Like a cowlick

While most people within 300 miles of me are counting down the minutes ‘til Broncos’ kickoff, I’m counting down the minutes ‘til I get a few solitary hours to dedicate to the much-anticipated task of revising. It’s taking everything in me to not just take an ad out in the local paper and share with the world how excited I am about it.

Left brain made a settlement with right brain and now they are prepared to finish the task.... now that we're down to the wire. Lucky for me, I work best under such conditions. Although I'm sure my family would beg to differ. “Why do you write so much?” my son asked with perplexity as I stopped to make notes while preparing breakfast. It’s not a question that can be answered in one sentence, or two for that matter. But I gave him the obvious response: Because I like it.

But, as any writer already knows, it goes so much deeper than that. So, Jonah, here are the non-obvious reasons why I write with the determination of your one, indomitable cowlick:

n Because I don’t want to take up nail-biting, pacing, video games, smoking and, while it does sound tempting, a rigorous exercise regime.

n Because I am better at getting a point across through my fingers as opposed to the more user-friendly outlet, the mouth.

n Because I’d like to continue believing that it has indirectly helped Antonia to be the top reader of her class.

n Because I value my mental health and the mental health of those around me.

n Because if I didn’t, I would have no more excuses for why I haven’t finished my low-priority to-do list of which includes programming the garage opener and cleaning out closets.

n Because I need to be able to record the way my heart felt when Kyra learned to hoist herself up against the ottoman, or when Emma first pretended to be reading to herself, or when you announced that I was the smartest grown-up you know, or when I could see the light bulb inside Antonia’s head go on when she learned the craft of witticism.

n Because if I’m going to be up half the night anyway, I might as well finish beating up a really bad dude in Chapter 35 as opposed to beating my high score in spider solitaire.

n Because it keeps me busy in a way that is cheap yet constructive.

n Because my oversized purse would sag without the notebooks I carry with me at all times.

n Because I am seriously haunted by the voices of invisible strangers who would like for me to tell you their stories.

n And, lastly, because I CAN... What a country.