What do you say when you having nothing to say?
Nothing. You write.
The role of a writer is not to say what we all can say, but what we are unable to say. ~Anaïs Nin
While I believe that’s true, I find that the most mind-expanding reads come from authors that say what we never even thought of. It’s like the phrase: talent hits the target that nobody else can hit; genius hits the target that nobody else can see. It’s easier to read what you know you wanted to say, it’s harder to read what you didn’t know you wanted to hear.
I think the recent ramblings amongst New Yorker’s about the weather said what I didn’t know I wanted to hear: There’s a lot of whining on the internet.
Maybe it’s because of the tough economic “crisis,” or simply because people are bored. Regardless, my mind was expanded this week and I realized something–people really are “whiny” on the net.
Another thing that it could stem from is the recent lifesyle radicalists (4HWW enthusiasts that use simplicity as an excuse for laziness). I have a love-hate relationship with the 4HWW. I love reading it. But, when I look around, I see many of the principles falling at the feet of reality.
To give you some background, I live in one of the most affluent parts of the world–The “OC.” Down the street from me live many of the “Real Housewives of Orange County.” We have gated communities, man-made lakes and forests… and enough Silicon to make the valley look laughable.
All mocking aside, when I look left and right, I see only three ways people got here: (i) the inherited a lot of money, (ii) they’re renting (myself), or (iii) they’ve worked EXTREMELY hard.
In other words, I see the 4HWW as a great lifestyle if you’ve inherited a lot of money.
I’m not talking “monetary” success. I’m talking about “contribution” success (the feeling of coming home and feeling like you changed a small or large piece of the world).
What do you think?
And feel free to speak your mind if you have nothing to say. I just did. I dare you.
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I’m both a writer and a teacher. One of the hard things to teach kids (I work a lot with 4th and 5th graders) is that a writing assignment is about, well, writing. If the writing prompt is “How do you get to school?” the word “bus” may answer the question accurately, but it will get you an “”F” if that’s all you write. Writing is about writing, first and foremost. Saying something comes a close second. And if you can’t do the first, no one can tell that you did the second…