I don’t know about you, but gray is my least favorite color. The trend of gray kitchens, gray barn wood flooring, gray countertops, and walls painted—wait for it—gray leaves me more depressed than I care to admit. The weather doesn’t cooperate when it sends gray, dreary, rainy days, and I would rather spend my time on a misty moor crying for Heathcliff.

Whatever happened to sunny yellows, loving pinks, and gleeful greens? There is a school of thought which says color therapy helps improve our mood. Color can heighten awareness and energy, decrease stress, reduce anxiety, and increase our productivity. True or not, opting for bright hues seems prudent.

Spring greens can support feelings of hope, strength, and serenity. Sky blue encourages peaceful thoughts, wisdom, creativity, loyalty, and spirituality. Clear, energetic yellow, my personal favorite, makes me feel happier.

What is your favorite color?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Why do we fight tooth and nail against change? Everyone has their reasons. It’s easier to say “No,” and remain within the comfortable confines of familiar habits than to take a chance on the unknown. Routines and our customary practices make us believe we are in control.  Familiarity lulls us into thinking we possess the skills needed to complete our daily tasks.

Perhaps the one reason everyone can agree with, but nobody wants to admit, is that change requires work. In the beginning, change can be exciting, and our motivation is at its highest. Who doesn’t want to lose weight, improve their life, learn to play the piano, spend more time with family, or earn more money? I do. Where do I sign up? My intentions are noble, and I buy workout clothes, toss junk food in the garbage, and vow to exercise on my brand-new stationary bike at 5 am every morning. It’s a promising start, but several weeks later, the machine has become a shrine of cute outfits, and a layer of dust covers everything. What happened?

I recently ran across another thought-provoking explanation, called “Kanter’s Law.” Rosabeth Moss Kanter, professor at Harvard Business School, says, “in the middle, everything looks like a failure.” The middle of the exercise plan is sweaty, grueling work. Maybe you stuck with your 5 am schedule for a week.  Every evening, as your reward for your accomplishment, you celebrated with a cookie and wondered why after the first week, the number on the scale was not smaller. The standard for the middle stage is two steps forward and one step backward.

Happy endings don’t lie at the end of a straight line. Hazards riddle the road, and failures to advance are guaranteed. Failure is a part of the change process and a natural stepping stone towards success. Determining what works involves risks. We must discover what doesn’t work, making adjustments, and continuing to take one more step forward.

What will you fail at today?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

I have a set schedule. I write at nine every day. Rain, shine, I commit to two hours of writing and deliver a finished piece. From sourcing and creating an image to the first draft, through multiple edits, a title, proof-reading, and scheduling a post, my timeline does not change. I find working with a rigid outline forces me into preconceived conclusions. But working without direction or a destination is a recipe for disaster. There is a delicate balance between writing without limits and writing with purpose.

Given too many choices and no expectations, I can’t decide, and my story goes nowhere. I need rules, constraints, guidelines, a theme, and a challenge. Restrictions like word counts, time limits, and themes create a puzzle to occupy my critical mind. Specific benchmarks quiet my inner censor, which allows my subconscious brain room to play.

The hardest part is getting started. I stutter and fumble with the first sentence as I sift through possibilities and eliminate the pieces that don’t belong to the story I am telling. As my fingers type, I settle into a rhythm. Words sing, my thoughts coalesce, and surprises happen. I relax, I let go of self-consciousness, and the tale emerges.

The finished piece needn’t be “good,” whatever that is. Sometimes I get lucky, and readers connect with the concepts. Those two sacred hours are the best part of my day. My practice keeps me sane and makes me happy. I won’t be giving it up anytime soon.

What is your writing process?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Spring is here. I have been waiting for Spring.  I have a long list of things I am looking forward to.

1. No more turtleneck sweaters, sweatshirts, and heavy winter coats because
2. Warmer temperatures, and
3. No more snow or shoveling snow, or slipping on ice, and
4. No more cabin fever. I am being optimistic, and assuming self-isolation will grant me a few hours in the
5. Sunlight
6. Cadbury Eggs, and
7. Girl Scout cookies (I have boxes safely hidden from prying eyes)
8. Saying Buh-bye to a New Year’s Resolutions because of #6 and #7
9. Bright colors
10. Flowers, songbirds, and my budding garden.

What Spring things are you looking forward to?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Spring is here, Spring is here, Spring is here. Can you tell how excited I am? Winter may try to remind us of his fury, but Mother Nature will ensure that he does no more damage than a tempest in a teapot. Already the first golden jewels have appeared. Capture those images quickly, for soon, they will deepen and transform into every shade of green. Sap runs in my Maple trees and colors the tips of their branches with a deep burgundy glow. The buds have softened in the sun’s warmth, and they stir, ready for a long uncurling stretch like a cat waking from her nap.

Green speckles erupt in my garden’s dirt. Crocus and tulips hear the call and push back the covers from their deep slumber. It is time to grow and bloom. I sense what was almost imperceptible a few days ago, and I cannot resist the quiet song. The slow, plodding drumbeat increases its tempo. The birds sing, and a robin adds his voice to the choir.

Mahler is right. When Spring arrives, we can breathe deeply again. Winter causes us to constrict, hunker down and conserve the little heat we have. The forecasters predict temperatures to soar to 60 degrees this weekend. It’s not shirt sleeves, shorts, and flip-flop weather, but working in the garden under a sunny sky, I expect to shed a layer or two, soak up some vitamin D, and remember how to breathe.

Have you been waiting for Spring?

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Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer