Learn to live independent of the good opinion of others. I write because writing is something that I have to do. And it doesn’t matter whether people like it or not. I would suggest that’s true for most creative people. Van Gogh never made a penny in his entire lifetime. He painted because it was his soul, his excitement. It was what aligned him with his Source of being. An artist or a creative person of any kind goes about their work because it’s their path, it’s what excites them, it’s what aligns their soul with who they truly are, who they showed up to be. As I’m speaking to Mrs. Olive Fletcher, my high school biology teacher, I tell her, “I’m going to write my own novel this year. I know I can write, and I have an idea for a book that I want to try out.” I’m fascinated by the idea of extraordinary consciousness. In my mind it’s a level of awareness that allows for instantaneous manifestation, telepathic communication, self-healing, and extraordinary powers to communicate with angelic beings. I envision a fictional character who possesses these otherworldly qualities. He’s achieved Divine God-realization and has a job as a paleontologist on an archeological dig. I name my book The Anomalous Compatriot, and every evening I sneak off to a quiet spot and let my fantasies pour forth. My handwritten tome grows, and I secretly stash it away in big brown paper bags in the small attic of our home. I love these subdued hidden-away moments where I escape into the fictional characterizations I create. I love reading and am always in the middle of a new book. Most of my friends detest reading and never consider writing as something they might do as an occupation. Plainly, to their way of thinking, writing is for nerds and sissies. In English class each student has a manila folder for book reports on their reading during the semester. The more reports, the more a student is thought of as a burgeoning scholar. When I’m short of cash, I write and sell book reports at 25 cents apiece to supplement my income. If the grade received is lower than a B, I don’t ask for payment. I work as a writer now and thus feel confident that I have writing ability—I’ve tested that out in the real world of profit and loss! I write on any subject and often think of my writing as automatic writing. My hand moves across the page, but it isn’t actually me doing the writing. It’s a kind of connection with an invisible part of me that occurs when I sit down with purple pen in hand and allow the words to form on the paper beneath my moving fingers. I feel most at home when I have a writing assignment. I love essay tests, knowing that my writing abilities will help me to overcome lapses I may have on the material I am writing about. My writing is like having a friend with me at all times. I love my space where I escape each day to bring my characters to life, though the story is becoming less important—it’s just the opportunity to sit in a sacred space with a blank piece of paper staring back at me that I so enjoy. When I take the time to write on my novel, I think to myself, Writing is not something that I do. It is what I am. I like the feel of it and saying and remembering, I am writing. What brings me the greatest sense of accomplishment is feeling aligned with what I am on the planet for in the first place. That’s what writing is to me. Today, I still retreat frequently to my writing space, as I have done for well over 45 years, and I feel safe and closest to my Source of being when I’m surrounded by personal photos and memorabilia in what I refer to as my sacred writing space. I look back on my early writing times and the inner awareness that spoke loudly to me of the freedom I would one day know. By following my instincts and my good feelings that always arose when I took pen in hand and declared myself to be a writer—even if no one else yet shared in the same opinion—I was following my soul’s calling. It was enough for me to claim it and declare myself to be an expert on what I felt so passionate about. Namaste, Wayne Dyer
Posted on: Tue, 04 Feb 2014 20:16:32 +0000
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