Monday, February 28, 2011

at night

I seem to have become a night owl. I seem to be staying up later and later, sliding into the nightquiet like an animal into water.

Night is when stillness happens.

Night is when time opens up.

Sometimes at night I read: blogs, books, the paper. Sometimes but rarely I watch: tv, youtube. Sometimes and often, I listen to my favourite music. Often and almost always, I write my days and dreams down here.

But tonight I've been working on my stories. Writing, changing, planning, thinking, dreaming… Tonight I crawled inside my words and it felt so fine. So good to work on them. So good to write new words too.

When I'm writing it's like I'm inside my truest self. I become aware of everything, all around. My senses come alight and alive and everything—all around and inside me—feels like it fits.

Behind me and through the open window, I can hear the frogs clicking and popping by the pond. Out front, I hear crickets and the scuttle of a possum. The windows are open and a breeze drifts in.

The cat and the kitten rustle and wrestle behind me. They won't leave each other alone. When the tussle becomes too big, I throw a soft pillow. They scramble, tear apart. But minutes later, they're back together. I'm still trying to work out if it's love.

I have left my stories for a long time, let the book-in-the-making wait. Because in all the busy and the beautiful, it feels too hard to fit the "One More Thing" in that is my writing. But tonight, I roused myself. I made myself dig out those words, waiting as they were on a hardly-ever-used computer. I read, altered, added… I mused and created in the nightdark for hours.

And lightness came. And a feeling of clear and clean and true. I thought, Here I am.


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6 comments:

  1. Awesome! I wish I could find that stillness to sit and write. I have so much going on, even in my mind, that I can't seem to focus!

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  2. I find that in the summer when the window are open and the sounds of night float in, I do my best writing. But now it is winter and I am sleepy and I rarely stay up late. I am like the hibernating bear! Just a few more weeks and hopefully once daylight savings time readjusts my body clock, I will do up late writing too!

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  3. I'm an early morning writer which is mostly unfortunate because I am not an early morning person. Oddly, it happens to be when the words come. Night time? Gobbledy gook for me.

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  4. Chris (Mom): THANK YOU. For some reason seeing your comment first up meant the world to me…

    Karisma, Thanks! I know what you mean about finding time to focus. Isn't the world SO busy? It's hard to think straight from minute to minute sometimes, let alone be still long enough to write those thoughts down :)

    Jessica, I hope your hibernation is bringing you a sense of cosy and Right, and that when you wake up into spring the late writing flows! Though I wouldn't say your writing's stopped! And I'm thankful for that.

    And Sardine Mama. How wonderful to see you! Thanks so much for stopping by. VERY cool. Yeah, up until recently, I had ALWAYS been an early morning writer/riser/live-er. It's hard to believe that's changing, and that any words come out at night! Times, they are a changin'.

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  5. Lately it has been slowly warming up here. I have been staying up later too. Open windows with birds and crickets are some of my favorite sounds in the world.

    When I lived in San Fran, there were no cicadas. That sound is in my blood and I craved it. It is probably my favorite sound except for Kei's laughter.

    I love this post.

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I love hearing from you! Thank you for your heartfelt, thoughtful responses—they lift me, and give me light.