not start it until January 1, 2015, and I am not going to tie myself down into writing every day OR on every prompt because, let’s face it, I do have a life to live including a job to work, a husband to love, children to raise, and a hyperactive, rabbit chasing bird dog to walk (or more often run after) daily, and even though writing is important to me, my family is important too, and I don’t want to miss out on them because my nose is buried in this computer, writing to a prompt that I may or may not find I have adequate material or life experience to write about.

    That said, I will write about as many of the 365 prompts that I feel I can wind a sufficient rabbit trail down to interest you, and I’ll leave the rest of the blog entries to chance. So, I can’t be sure where the blog is going to go…all I know is that I must keep writing, whether or not anyone decides to read it. Why? Well, I used to say because it’s therapeutic for me, which is still true, but that’s not always the sole purpose….Mainly, it’s just because I need to share my life with others, to hear their feedback, to know that I am not alone in my thoughts, insights, frustrations, and mistakes.  Life is hard enough to comprehend and navigate successfully on your own, but with family and friends to help you write your life story, to include in your repertoire of memories….wow, that makes it all so much more interesting.  So, I hope you’ll join me in my newest blog challenge. You can find the e-book at the link above or follow me as I post the prompts I respond to throughout the year. OR if you are not into writing about the prompts, at least check in with me now and again and respond to my posts with your own thoughts, encouragement, insights, or stories. I’d love to hear from you!