Writing

What Writing Has Taught Me About Life

Pen To Paper

I have learned a lot in my life, but perhaps the greatest lessons in life, I have learned from writing.  This is what writing has taught me about life.

Patience
The best things in life take time.  Time, precious time.  Everything I write, is written using a pen and paper, in Moleskine notebooks.  It takes much longer than simply sitting down at a computer keyboard, but the result is writing with deeper meaning, bold statements inspired by life events that speak to all those who are human.  And if, by chance, the words originated in typed form, I still hand-copy them into my notebook for safe keeping and preservation.

Acceptance
In life, not everything is the way we think it should or could be.  Unlike a fiction writer, who can change the path of the story they have created, life only seldomly goes according to plan.  Furthermore, nothing in life is ever truly perfect, and striving for perfection is okay as long as one is not discouraged and/or disappointed when they inevitably fall just short of perfection.

Hard Work
For those who think that writing is easy, it isn’t.  Writing is perhaps one of the most intellectually, mentally, and emotionally challenging occupation of all time.  My father always told me that if you are ever going to do something, do it right and to the best of your ability.  As for hard work, he told me that in life, if you are not willing to put forth the necessary effort, someone else will.

Forgiveness
It is better to forgive and forget than to hold onto negativity.  My life hasn’t been perfect, far from it, but over the years, I have learned to forgive those who have made my life difficult.  I will, however, never forget about the things that have happened, the situations I have been through, or who or what was responsible, as I have written about these things.  Writing has helped me to put the past behind me and move on.

Mindfulness
Writing has an attribute of permanence once published.  With the digital age comes even greater longevity to ones writing once published digitally on the Internet.  Some of the things I have posted online I have regretted posting later on.  This is by no means a scenario unique to me; people post things on social networking sites that they later regret.  Whenever I write something in my notebook, I must make the decision to keep it private, or post it online, and in doing so, must live with and accept the consequences of doing so.

Responsibility
My written words, as in life, are my responsibility.  I have to hold myself accountable for the things I do, say, and write.  If I write something, I must take full responsibility for whatever effect or consequences come as a result.

Colophon
The title photo is titled Pen To Paper, and credit goes to Dwayne Bent.

Asides
What Has My Writing Taught Me?

15 Comments

    • Thomas

      Yes. Everything posted here originates in a Moleskine notebook. And if by chance it was typed during its creation, it gets hand-copied into said Moleskine notebook for safe keeping.

  • Maury Cheskes

    Wise points mentioned in this piece. I like your part on forgiveness because the truth is no matter what others have done to you, you are the most responsible for your actions. It sometimes can be scary publishing things online because once it goes viral, you can’t take it back. Writing in a personal journal can be very therapeutic without the fear of being judged by others and where you can be totally honest.

  • Miaka Yuuki

    As a writer myself I cannot help but relate to this. What writing taught me is to be free. I Use it to express more than as a job but that is okay.

  • jolly555

    The best thing writing has taught me is not to be impatient. I have had some of my writing projects rejected by clients because I didn’t take time to do the writing well but I have learned to be more patience now.

  • Jeffrey Scott

    Now that I think about it, I’ve really learned a lot from writing too. Also, I get to understand myself more through writing.

  • brainedet

    Writing is an exceptional art and comes with some life’s lessons which is what will help to mold us. Yes, writing is hard work stringing words together perfectly has never been a small work because it must be done in a way that the reader fully understands what it really means. Good writing is hard work.

  • Danielle M

    Thanks for sharing what you learned, I’m still working in being more patient, I admit that sometimes anything can drive e crazy. However forgiveess, is a lesson that I have learned well and that have brought peace to my life.

  • Obalade Damilola

    Great share..I always thought writing is an easy task until i started writing myself.It requires hardwork.. You need to know you are in it for the long haul..Writing requires deep thinking and I have always been mindful of whatever I post..people say I tend to walk on egg shells by doing that..but the honest truth is I don’t want to post something I will regret later..

  • David Mureithi

    Any reading is healthy for the brain. People with a tendency of reading have a higher acceptance rate and understand others more than average people.

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