A blog at 1:13 am you say?
Inexplicably: I’m here. I’m awake. I’m writing.
I’ve been thinking a lot about writing lately.
Mostly I consider sharing anecdotal evidence about how my name is super hard to spell (just ask the guys at starbucks), or how my position as an IT employee is ever increasingly cemented by the number of machines accumulating on my desk.
But I’ve also been making a concerted effort to write more music lately – trying to write a song every week (or every two…)
You’ll notice, (when you try songwriting), that it’s really rather difficult.
Lyrics, especially.
I find lyrics to be the hardest part of songwriting because they are the part that MATTER, aren’t they? And even more challenging is writing a great lyric, one that not only means something but is also cleverly and conceptually devised.
One way to do this is to practice, but the other sure fire way to get a great song lyric is to have something super awesome/scary/funny/traumatic/celebratory happen in your life.
If not, you’ll just have to read about events of the sort. [And practice.]
As such, in addition to writing, I’ve been reading a ton. And I thought it might be fun to share the books I’m reading right now:
- Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
Let’s be honest, it was just embarrassing that I’ve never read anything by Lewis until now. I haven’t completely finished this book, but I’m close. Of course it’s a classic, but I also really admire the way he can say SO MUCH with so few words.
- The Gifts of Imperfection by Brene Brown
I first heard this author when she gave a Ted Talk on vulnerability. She writes the way she speaks, and it’s a little like you’re sitting on the couch in her living room, coffee cup in hand (by the way, I never sit on couches without a coffee cup in my hand). I’m impressed with what she calls “wholehearted living,” and I found the book to be an enjoyable and thought provoking read.
- Anything by Jennie Allen
I am about 2/3 way through this book – and while I don’t LOVE the style it’s written in – I do love the way it’s causing me to consider the brevity of life on earth, the weight of eternity, and how I live my life while I’m here.
- Spiritual Rhythm by Mark Buchanan
This is probably the book I’ve most been looking forward to reading – and I’ve just started. Into the preface, introduction, and first chapter, I love it already. He has a style of writing that is easy and peaceful. (You know those writers, the ones who were meant to really communicate through the written word?) The concept is one I’m very interested in, (Being with Jesus every season of your soul), and it’s a book to savor, not to be rushed. I can already tell it will be difficult for me not to simply plow through.
- Love Does by Bob Goff
Have yet to start this one, but it looks interesting. Donald Miller wrote about Bob in his book “A Million Miles in a Thousand Years” and apparently, Bob is living the best story on the planet.
You can’t really see it, but underneath all those books is my journal. A big, black, boxy journal on which is printed this quote:
LIFE BEGINS AT THE END OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE.
And it may or may not be true, but it’s certainly something to think about.
Happy weekend, friends.
Marijke 