am i a writer?

Recently, I learned of TravelinOma and her 12-week writing school from Emily. Of course I learned about it a few weeks in, but it sounds like a fun plan. I think I'll jump in with "Think of a writing project you want to do. Name it. Write down steps to begin. Write each step on a day or week in your planner (give yourself enough time to make it fun) and follow through."

Actually, I've been thinking of this project for some time. I went to a writer's seminar at BYU in 2008. The class thought my first chapter was awful, and I got deflated. I put the project away and haven't written anything but blogs and textbooks since. I sort of have a confidence problem that I need to overcome. So here goes:

The True Story of Billie Sutton--Billie was my grandmother's nickname as a child. The story is loosely based on all the stories she told me of her childhood. I loved the Anne of Green Gables books. Although I don't write as well as L.M. Montgomery, I want that sort of feel for this story. Grandma grew up around the time of the Dust Bowl in Illinois, Oklahoma, and Arizona.

1. Make a schedule. I think I'll commit to 1 hour per day.

2. Write down all the stories she told me.

3. Talk to Grandma on the phone to get more material. Visit in October.

4. Outline the material into chapters.

5. Begin.

It's so funny. I thought I would be done with schedules now that I'm retired from teaching. But I find I function much better with goals and accountability. So I guess it's time to dig out my homemaking journal and update it to include my new lifestyle. I don't want to fritter away my life by drifting through my days.

A few make-up assignments.

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After I went to BYUI with my son this summer, I felt differently about letting him transfer there. I think it will be a better fit for him than the BIG Y. For one thing, BYUI has more creative writing classes. He loves to write and wants that as a career. It's also smaller and has a more personal atmosphere. Traveling through Idaho with Spencer and his dad, I grew calm and happy. Peaceful and quiet, the small towns dotting the landscape seemed to smile and call out a friendly hello as we passed. Yes, this is the right place.

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Years ago our old copies of the Anne of Green Gables Series went the way of all the earth. The first time I spent time with her, I was a fifteen-year-old girl who marched to the beat of a her own drummer. Anne gave me hope that I could grow up and find true friendship and true love. I did. Each of my daughters and I spent hours reading and giggling though the books and loving Anne's world. She had so much to offer as she bungled her way though scrapes and read delicious poetry.

When I felt displaced this summer during our wide wanderings, I again looked to Anne. Currently, I'm in the fifth book Anne's House of Dreams. Thirty years after the first time, the books have taken on new meaning. I've related to Marilla's point of view. I see the shallowness of Anne's desire to do something more. I smile at her noble ideas of married life and raising children. I ache with Anne as she loses a child. Over the next few weeks as I visit Anne's new home and watch as she raises her children through early adulthood, I'm sure I'll understand her better than ever before.

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Ten Things I love About Being Me

1. I have great hair except for.... Oh, yeah, no negatives. I obsess about hair. Now that it's greying, I have something new and unique to love about it. I'll never dye it. I like it long, layered, and wavy. Even though my mother thinks I'm too old to wear it long and look awful this way, I think she's wrong. I love my very dark, long, greying, layered, wavy hair.

2. I'm short. Technically, a midget at 4' 11", I need footstools and custom clothing. I love being petite.

3. I'm a Daughter of God. He made me the way I am for a purpose. It's my job to accept and improve myself to be ready for my great mission, my purpose. I discover it as I go along. It changes as I grow from challenges.

4. I'm a homemaker. I have loved learning to organize, cook, sew, and decorate my home. I love to keep bees, garden, keep chickens, and grow my own food. Home, inside and out, is my sanctuary on earth.

5. I'm a reader. I read to learn. I read to escape. I read to participate in the great debate of the ages.

6. I'm a wife. I'm not ashamed to say I love my husband. I wouldn't take him any other way. He is next to perfect. I'm so glad he chose me.

7. I'm a mom. The most difficult job a girl could ever love is motherhood. Don't leave Earth without it. Don't shortchange it by moaning through it. It ends all too soon. But then you get to be grandma. It's delicious.

8. I was a teacher. From the birth of my first child 27 years ago until last April, I taught my children to read, to compute, to write, to clean, and to think for themselves. Now my nest is semi-empty. My teaching days are behind me except for those rare occasions when one of them calls for advice.

9. I'm an artist, musician, and writer. No, I'm no expert in any of these fields. I pursue them because they bring me joy. I have nothing to prove, nobody to compete with. I play, sing, draw, paint, and write, because I do.

10. I'm a nature lover. Walking on mountain trails, I find delight in every vista. Flowers, trees, streams, and waterfalls are a feast to my eyes. Plus walking keeps me fit.

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