Blog

Writing With One Hand

For 29 years I’ve led a writing Workshop where we write by hand. Now I find myself only able to write by hand as I broke my left wrist in a fall and cannot type with my left hand. 

A complication in the first surgery led to a ruptured tendon impacting my index finger and middle finger. My arm and two fingers are in a temporary splint until I see a specialist this week for a cast. In two weeks I will start physical therapy for the fingers, then a few weeks later I’ll start therapy for the wrist. 

Meanwhile, I need to write for work and for creative projects. 

I’m thinking of the Zen Buddhist kōan, “Two hands clap and there is a sound. What is the sound of one hand?”

What is the sound of one hand typing? The sounds are not so clickety-clack. It’s slow and inefficient. After decades as a speedy typist I now hunt and peck with my right hand . 

I use voice-to-text typing as much as possible, but it really challenges my patience. I find myself over enunciating and almost yelling at the computer when it gets things wrong. 

People have been there for me with flowers, cards, texts and calls. Friends and family have also  given me rides to multiple doctor appointments and two surgeries. They’ve helped with house work and errands. I’m so grateful. 

I also can’t drive. I’m thankful for the Walworth County Connects VIP service. It’s like an Uber for residents with medical appointments who can’t drive. But the price is much cheaper than Uber at $6 one way. 

My emotions range from frustration to sadness. But I balance it out with gratitude because, like with most things, it could have been worse. And I have plenty to be thankful for. Like I’m thankful it was not my right hand. I’m also thankful it didn’t happen during winter. 

I’m so thankful for my long time writing practice of daily morning pages and first drafts by hand. There is a journey of healing ahead of me. I’ll write my way through it. 

Buy the xylophone!

I just played “When the Saints Go Marching In” and “God Bless America” on my new xylophone – an early birthday present to myself. 

It’s been over four decades since I played the xylophone in middle school and the ninth grade of high school. When I joined the percussion section in the sixth grade I was the only one who could read music because I’d had piano lessons, so I was told to play the bells – or glockenspiel. Later in the ninth grade, I carried a xylophone in marching season and played it in concert season, too. After that I became the conducting drum major for marching band and tried different instruments during concert season. My xylophone experience was short, but I loved it. 

In Austin I was reminded how much I loved it when I tried out a marimba class with Joel Laviolette. I felt like a kid again and I’ve wanted a xylophone since then. But when’s a good time to buy a xylophone? It doesn’t really fit in the budget. This month I made it happen. 

I also thought of things like “What’s the point? Where does it lead?” HA! Like everything has to be commercialized and monetized. I dropped that idea and I know the point is creativity and play. 

A few recent articles about the power of learning and playing music or singing also motivated me. 

Also, since last summer I’ve focused on songwriting as a creative outlet. I’ve mainly worked on lyrics, and now I can also pick out melodies on my xylophone. 

I’m already loving the physicality of it – standing, striking the keys, reading the music and losing myself in the music making. 

If you’re not quite ready to buy the xylophone or other instrument, you might check with your local library to see if they have instruments in their “library of things.” 

I love this great line in The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron: “But do you know how old I will be by the time I learn to really play the piano / act / paint / write a decent play? Yes… the same age you will be if you don’t.”

Happy New Year and I hope you find ways to explore your creativity, too! 

Hard Days of Winter

“Our task is to say a holy yes to the real things of our lives as they exist.” – Natalie Goldberg

These are my hard days. January has always been a long month with some recurring seasonal depression. The month is a minefield of sentimental dates: the date of my mother’s passing on January 14 and her birthday January 23; the January 25 birthday of my sister who passed 12 years ago; and the anniversary of the loss of a pet. And we all have things we’re struggling with that we don’t share. 

Also, it’s been cold. Really cold. So cold they closed the schools. So cold you could get frostbite in 10-30 minutes. Negative temperatures and wind chills. I’m a southerner living in rural southeast Wisconsin. I’ve generally had a great attitude about winter, but this year the extreme temperatures are making the hard days harder. 

To get I’ve pulled out all my tricks, tools and acts of radical self-care. Here’s what’s currently helping me: 

The days are getting longer and the hard days end with my own birthday on January 29. I always enjoy my birthday and ignore all the negativity about aging. It’s a privilege I celebrate with a holy yes.

Really start living

“At some point in your life, if you’re lucky, you throw practicality to the wind and really start living.”  Erma Bombeck

What would it look like to throw what seems like “practicality” to the wind in your life? Have you already done that in some ways? Try writing more than one scenario. You have options! Reviewing the possibilities can also lead to appreciating the practical in your life.

Our Daily Art

“We may regret our circumstances – and no doubt many of us should. But the way toward a fuller life in the arts must come by way of each person’s daily experience.”

– William Stafford

Writing prompt:

Where is the art or creativity in your daily experience? Where is the joy? Can you see a way to create more room for art and joy in everyday life? What would that look like?