Ripped From The Archives: Being Stuck

Recently, I've been thinking about being stuck.  You know what I mean - we get stuck in habits that don't serve us or our dreams, we get stuck in all kinds of relationships - friends, professional, lovers - that we allow to keep us from the light, and the worst -  stuck in an unfulfilling job.

When I get stuck, I immediately assume I am the only one who is stuck.  That others might get stuck temporarily, but they can recognize their stuck-ness and climb right out with no collateral damage.  Of course that isn't true.  Of course others are as stuck as I am.  Of course others struggle with being stuck.

And then I stumbled onto this post from the most-excellent Brainpickings blog:

How to Save Your Soul:  Willa Cather on Productivity vs. Creativity, Selling Out and the Life-Changing Advice That Made Her A Writer

Now, I must give you some background information. Willa Cather is one of my favorite authors.  I like to think that I have much in common with Willa.  Willa grew up in Nebraska; I grew up in Wisconsin.  Willa left the Midwest to settle in New York; I left the Midwest to settle in Philadelphia.  Willa wrestled her entire life trying to merge her creative spirit with the practical nature of the Midwest; me too.  Here's my favorite quote from Willa:

"...that shaggy grass country had gripped me with a passion that I have never been able to shake.  It has been the happiness and the curse of my life."

It's not Nebraska, but it is the Midwest and it is a prairie.

If you're a creative spirit who struggles with "fitting in", you MUST read Cather's Song of the Lark.

Back to the Brainpickings piece about Cather.  Until reading this piece, I had no idea that Willa had struggled so fiercely with the tug between commerce and creativity.  I had no idea that she, just like you and me, had to step out of her comfort zone and take some risks.  She had to leave the well-paying, secure corporate job.  The one that was sucking her soul.  This led me to wonder - what if she hadn't taken that single step?

The world would have never had her beautiful, deeply human stories and words.

What if you're the next Willa Cather?  It's possible.  Willa didn't know what possibilities lay inside of her when she left her cushy job.  I imagine she dreamed that she would be a successful writer, but she didn't know for certain that would happen.  Right?  None of us ever know.

Be like Willa.  Find a way.  Take that first step.  Perhaps it will be difficult.  No, scratch that.  I'm sure it will be difficult.  I'm also sure it will transform your life.

Not the Midwest, but it is a cornfield and an amazing old barn.

This post was originally published January 19, 2016

A Book Report: Educated by Tara Westover

Educated by Tara Westover

There have been only three books in my life that I have read in one day - The Crown of Columbus by Louise Erdrich and Michael Dorris, A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson and this book, Educated by Tara Westover.

Tara Westover was raised in a Morman survivalist household in Idaho. Her father, with the assistance of the entire family, ran a junk yard. Tara's mother managed the household and eventually started a successful essential oils company. Homeschooling, distrust of major institutions (in particular the medical profession and government), self-determination, nature and mental health are all forces that swirl together to create an almost-unbelievable story. An almost-unbelievable story about a girl who recognizes the conflict between her personal strengths and her family, a girl who lives in that conflict and somehow transforms herself into a thriving young woman.

Like Allison Bechdel does with Fun Home,Tara Westover tells her story with honesty, grace and compassion. Both woman are testaments to the resiliency of the human spirit.

I could not put this book down. The personal story is compelling. At the same time, Ms. Westover respectfully addresses social forces that currently threaten our democratic society.

You really should read this book.

Photo Friday Number 18

Rarely of late has the stillness, nature alone, so appealed to me. Sometimes it's precisely those spots where one no longer feels anything of what's known as the civilized world and has definitely left all that behind - sometimes it's precisely those spots that one needs to achieve calm.

Vincent Van Gogh

Photo: Kepner Creek, Norristown Farm Park, Norristown, PA

My Favorite Things: Google Tasks

I've been a keeper of lists since I was in college (and that was, as my friend and mentor Maddie D. likes to say, "before electricity").

Over the decades, I have often found myself with too many lists - the general to-do list, the 5-years-down-the-road list, the if-I-ruled-the-world list. Which meant I would end up managing my lists and never get to do anything on the list. That didn't work out well.

Currently, I use one main list for all of my tasks (personal, business, household). One list allows me to see everything at one glance. I gave up on the if-I-ruled-the-world list years ago. It was exhausting.

My current favorite list app is Google Tasks. I like Google products (which was a hassle when I was in China last year, but apparently has improved this year), and while Tasks isn't Google's greatest product, it works for me.

Here's a screenshot of my list from 2 weeks ago. I know it is small, but I hope you can zoom in, since you're probably on your phone. 

Notice how:

- I remind myself of small tasks, like getting in touch with someone. Otherwise, that info floats around my brain, gets lost, reappears in the middle of the night and generally distracts me and makes me even crazier than I usually am.

- the Guiding Star Goals are scattered throughout. THAT'S part of my success at making those happen.

- there are simple tasks that rove. As an example, take a look at "PDF last month's calendar" on July 1. It sits on the first of the month. Once I've completed the task, I simply move it to the first of the next month.

Google Tasks sits nicely next to and inside of my Google Calendar when I'm on my computer.

I know that looks like way too many tasks for any given day. I don't really do all of those tasks on one day. I throw them in my calendar as I remember them. Then, early in the week, I'll review all the tasks for the coming week and determine which ones must be done and which ones can be moved. FYI, if I move a task two or three times without taking action, I stop and live with it. I ask myself why I'm not taking action. We can talk about that strategy later. Back to Google Tasks.

On my phone I use the Tasks Free app, but it appears to be dead, so on my tablet I have this GTasks app.

However! While researching for this post, I found that Google released a Tasks app in April. Yup, just installed it on my phone. It looks like this:

I'll let you know how this one works.

Finally, a photo that has nothing to do with lists or tasks or accomplishments. Because...

It was hot, and the Phillies lost, 17-7.
Still, the sunset was magnificent.

Photo Friday Number 17

And the world will be better for this
That one man, scorned and covered with scars
Still strove, with his last ounce of courage
To reach the unreachable star

Joe Darion

Photo: The only copy of the Declaration of Independence printed on vellum, currently on display at the Museum of the American Revolution.