Everything All the Time by Cheryl Harper

(The quote? It's for the writers in the room. Yeats didn't want anyone to see his first drafts, either.)

For some reason, right now even the smallest things can overwhelm me. Are you having the same problem? For example, I'm working from home and the light bulb in my office ceiling fan has burned out. Under normal circumstances, easy! Get a light bulb. Put it in. Have light!

Now there are lines outside the Walmart to wait, social distances to measure, disinfecting my disinfected disinfectant, etc. I did all that. Got the ladder.

And I can't get the globe-thingy to come off. I twist. I turn. I try again.
Then I go and get a floor lamp and turn on my desk lamp and get to work.
The ceiling fan light bulb still needs to be changed but life goes on.

If everything is always too much for you too right now, know you aren't alone.
And know that it's not forever. That's what I tell myself. Someday soon I'll have the energy to change that light bulb, but today, life goes on.

Making my focus smaller helps a little. I had a good weekend. I got in my car and went for a drive. My dog is awesome. I signed a new Heartwarming book contract. My job goes on. I can see to work in my office, thanks to floor lamps and desk lamps. I am clever enough to find a work around when I need to. And you are, too.

Comments

  1. You're so right, Cheryl! Even the little things seem tougher. Congratulations on your new Heartwarming contract!

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  2. Cheryl, congrats on your new contract! That's so awesome. You hit the situation smack on the head. I find myself NOT replacing, fixing, doing so many things just to avoid the lines, the mask and the dwindling disinfectant. The least little things that I took for granted, are now real "decisions". Each day I must remember that hundreds of thousands of people around the globe have to walk miles every day just to get a pail of water to cook or clean. We are blessed in so many ways, big and small.

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  3. We're all in the same boat! We may not be in our regular routines, but maybe we can learn something new through all of this. Congrats on your new contract!!!!!!

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  4. The fact that we're all in that same boat kind of helps, too. Yay for the new contract. And I hope you're able to change your bulb soon.

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  5. Same here. I find it extremely hard to concentrate. I've been in Facebook more in the last few weeks than int he last few years. My phone and email are constant with people calling to check on me or me doing the same. It's a crutch to fill up the time when I should be writing. I can't seem to get into the story. My characters aren't talking and while I know and like the book and the people, I can't seem to give them a voice or space enough to shut everything else out.

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  6. Having just changed one of those bulbs that require a ladder and balancing between the ladder and the sink and stretching my arm up higher than it really should go, my first thought was, "How many more of these bulbs do I have--will they last for...I don't know hen?" Or maybe they'll be one more thing to order on line? How wonderful to have a new contract! Huge congratulations. And everyone stay well!

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  7. I'm so glad to hear I'll have more of your stories to read! Good for you, making it work when the light won't cooperate. Like Shirley, my characters haven't had much to say, but they're starting to whisper so I'm diving in.

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  8. I can't even carry on a decent conversation! I have all the thoughts in my head and since I don't see anyone to tell them to, when I do, the words simply won't come out right. lol And Congratulations on the new contract!

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  9. What a strange time this is. I'm glad you found a work around and kept going! I am having a difficult time finding writing momentum with all the new daily interruptions. Homeschooling children is just as difficult as I always assumed it would be. Congrats on the book contract!

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