The punch line is, of course, that there's no perfect time and place. But it seems that I need to relearn this lesson every so often (daily-ish).
The other day, I noticed a writer friend shared a photo from the beautiful place she's visiting. She's lucky and successful in many ways, and being able to travel easily is one of them. Before I could stop my brain, I'd thought it: "If only I could be there!"
I indulged in the fantasy for a minute: No obligations other than the ones I'd choose, which would be to go on daily walks in that gorgeous place and to write to my heart's content.
But then I stopped myself. Oh, I didn't want to stop daydreaming. It was glorious, after all, in my head. But I stopped myself because it that kind of "if only"-ing is a kind of excuse-making. And excuse-making is a way of giving in to fear. And the best way for me to get past the do-nothing ethos of fear is to consciously interrupt myself.
So then I thought of five reasons I'm glad I'm right here. Why five? More than one, so it seems substantial. Less than ten, so it seems achieveable. And don't get me wrong-- I would love to be in that beautiful place. But I wanted to stop myself from thinking that I had to be there, or had to have any kind of condition other than Maslow's basics, to do anything at all.
It's not essential to share what those five reasons are. But hopefully if you're stuck, or daydreaming about being elsewhere when you really have something you want or need to do right where you are, then this practice will be helpful to you, too.
And if you need a quick inspiration, I recommend this book. It's a quick read and, if you're in need, will remind you why you want to write (or make any kind of art) in the first place.
