Crushing on my Craft!

...At First Sight

When I first saw you and our eyes met

My mind ran wild

But not with vain visions of impure acts between us

But rather with deep interest in the connections

We could make simply through our words and ways

Through conversation and experience

Not through explicit engagements ending in erotic eruptions

You see I want to explore the untapped spaces of your heart and mind

No use tryna get into your pants anyway

There’s a long line there

And I figured it’d be easier to get into the door to your mind

The lines not long there you see

I want to wrap you in blankets of security

So you can lie in my pillows of truth

And sleep freely in a bed of vulnerability

For vulnerability is simply the ability

 to fall freely without fear

knowing you can only make crash landings in the bottom of my heart

Where my love is conceived

Like ideas and epiphanies

Or newborns and notions

Notions of love unadulterated

Due to foundations of friendship

Fortified by the full faith you will follow forever

So take my hand and follow my lead

For I am lead simply by the hope that

When I first saw you and our eyes met

Your mind, ran wild.

My tango with being a writer is much like that of a dancer with two left feet; or better yet, like the nervous adolescent who wants to talk to the most attractive girl in school. I think it's more of the latter--definitely so, because I'm a great dancer. What I mean is that writing is awesome! I get to hang out in coffee shops with my Macbook; I can be as presentable in my attire as I choose--most times I'm in a suit and tie because I work in Financial Services by day BUT if I really wanted to, I could wear pajamas all day. That is a comforting thought. Not many jobs make room for a dress code so casual to allow pajamas to be worked into rotation. In any case, I've been often nervous about my writing, because the next thing you're confronted with after deciding that you will write for a living is WHAT WILL YOU WRITE?  I guess what I am saying is I don't know YET! In my own defense, I can say that I know what types of writing I will explore, however, about whom or what I haven't figured out yet. 

I made a promise to myself to try everything at least once. What am I talking about here? I am not talking about food, definitely not narcotics, and I'm certainly not proposing that I will be exploring alternative lifestyles. What I will try is a different literary media: poetry (no brainer), short stories, non-fiction, fiction, screenplays, memoir, etc. I cannot do them all at once, so it is more of a comfort than a stressor to know that I am challenging myself to do all of those things. I certainly cannot begin my career as a writer with a memoir. That would be illogical, so I have an understanding that each work will have its right place and time in my career. 

Just like the nervous adolescent who has little idea of what may be the best way to capture the attention of his crush love interest, who re-writes text messages several times before finally hitting send, I am deeply pensive yet often unsure of my direction. But "I am not stressed," as my wise girlfriend always says. We both agree that a little bit of worry or conflict is good for the soul. It forces progress (at least for the capable man). There is a thought that came to me that always encourages me and this is my motivation to continue on this beautiful journey: The strength of a butterfly comes from its ability to break through the Chrysalis on its own. The struggles we face are not our inhibitors, because from them we learn to fly.

Here's a helpful tip for the day:

Learn to NETWORK like it is your salvation. I see hundreds of people daily working in a bank and I use every opportunity I can to connect with clients. Eventually I meet a fellow writer or someone with a career closely aligned to mine. 

Several days ago I met a producer/director/writer in film. He happened to know a writing/acting coach that is based on the West Coast but who also takes clients in NY. I exchanged information with this gentleman and now I have the contact info for this particular writing coach. By the way, after checking out his credentials, I have to admit that I am pretty impressed. So, there will be more to come regarding that. 

"Education isn't something you can finish." - Isaac Asimov

Good Luck!