I’m almost done. October 31st – the last day of this year’s 31 Day Project. Last year at this time, more than anything else I felt a huge sense of relief that it was finally over. This year I feel different. I feel a sense of accomplishment. I hit the “publish” button pretty early in the day most of the time (I think there was only one evening that didn’t happen until 10 pm. Last year this was a regular occurrence. In fact, I posted once at 11:59!)
I’m the kind of person who makes rash decisions every once in awhile. Not big and bad decisions that end with regret, but ones where I’m not completely aware of what I’m saying “yes” to. Which, for me, is good. It allows me to be audacious and just do it. Then, my tenacity and unwillingness to ever quit something once I’ve started, keeps me going – even after I realize how much harder this thing is that I’ve gotten myself into. (I did the same thing when I signed up to walk my first marathon. “How hard can it be to walk a marathon?” Pretty hard, it turns out.)
That was last year’s experience: “I want to start a blog. I haven’t written one before. So, maybe the best way to do it is to commit to writing a post every day for an entire month.” What was I thinking? Well, this year I knew exactly what I was getting myself into and I think that might explain why it went so much more smoothly. I’d also like to think that the writing I’ve put into my book and the essays that have been published or are in the works, means that writing is easier for me now than it was a year ago.
But the best part of this whole process has been the process. There’s a lot to be gained by having a daily practice of writing (thank you, Saundra Goldman). And I think I’ll continue to try and write daily (that doesn’t sound like a firm commitment, does it?) But whether or not I’ll be hitting the “publish” button every single day is another matter altogether. My blog posts won’t be a daily occurrence and maybe that will be welcome relief for my FB friends who haven’t been able to keep up. (Do I have another 31 Days in me? I just might… But we’ll talk about that next year!)
I just came back from a weeklong writing workshop focused on the new direction of my book project and this will take center stage for me in the months to come. But I’m still committed to writing blogposts about bellies, birth and babies for the foreseeable future. These are the subjects that I’m most passionate about and I can’t imagine that I’m all done having something to say or learn about these topics.
Today, on the very last day of my 31 Day Project, it’s tempting to think that I’ve run out of things to write about. And this morning it almost feels that way. But the definition of almost is: “very nearly, not quite.” I love the wiggle room this provides. I’m going to take a few days break and see what comes up that needs to be written about the pregnancy year – from conception to the end of that 4th Trimester.
Thank you for reading my words and providing me support, encouragement, and comments along the way. And to all the other 31 Dayers out there – Congratulations! We did it!
Have you enjoyed this series of posts about the 4th Trimester? Was there anything that you wished I had written about that I didn’t? Please leave me some suggestions. Right now, I’m almost out of ideas. :O)
