(May 22/17) “Decided Not To Grow Up? That’ll Either Peter, or Pan, Out”

Ajoy, mateys…time for another pie-rated offering (*depending on how this rolls out, a third post in as many days will be easy as pie or, far from a cake walk*).  And, just to be clear, I don’t mean to insult your obvious intelligence by italicizing any no-brainer puns (or set ups for puns to follow); but, depending on your age, geography, level of alertness (catch me on a– “What?! Morning already?”–bad day and I am as dense a dunce as ever was)…

Oops, I didn’t mean to say that not catching my wordplay is evidence of stupidity, Dearests–I sincerely hope you know me better than that!!!

Wow, did I sound accusatory and critical just then?  I should’ve phrased my well-intended correction a different way…and, I shouldn’t have used the word “should’ve”, should I?…it might come across as dictatorial, preachy, and judgmental–and, I’ve vowed to be kinder to myself.

(*Okay, so far, this attempt rates 1 out of a possible 10…lighten up Sugar Pie :)*)

And, this Wonderfuls, provides another example of the digression regression that trips me up as a skip merrily along the sidelines, rather than getting down to the business of moving onword …

Yep, it’s striking how boring writing can be when much of the time is spent spinning yawns (*Boston pronunciation of “yarns”*) so hopelessly tangled that I bottle the message.

(*Exception to the no-explanation rule: “bottle it” means failing to achieve your goal–as in, when I fail to concisely make my point…making “bottle the message” a message-in-a- bottle/pirate/Peter Pan pun…sea? 🙂

Okay…I have to admit, that got me back on board my little ship of fools (crew consisting of me, myself, and I.*)

And, Amazers, now that I’ve (re)set my course for adventure on my Love Gloat cruise, what I meant to start with is the announcement that I woke to find I have 400 Followers.

What?!  Me, the social media introvert whose Facebook footprint might as well be a baby toe? (*I have less than 100 FB Followers…and would have far less than that if I weren’t too polite to ignore “friend requests”.*)

And, that’s not to dis FB–it’s great that there are all kinds of virtual worlds to explore/be part of.  But, I am sooooo blessed to be part of this one.

(BTW…here’s a shout-out to my FB friends who read my blog….and to those who look me up online and read…thank you soooo much!!!)

And, sure, out of the 400 bloggers, there’s only a small core group who faithfully visit/click “like”–and a subset of those who include comments–but, I’m grateful for everything!

I’m grateful for the random people who Follow, then don’t click “like” on anything (who knows if they ever read anything beyond my, “Thanks for connecting”, and comments I leave on their blogs).  I’m grateful for the “visitors” who anonymously come and go–and, perhaps even come back again…how am I to know?  And I’m so grateful to the bloggers who I got to connect with before–busy with other pursuits–they “dropped out of sight” (life can be a demanding (multi)taskmaster).

After all, no one owes anyone anything…what we receive are gifts from generous souls…and, how lucky am I to merit even the briefest acknowledgement out of thousands and thousands of bloggers?!

And, speaking of acknowledgement, I’ve been toying with the notion of external validation.

I heard this once: “Give people the power to feed you, and you give them the power to starve you.”

I get it…we must believe in ourselves (write for our own satisfaction…paint, sing, dance, perform for ourselves)…but, it becomes trickier when we want to share that which we believe will enrich others’ lives (and, in doing so, enrich our own).

(*Uugh…did that smack of delusions of grand-yer sure full of yourself?*)

No (person) is an island, after all–we’re relational and interconnected beings.  So, how can I expect to gain the confidence to move through the rejection that will come when I (eventually) submit work to publishers if I don’t internalize the wonderfully-kind and complimentary comments I get from those who get my work?

Isn’t that akin to applying for a job and being rejected because you don’t have any (paid) work experience?

Having said that, I think my best bet is to continue focusing on a quality versus quantity perspective, for–given repeated evidence that my writing has broader appeal than I’d imagined (no offence, gents, but I had no idea you’d be fans…and, I’m delighted that young readers appreciate my old-school references…and, I love that people from other cultures get me)–I’m going to tuck those treasured comments in a special place where their light will outshine the places rejection’s sting seeks to dampen my spirits and dowse my dynamite.

So. in an externalized context, and fitting metaphor, I’m going to fight fire with admire!

Thank you for sailing this, “Hi, (let’s) seas-the-day” post with me, Dazzlers…growing up in your company has unfailingly resulted in an accelerated growth process.  I honestly don’t know that I would have come this far without you…

God bless you and your loves 🙂

Affectionately, Truly 🙂

P.S. In Canada, today is a holiday (Victoria Day)…so, that’s how I had the (leisure) time to write.

 

25 thoughts on “(May 22/17) “Decided Not To Grow Up? That’ll Either Peter, or Pan, Out””

  1. Wow… three days in a row we are able to read you. I enjoyed this one… here is my favorite part… (not that it matters)

    Okay…I have to admit, that got me back on board my little ship of fools (crew consisting of me, myself, and I.*)…

    this made me smile… is this a Plato or Brant reference?

    or could it be 1 of the 20+ songs by that title..

