February 13

What color is three?

Three is true. Three is strong. Three doesn't wobble when you sit down. It's muskateers and waltz music in the night. It's the candlelabra on the dining table. Three is blue.

It's been hard to focus these past few days with everything that's going on, but I'm starting to wonder if that's not just an excuse. I have manuscripts that are in their final edit and can be submitted online. I think I'm stalling.

It wouldn't be the first time I've done this to myself. After I landed an article in ByLine magazine, I didn't submit anything--heck, I barely wrote anything--for almost a year.

I got up last night in the middle of the night because I woke and the house was so still and my mind was so busy and I thought it was the perfect opportunity to write. Instead I cleaned out e-mail and played on the computer and didn't get a single word on paper or screen. It's avoidance to be sure.

Then I wonder where the line gets drawn. There is a lot going on. Between the building project (church) and our upcoming trip, I am snowed under. Not to mention Abe's transcript is still looming, as are taxes, and the house is undoing itself as we speak. I can't keep anything in order. Every room is or has a mess and it's starting to get me down. I keep telling myself--go skiing. Enjoy yourself. Catch your breath and come back to it all. After all, I can't really remember the last time our entire family went on a vacation to anywhere farther than Kansas and that was so that the guys could hunt. It didn't really include me until it was time to prepare a meal. This is going to be such fun. Even if I hate skiing I'm going to love this trip. And I might just surprise them all--even me--and take to skiing like I did volleyball. Not that there's any comparison. LOL! It's just that I remember the absolute shock on the girl's coach's face when she took me to a volleyball game in Ripley and let me play. And that's what I did. I played my heart out and surprised everyone. Except myself. I was just doing what needed doing. At any rate, maybe I'll just do what needs doing when it comes to skiing too. Thought I think that's a little more complicated than volleyball. And I'm a lot older. We're stopping there!

Three is blue.