Don't Give Up

“Action is the antidote to despair.”

Joan Baez

"It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer."

Albert Einstein

"It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop. "

Confucius

As a writer, I don’t know which is worse, a blank page or a poorly-written page full of writing I will never use. 

It’s probably the blank page, because I can always start over with the poorly-written page and at least I’ve done something.  The blank page just stares at me, almost accusing me.  It’s saying, “Come on!  What’s the matter?  You can’t do this anymore, can you?  You have nothing left to say.”

Or maybe it’s the poorly-written page.  Sure, I’ve done something, but nothing I can use.  This page also accuses me.  It’s saying, “Come on!  What’s the matter?  You’ve said all this before!  You have nothing left to say.”

What’s worse than both of these is fear.  That’s the worst.  So I keep working until the fear goes away.  Sometimes the fear is that I won’t be able to write anymore.  Other times it’s the fear of being unloved.  Still, I keep writing.  That’s all I can do.  It’s almost always action that’s the cure.

The blank page, the poorly-written page and fear all have this in common:  they all want me to give up.  That’s not going to happen because I have work to do.

Action is the cure for a lot of things.  Maybe everything.

Here are some actions I can take or have taken and they have all made a tremendous difference:

·      Prayer

·      Writing

·      Smiling

·      Tapping

·      Exercise

·      Talking through a problem with someone

·      Monitoring my thoughts

·      Monitoring my words

·      Doing video or radio shows

·      Focusing on the needs of others

·      Concentrating

·      Studying

·      Meditating

·      Resting

What all of those have in common is that they cause me to be present in the moment.  And that brings me peace and joy.  So there are many ways to Get Started and Keep Going.  One of them is to take care of myself by sleeping and that’s what I’m going to do now. 

This may not have been my best blog ever.  Honestly, I’m fighting discouragement at the moment.  It seems that there is always a battle to fight.  But I’m not going to give up.  I’m going to stay with the problem longer, as Einstein says.  I’m going to get that house on the beach, even if it seems impossible. 

If it feels like I’m going through Hell, I will do as Churchill advised and Keep Going.  I’m never, never, ever going to give up.  Never. 

But I am going to get some rest.