Lessons I'm applying to everyday living
In between lessons, projects I’m working on, plus writing opportunities and contests.
I went running for a second time this week, and I really had to push through. My legs wanted to stop so badly, but I kept telling myself, push through, and I was able to run farther than Monday. I’m still doing two miles, twice during the work week, and four miles on Sundays. I took a pause around Halloween, since I started getting shin pains. One morning, the pounding of the cement began traveling through my shins and knees. The cushion on my trail sneakers felt depleted (I’ve had it for almost two years, and also use it for hiking), so I bought a new pair with ample cushion, and it improved the pain threshold in the beginning, allowing me to run farther. But also, I have to remind myself that it takes time to warm up my legs, to build momentum, so I can cross the pain barrier and run on a clean state.
I recently wrote an essay about the parallels between the sports I practice and the multiplicity of genres I write in. I dive into my explorations with running, swimming, ice skating and yoga. It’s forthcoming for Write or Die. My reported article—Benefits of Aging in Outdoor Sports, where I interviewed mountaineers, rock climbers, and a triathlete in their 30s, 40s, and 50s, is out now.
Around the time when I started working on these pieces, I found Haruki Murakami’s memoir, What I talk about When I Talk About Running. First, I had no idea he was a marathon runner! Learning about his running journey has cemented my love for running, and made the sport a metaphor for life itself. Since I’m constantly on my laptop, I need to bring energy back into my body. Writing can be intense and mentally demanding. Sitting in front of a screen for several hours is a lot to ask of your body, especially the mechanics of it. Constantly typing and moving your mouse can cause stress on your ligaments and muscles. One of the main lessons I took away from the book is the three qualities that novelists should have: talent, focus and endurance. Talent seems the more sporadic and unpredictable of the two, while focus and endurance is something you can actively work on. Murakami writes:
You have to continually transmit the object of your focus to your entire body, and make sure it thoroughly assimilates the information necessary for you to write every single day and concentrate on the work at hand. And gradually you’ll expand the limits of what you’re able to do.
For Halloween, I dressed up as Nancy Downs from The Craft after watching the movie again. I never watched it entirely, since it aired on t.v. when I was in elementary school, and I had a habit of flipping channels, never really sitting to watch long movies. The movie gave her an unjust conclusion. Sure, she turned evil and wanted to kill her goody-two-shoes friend with black magic, but a redemptive arc would have allowed her to grow as a character, given her a meaningful ending, instead of sequestering her in a ward, where she became even more psychotic. I guess, it’s appropriate for a horror movie to end in that absolutist, grotesque way. But endings with easy solutions irk me; they don’t leave room for analysis or dialogue. I often prefer endings that are open ended, allowing the audience to sit in the moment and contemplate its significance.
Just before October ended, I started feeling trapped, so I took myself out for a hike in Kenilworth Park & Aquatic Gardens. I had not ventured outdoors in that way since the summer—my binoculars hanging all dusty in the closet. So I went out and spotted some birds (first time seeing an American Bittern), and noticed how everything was drying to sultry reds, oranges, and browns. It felt nice to give myself that time to wander without making it about working out. Sadly, there are not many opportunities for me to take casual walks in my new neighborhood, so I have to create moments where I can hike, or bird watch.
Through November and beginning of December, I'm putting the final touches on my MFA applications. Recently, I had a workshop session where I received feedback on my short story, and I was in awe with the level of responses and deep dives my work received. There’s what you write on the page, but hearing people arrive at meaning through your work is something else entirely. I’m grateful to have found a group where I’m able to grow and learn from different literary backgrounds that inform our readings. I’ll be hunkering down through December as I continue editing short stories, CNF, and poetry— submitting to different pubs. Below are some opportunities. Make sure to read all the requirements before sending any submissions. Until next time!
Paid Writing Opportunities
Contests
Narratively Memoir Prize - Open until Nov 30