Writing anyway

Yesterday was a sad day. My family's cat, George, had been very sick for the past few days, and it was clear he was dying, so Ian and I went with my Mom and sister Karen to the vet to have him put to sleep. Very sad. It took me back to the time 6 years ago when my own cat, Rasta, died. Even though it's an act of compassion and love, it's a hard thing to go through. Rasta and George were unique cats - Rasta was so sweet and loving to everyone (I used to call him the "goodwill ambassador") and George was so friendly and funny and smart (my sister called him "Einstein"). They were truly members of the family, and will be missed forever.
Usually, when something bad or sad happens, it stifles my writing. I start thinking, Life sucks - why bother? The writer's block can last for days or weeks, until I can get past what happened and move on. I've allowed these setbacks to happen too often - it's no wonder I've had trouble finishing projects. By the time I've finally emerged from my funk, I've forgotten what book I was working on! My old journals have pages and pages that are blank exept for the date and the notation "didn't write." I can look through them and remember, oh yeah, that was a bad day... that one, too... that one, too.
But no more. I'm not going to let life get in the way of my writing progress. Life happens, and sometimes it's bad - that's just the way it is. And I know that many writers have created some of their best work during the worst of times.
So I've been writing anyway. I've kept up with my morning pages journal (even though I had to write yesterday's pages at night - I didn't have time in the morning with all that was going on).
And I went to my writing group last night, and read the scene I wrote on Monday for my resurrected teen novel. Michelle and Lisa both gave me good feedback, and I told them I feel a lot of energy for this book again, so I'm going to continue with it. They told me they'll make sure I do - I need that kind of gentle pushing support.
They both read their versions of the "Circle One" exercise from "The Write-Brain Workbook." Lisa wrote a clever fantasy short-short story about carousel horses, and Michelle wrote the beginning of a new young reader's book, about a little girl who befriends a mentally-disabled man. We all commented that it's remarkable that the same writing exercise can inspire such widely different pieces from each of us. We each have our own individual style and voice. I feel lucky that my friends have such strong writing ability - it encourages me to take my writing to the highest level that I can attain.
I brought to our meeting another cool writing tool created by Bonnie Neubauer: a "Story Spinner." It's like a pinwheel, made up of three small, medium and large-sized discs of cardstock that are attached in the middle. Each disc has an open slot that reveals words underneath. You spin each wheel to reveal a setting, a starting phrase, and a word, and then include them in a story. Our "assignment" for our next meeting is to write a story using the starting phrase "The smell of," the setting "on a new planet," and the word "muscle." It will be interesting to see how each of our stories turns out! Check out the "Story Spinner" on Bonnie Neubauer's website www.bonnieneubauer.com. I've been doing exercises from "The Write-Brain Workbook" each day since Monday, before work and during my breaks at the b.s. Some exercises reflect on the practice of writing, and some are just plain fun. Different kinds of writing for different moods.
As for writing through my recent sad mood, I think cats are going to somehow appear in some of my pieces and projects. Black fluffy cats with soulful eyes like Rasta, and orange-striped cats with intelligent expressions like George. It's a way to keep their spirits alive... until we can someday meet again.
Rasta 1985 - 2000
George 1994 - 2007