I feel like blogging, but I don’t have any epiphanies to share. Is that okay? Can I just ramble? (Right now you’re asking the computer screen, “How is that any different from any other day?”)

I’ve been writing regularly this week, now that I’m done with the hard part of the novel I was editing. Funny how I go entire weeks ignoring that urge to write, and then when I actually don’t have the time, I can’t stand it! I must scratch this itch!

This time around, it seems easier to get a thousand words than it used to be. I may actually be able to make my goal of getting this draft done by Christmas. I cain’t hardly believe it. (Yes, I’m thinking in my hick accent today.) I love where this book is taking me. I look over the past year and can’t believe all the ups and downs I’ve had with my writing–some physical, some mental. Okay, most mental.

But really, I’ve said this every year, haven’t I? Two-thousand–blank was a truly crappy year, I say, and next year will be great. Honestly, I’ve had some major setbacks this year, but I think things are getting easier. I’ve never looked forward to Christmas as an adult, but here I am, buying gifts on credit and not worrying about it at all.  Tired of whining, tired of tripping over hurdles.

It’s so easy to think of my circumstances at any given moment as a static state of being, and that’s simply not true. I’ve been sorting out the jumble of thoughts and beliefs and desires in my head, figuring out which ones belong there and which came from someone else. I feel like this is something I’ve said many times since starting this blog, have I? Well, it’s a long process. It’s not one a-ha moment, it’s a series of them.

My brother and I think of life’s lessons as a spiral. You start on the outer edge, and travel around toward the center. Now imagine a straight line crossing, connecting the beginning point with the inner, end point. At each intersection, there’s a bump. That bump is an a-ha moment. If you are visualizing what I tried to explain, you’ll understand there are many bumps on this spiral, and on each course it takes less time to reach the next a-ha moment. Say, a year on the outer edge, and toward the center only weeks, or even days. You repeat the same realizations, sooner each time, until you get it.

At least, I’ve noticed that pattern in my own life. How does that fit with how you see your growth?