    (thinking just 80s)

    Echo and the Bunnymen

    Erasure

    World Party (my favorite)

    I think even Robert Plant had a “Ship of fools” song…. during that time…

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      1. This is my favourite to…although the “ship of fools reference didn’t occur to me by way of any songs…it was a literary reference that sprung out of my subconscious–and I had no idea of who said it and in what context (novel? play?)

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    2. Thank you for this amazing music….none of these would have occured to me (although I’ve heard them before)….who knew that phrase was such a popular reference….and in the 80’s no less…cool. Thank you 🙂

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  4. Well your post title hooked me right in. Of course, Captain Hook was a crusty “Pie”rate. for sure!
    Wishing you a wonderful day, from your wonderful dazzler back in Los Angeles!

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    1. I love Peter Pan and I love to include frames of reference that speak to those happy places first discovered in childhood….those happy places that serve as islands in the wasteland that adulthood can sometimes find us land-locked in….thanks for letting me know my offering gave you something 🙂

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  5. I’m guessing that many of us could, “(re)set our course for adventure on a Love Gloat cruise.” It is no surprise to me that your blog is a quriky fav for many bloggers. Many of us begin with a blog because a few friends or acquaintances want our thoughts in a accessible form. It doesn’t occur to us that somewhere in this world a horde of other like-minded people would also enjoy our thoughts if they only knew how to access them. I suspect your untapped audience is far larger than you imagine.

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    1. I can’t tell you how much your message has warmed my heart…made me feel like I just won a 6 month/winter vacation on a tropical island…thank you soooo much for your kindness and encouragement 🙂

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  6. Better late than never, although I appear to have already liked this post; which is odd as I’d normally only do that if I was commenting here. It’s my marker for which posts I’ve missed… if that makes sense. Obviously I often like posts read and yet not had time to comment on; which is legion in size owing to the real being time dominant. Although my recent three weeks of scheduling are placing me in a better position not to waste time; or put another way, acts to show where time was being misspent. Not that this has anything to do with another wonderful post…which leads to spinning yarns AKA “Ripping Yarns” of the TV series of same name back in the day.

    Onto the crux of the matter, as us writers all connect with… rejection and that cognitive dissonance you mentioned before…its good, no its not equating to rock… us… hard place… ignore with a pretence of that chore over there needs doing now.

    No person is an island.. very true in this virtual global beach where we all seem to just get on fine and appreciate other bloggers time in word craft; but, in relation to the above remember that first ever post? Scary, to hit publish or not, will anybody see it, read it, like it or comment. That obstacle was overcome and could it be publishing is not too dissimilar?

    Now sailing off to the rest… checking for leaks and aiming not to sink in shark infested waters 🙂

    Another quirky post rich in your usual word plays Truly 🙂

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    1. Oh, my gosh….this one I didn’t see, somehow….this is a heads-up that I need to do one thing at a time–while taking a moment in between to get centered. The weird thing is, feeling like my usual self again, I am tackling many things with gusto, and somehow overlooked something that brings me joy! Hearing from you, and benefiting from your kindness and wonderful insights and parallels, makes my day….I regret not seeing this/responding in a timely fashion, Gary…I so appreciate you and our connection…thank you for commenting 🙂

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      1. One supposes most definitely now that you were most pre-occupied Truly. I am so relieved it was that and not something I said or did. In relation to this writing thing I pressed a post about a guest author on a friends blog by Terry Tyler. You might like to take a look at it as it’s “on topic” and throws in a self published authors take on things mentioned here 🙂

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  7. Pingback: Liebster Award| Facts about me – What Living Taught Me

  8. Blogging has become the last refuge of writers devoted to the craft, but unable to find a wider audience. We were, of course, preceded by countless unpaid and underpaid writers over the centuries. Only a small handful ever became famous — some of those posthumously. But the saying is true anyway. We write because it’s more painful not to. ❤

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    1. Yes…blogging is an absolute blessing….and, I’m preparing to explore other contexts for sharing. This has been my first (public) foray into the world of writing, and I know that it’s just the beginning–and, a most invaluable beginning at that 🙂 And, yes, we just have to write and share–it’s akin to breathing. Thank you so much for your support 🙂

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    2. I love that quote, Anna – because it’s so true. Trulyunplugged, your post offers so much to think about. On one hand, yes, it’s a pitfall to rely on the validation of others. At the same time, it’s lovely to share & to find kindred spirits here 🙂

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  9. Once again your words echo mine, as we write our thoughts/posts and send them out into the world, we feverently wonder if we will receive echoes back – I feel the same, every “like/follow” “comment” or “view” is precious, it means that a connection has been made which is what a writer lives to do! Congratulations on your following, Truly!

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  10. Okay,it’s official! I’m a bigger fan than I thought possible of your oh so punny and distinctive wrtiting style! (I live for puns,all day,everyday) I completely get your views on blogging (Which reminds me,Congratulations! )and the connnection which is I think the one end goal of every blogger, at least.Thank you for your amazing posts!

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