For fifty-five years words have been my constant companion. When I was an infant I struggled to recognize them, as a child I needed to master understanding them, saying them, using them. When my grandmother taught me to read and write, my four year old mind was in heaven.
As a young person I was led to believe that my life would be easier if I found a vocation and stuck to it. And it was understood that a vocation involved hard physical work, or being trained in a highly technical trade.
I tried …
In my life I’ve done a lot of things. I’ve been a pressman in a printing plant, I’ve been a contractor, I’ve been a farm hand, and I’ve worked in restaurants. I’ve been a computer technician and I’ve been a computer programmer.
And yet …
Through all the years of labour and effort, I’ve been searching for the thing that I could love and enjoy as a means of supporting myself, and ignoring the idea that I could simply support myself by doing the thing that I love and enjoy.
Is it too late?
I think I’m safe in saying it’s never to late to do the right thing, unless you run out of time. And I believe I couldn’t be faulted for suggesting that you haven’t run out of time if you’re still alive.
Is it too late for you to write, or do whatever it is you love, for a living? I don’t know. What I know is what I already said, it’s never too late to do the right thing.
Is it too late for me to write for a living? …. Hell No! I’ve already started. I write a regular blog, something like this one, and I get paid to do that. I’ve received money for lyrics I’ve written and for freelance articles I’ve been commissioned to produce. And I’m working on finding other sources of income that my writing might generate.
Some advice?
So, if you don’t mind my taking liberties with your life, I’m going to tell you something. If you hate what you do for a living, and you’ve got something you love to do, and if you’ve still got at least one foot outside the grave, do that thing you love for a living.
I guess what I’m trying to say could be summed up in one word …
Word!
