#1 Tales of the Dawn

So this is the last series I will do for this year. I can’t believe it has already been an entire year of writing! You’d think after doing this daily that I would at least feel like I’m scraping the bottom of the barrel, right?

Wrong!

I honestly feel like I’m just getting warmed up! I have a whole list of topics that I want to cover and projects that I want to try that I could not possibly be writing fast enough! But with all this momentum that I have generated and all this progress that I have made, it might be a good idea to stop and reflect a little. To take a look at how I got here, and to tell some of the stories that happened between the postings that you all saw regularly. I think it’s a good idea to take a second to look back at the year we have had. 

You see, some of these stories have really stood the test of time for me. I mean, I’m proud of everything I write, and sometimes there are lessons that I let slip from my mind that I definitely shouldn’t have. Others have had bigger ripples than just the insights that I shared within their pages. Some posts paint a bigger picture that I feel ought to be shared, ought to be appreciated. It’s always good to look back in appreciation, especially when a new chapter is about to start. 

And I guess the best place to start would be to share the story of how I got this blog started in the first place. It all started the day I was born…

Just kidding! 

I couldn’t tell you exactly when the seeds of writing were first planted in me. I remember when I was in the fifth grade, I was really good at spelling. I used to write acronyms obsessively. In fact, I still do that sometimes. I’ll write out whole sentences and all the first letters make a different word. It helps pass the time. 

But I do remember having a writing phase in school. The funny thing was that I wasn’t much of a reader, but my projects for English classes always seemed to impress my teachers (including one where I actually just rewrote a Nickelback song. The teacher still doesn’t know it.) Teachers, classmates, and parents alike recognized my talent as a writer and encouraged me to nurture the gift. The only problem was that I hadn’t fallen in love with it yet. I figured if I just kept trying at it, kept at it long enough, then I would eventually start to like it. No such day came. 

So the phase fizzled out and sat dormant in the shadows for many a year. I focused on my love of music and went off to college, pursuing that as my main side-project. Except, I almost failed music theory, which definitely damaged my connection to music. It was starting to feel like something was missing anyway, but that solidified it for me. So I wandered through college and decided that I wanted to be a tradesman for a living. The rest of my life didn’t really matter, I guess. 

Then, last Christmas, my kid brother went out on a limb and gave me a book for christmas. It was a risky move, because I was never a fan of reading. But it paid off! I loved the book and it woke something up in me. The book was “be a man,” and it was by a Youtuber who literally goes by “the ‘be a man’ guy.” (and, if you haven’t checked out his channel, do so. He’s hilarious.) I really liked his “plain and simple” style. No games, no flowery words, no beating around the bush. Whenever someone tried to get me to read growing up, they always resorted to novels. I really struggled with those because I couldn’t keep up with all that was going on. 

This felt more like a person telling me the stories of their life. They weren’t complicated and kept to the details that really mattered. So I could follow it pretty easily. On top of that, it was more conceptual than a novel. It’s funny-in my kid brain, the only books that were out there were novels. I didn’t really realize that there were more conceptual things like philosophy writings and practical wisdoms. Things that I could actually wrap my head around, especially now as a philosophy major. 

And I guess that’s why I fell in love with the whole thing-it was like getting all the wisdom I never had access to growing up. All the practical advice, all the questions that finally had answers! It was like opening up an entirely new world! And I don’t remember how this part came about, but as I got into reading, everyone kept throwing me comments about how I should write a book. 

So I took a crack at it. I barfed up some ideas that I could compile into a book. I honestly didn’t have much of a direction, I was just writing. But it felt  just like A Day to Remember said:

Never questioned it, was more like when and how.

But one thing became clear as I started fumbling through countless pages: I needed practice. So I shelved the whole book thing and got the blog started. I tried out a few sites until I finally settled on one, and the rest was history!

And the progression from there to here is where we are going to focus on for the next two weeks. Gosh, there are so many stories to be shared about the stories that have been shared! I can’t think of a better way to wrap up the year than this!

But before we wrap up for today, I have to acknowledge that this beginning is partially the work of all of you. I needed that vote of confidence to get me started on this project. I can honestly say that I’m ten times the man I was because of all of you. Sure, I had to walk through the door by myself, but you all were the ones that pointed me towards it. Even if you did as little as liked a post or two-heck, even if you just opened the page once or twice, it all got this plane off the ground. And I believe this party's just getting started. So thank you for being a part of the dawn. Whatever comes next, know that I am grateful for your role in my story. 

Until Next Time

May Peace be your Guide.