News

Life [simplified] readers

I never know when I sit down to write a letter what the end result will be. I realize that it may sound pretentious, but I generally only have a snippet of an idea when I start which evolves as I write. The first few drafts are usually bad, but after a few revisions when the topic starts to materialize out of all the blather, I can find something worth sending to you. When I hear back from readers about the letter, I am often surprised and humbled about what you found worthy of comment.

I can usually tell I have struck a chord with readers when they share a generous and intimate story about how the letter resonates with their own experiences. For example, a few of you shared your new year’s resolutions with me.  One reader sent me a photo of a beautiful quilt that she made, saying that her New Years resolution was to learn to quilt better. Based on the photo, I wasn’t sure there was much room for improvement, but I admired her goal just the same. 

Others told me my letter on being selfish prompted them to write. One reader felt using the word selfish suggested a negative connotation and thought that the word self-care would be more positive and welcoming. Another reader said that she had decided to resign her two big volunteer commitments in the coming year to focus on her own care needs and the needs of her family. 

Another reader understood how difficult transitions can be, especially if the transition is forced upon you. I agree and thought that even with a transition that was done by choice, there can be unintended consequences. Either way, change can be stressful.

I have only provided a sampling of responses to the letters, but I assure you, I am moved by every person who has written to comment on the letters or to just say keep up the good work. Please keep writing me. I love hearing from you.

Lives Lived as Inspiration

Reading obituaries

In the last few weeks, I have read two short books by Austin Kleon, a writer, poet and creative. His first book started out as a speech to a graduating class and soon became a book about living a creative life called Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative (Amazon.ca Associate Link). The second book, called Show Your Work!: 10 Ways to Share Your Creativity and Get Discovered (Amazon.ca Associate Link) is about the creative process but also about how to let others into your creative world so you and your work become “findable.” I particularly enjoyed reading Show Your Work  and ended up writing a review of the book. 

In Show Your Work, Mr. Kleon suggests reading the obituaries every day. When I read that chapter, the picture that came to mind was of some elderly person, hunched over the daily obituary column looking for the names of their contemporaries. However, Mr. Kleon can’t be that person in my head because he is only 31 years old and he isn’t looking for contemporaries. He is looking for inspiration.
 

“Obituaries are like near death experiences for cowards.”
~ Austin Kleon, Show Your Work

Mr. Kleon’s premise is that anyone who has suffered a traumatic, near death experience, looks at life a little differently. They appreciated the gift of another day when they have come close to having no days left. So reading the obituaries gives Mr. Kleon an opportunity to see how people have chosen to live their days and to be reminded how short life is. In his mind, to squander away time because of fear of failure is a tragedy. For Mr. Kleon, it’s a reminder to not hold back in the pursuit of his art. He suggests that obituaries are not about a death, but rather, about a celebration of a life well-lived.

When an author takes the time to write an obituary and tell a story about a life that was important to them, it allows us learn about the deceased and their struggles. An obituary can also give a glimpse into the author's feelings for their subject because the author will choose what to highlight and what to omit based on what the author wants us to know.

So this morning, I opened up the Lives Lived on the New York Times website to find a long article about several note-worthy people who died in 2014. These individuals were writers (Maya Angelou, Gabriel García Márquez, Mavis Gallent, Walter Dean Myers), comedians (Joan Rivers, Jan Hooks, Robin Williams), actors (Lauren Bacall, Ruby Dee, Shirley Temple Black, Philip Seymour Hoffman), and activists (Amiri Baraka, Yuri Kochiyama), among others. Sometimes, the article just had a quote from the individual because their work or life is so well known. At other times, it was a simple story that was illustrative of that person’s life or work. 

In many of these obituaries, there were stories about how each person overcame an obstacle of some kind. Sometimes, those obstacles were enormous like racial prejudice, war, or poverty. Sometimes the obstacles were personal like depression or alcoholism. Many times, it was fear and doubts about what they were doing and whether they were “good enough.” Yet, many of these people overcame incredible odds and managed to leave the world a body of work, whether a film or a story or a photo, that contributed to their legacy so others could be inspired, too.

After spending the time to read this long article and think about some of the people the New York Times included, I had to agree with Mr. Kleon. Reading about their lives inspired me. I was so inspired that I abandoned the topic I was going to write about in this letter to write about his advice. 

Maybe you and I work in obscurity and no one but our friends and family know what we do or what we have produced. We might not think that the weekday dinner we made for our family, or the report we write for our boss, or the painting we work on in our spare time will endure in the memories of others, but it just might. It’s not fame or fortune that should motivate us in the work we do, but rather, the legacy we plan to leave behind.

Your life [simplified]

Who or what inspires you? I’d love to hear about your sources of inspiration.

Have a great week!

Cheers,
Catherine

P.S. Check out my letter archives if you are interested in reading back issues.

If you are interested in some of my other sources of inspiration, check out Life Simplified by Catherine on FaceBook.

I'm also writing over at cvmccann.com. Feel free to check out my blog.