I have three blogs partially written, one of which should have been finished and posted at least six hours ago. I have research that I must finish for articles that have to be completed by January 29. I have scraps of scenes that need to be pieced and fitted into the pattern of a mss that now has a hole in its center. I can’t seem to do any of these things today. All my efforts end up in the trash bin.
I could blame the cold that has me miserably stuffy and coughing. I could blame my concern about a friend in the hospital. I could blame the winter weather advisory that has Georgians worried about icy roads and power losses. But I know the truth is that the well is empty. And when there’s no water in the well, the bucket is always going to come up dry.
“Replenish” is one of my favorite words. Just the idea of emptiness being filled fully, abundantly is enough to lift my spirits. Acts of replenishment will lift them even higher. So please forgive the brevity of this blog. I promise to complete one of those three blogs and post it next week, but today I’m going to visit my friend who is ill, read a book or two from my towering TBR stack, spend some time just sitting and thinking long thoughts, and seeking restoration. When the well is full again, I’ll return to researching, scene-stitching, and blogging.
Have you ever suffered from the empty well syndrome? What do you do to replenish your creative energies?
10 comments:
Hi, Janga. This is a good question to ponder. There may be different empty wells, I think, and depending on the situation, all ask for a different way of handling each. I'm still dealing with the empty well feeling of hopelessness for my mother's health. I pray and that helps, but I still have that ache for her.
Sometimes, I bake and take the goodies to my neighbors.
Sometimes, I read.
Thanks for sharing today. I hope you are replenished with good and complete feelings soon.
Frequently. Usually the right words from a friend can add to my bucket. Other times it's reading something, be it a blog, a book, or a bad joke. Thankfully, I don't stay empty for long.
Hope your friend is feeling better and so are you.
Awww, Janga, snuggle up and regroup. I empathize with the snuffy nose and such - I've been down and out since before New Year's.
To replenish I read, talk with girlfriends and watch comfort DVDs. This week I've already sat through Notting Hill and Bridget Jones' Diary. If it gets much worse I may need to break out my BBC Pride & Prejudice with Colin Firth!
My thoughts and prayers will be with you and your friend.
P.S. I did read the first chapter in SEP's new release and it didn't do much for me. It seems Teddy and Lucy are about to be married and Meg shows up as bridesmaid with thoughts that they are mismatched. We'll see... I trust SEP. She hasn't let me down yet.
Janga, I just stumbled onto another 2010 release to be excited about... Carla Kelly's Marrying the Royal Marine is due out June 1, 2010. I believe this is the third installment in her latest series. I just re-read The Surgeon's Lady - one of my favorite's from last year.
I hear you. Hope you are able to bring up lots of fresh water soon---sometimes all it takes is a little time and muscle.
I heard something yesterday about one of my former students which makes everything I'm worried about seem trivial. I want to spend the next three days stepping back a bit and appreciating my circumstances.
Hope your friend is doing better and that your weather improves, too!
I hope you get to feeling better. When my well is empty, I step back from the computer and read or pick up pen and paper. I've found recently that the well fills extremely fast when I write on paper. But as Terri, said sometimes it's a word from a friend, or from my husband.
Yes Janga I know what its like to have an empty well. I didn't write anything for ... uhhmm ... 15 years. Then one day, while I was on the net looking for some books to read, I saw this odd looking chicken thingie. I poked at it and the next thing I knew... I found myself in an Alternitive Universe. You knew it as ... Squawk Radio.
I'm still trying to figure out what happened. I think that I hit my head on a stone. A J Perry Stone!
I hope that your friend gets better soon. And do spend a little time pampering yourself. Enjoy doing nothing more demanding than drinking a hot cup-o-tea while you read a good book.
Hugs,
Julie
Janga, I completely understand the empty well syndrome. I usually regroup by reading a new book or maybe one of my "comfort" reads, watching a sappy movie or just savoring some quiet "me" time.
Fill your well, Janga. I hope that your friend feels better soon.
Thanks for the good wishes, everyone. I am feeling much better. I've read six books since Thursday, all of them winners, spent some time playing online, and had chicken soup and ginger ale, a combo that always makes me feel as if my mother has kissed my forehead. I counted my blessings too, and you were all included.
The worst of my cold is over. My friend came through her surgery fine and is now back home. Another couple of days work should complete the research stage and leave me ready to write the first article Wednesday. And I am adding the finishing touches to Thursday's blog.
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