Writing's Favorite Hiding Spot

Georgia Heard tells us that, "writing is hiding in the most ordinary and familiar places." (Writing Towards Home) For me, life is busy and I see writing ideas all around. My children, my husband, my dog, all of these topics quickly flow from my fingers to the page. These are the "easy" writings. I write about the good and the bad of it. I lay it all on the page, because it comes from love and reflection. It's an understanding of the beauty and the challenges.

But it's the parts that are hiding from me. They have found the perfect hiding spot. Actually, it's more like playing hide and go seek with your kids. You want them to think that they are hiding in the best possible spot, but you know they are there the whole time. And while playing with your children, it's all fine, but when it's your feelings, emotions, and memories that you're pretending not to find, that quickly turns into denial. Those pieces that are pushed away and you carefully dust around only when necessary, for fear of them jumping out and yelling, "Boo!" No, writing those down would cause an awful confrontation that you are not prepared for, yet.

There are parts of me that ache to be spilled onto a page. It's like a battle scene in my mind. Blood, tears, and sweat will be shed in the creation and aftermath. I will start to put it down, but I stop myself. I think of Aaron Burr from Hamilton. "Now I'm the villain in your history." Will I become the villain once I write it all down? That's terrifying.

While writing this post, I found the inspiration I needed to put some of  this down. Thank you, Beth Rimer for sharing! Check out my Around then... post.

Bibliography

Heard, Georgia. Writing toward Home: Tales and Lessons to Find Your Way. Heinemann, 1995.