Commitments. Why Bother?

What do you do when you just don't feel up to writing?

I woke up sick today: body aches, headache, fever, and chills. My first fully coherent thought was. How am I going to manage to write today? The truth is I want to be asleep right now, but I committed to being here every day for 30 days, not just the days it is easy.

We all know what it’s like to let ourselves down when we have made a commitment. For me, it is especially easy when it is a personal commitment when no one is holding me accountable. I am a person who needs a walking buddy or an acquaintance in a gym class who will notice I didn’t show up.

When you commit to someone else, it is easy to be accountable. We don’t want to let others down, but for some reason, it is so simple to drop the ball on personal commitments. For most of us, that is what writing is, personal. We have decided it is a discipline we want to practice. Maybe you are using writing as a tool to learn more about who you are, or perhaps you write for the sheer joy of it. Either way, it is something that needs to be done with regularity to grow. We need to be committed to our writing.

So what do we do when we don’t have it in us? When there is a day when we are too busy, don’t feel well, or feel rebellious against our more responsible self that committed in the first place. Here is what we do. It is simple. We put our big person pants on, pick up our pen and write. There is no secret. There is no trick. I know I overuse my favorite Nike quote, but it is so applicable. We “Just Do It.”

Today I want to thank each of you who reads these words for holding me accountable. I wouldn’t have written a word today if you hadn’t been here. I am thankful to have you; because of you, I sat down and did what needed doing. Today I may be sick, but I feel better because I took the time to honor my commitment and give myself the gift of writing. I hope you do the same.

Thanks, and I will see you in the Stacks!

Liz