Laughter in Bottles

I wish you could contain the laughter of every person you met in a bottle. Laughter needs to be listened to, revisited, and remembered often. Whenever a dark day decided to drop by, you could pull out that bottle and unleash the sound that, sometimes, has greater power than many songs and speeches. Say laughter didn’t exist. What if when you went on Netflix to browse for a movie and there was only a selection of drama or horror genres! While you may have weeks full of intense deep novels or movies that produce much philosophical thinking, you should also have weeks of reading lighthearted stories—in other words, add a little of Dr. Seuss to your Fyodor Dostoyevsky reading schedule. Why? Laughter is valuable. If Mark Twain said, “The human race has one really effective tool, and that is laughter,” then we should take ear to the heaviness of this light commodity. 

           I believe that laughter is one of the reasons that America has won so many wars; they've remembered the power behind laughter and joy. Laughter isn't just a natural silly sound. It represents so much more. Behind a single laugh is joy; a flicker of light in a storm, a sparkle of a star on a black night. It was during the depression, the wars, and poverty, that great countries were reminded of how much they needed that joy. This is why J.R.R Tolkien spent so much time describing the Shire and the laughter of the hobbits; this is why Charlie Chaplin was so famous during the Great Depression; and, this is why God mentions joy in His word over 200 times. Writers didn’t create worlds of hobbits, fawns, and fairies just so they could waste time; laughter is as just as important in stories. 

Soak in laughter, but really...bathe in the sweet expression of joy. Cloak yourself with the laughter of your friends and family, and maybe one day we will be able to contain it into a bottle to share with all.

Reading like a Writer

             A few nights ago, I watched the film “Midnight in Paris” for my first time. While this is not a comparative movie review, I will compare this particular movie to a delicious coffee frappe—completely unnecessary for a daily meal, yet completely sweet and perfect nonetheless. But, what particularly stood out in this movie was one certain character and scene involving the infamous Ernest Hemingway. In this certain scene, Hemingway talked about not reading his fellow writers’ written works because writing is a competitive business.

             This made me realize something—I’ve been reading like a writer. Silly, huh? Hear me out first and then tell me that I’m not making any sense. Now, reading like a writer is like when you eat medicine—it’s good for you, only when you eat the required amount. But, what does that mean? …Reading like a writer? Well, maybe giving my own personal story will help relate this concept. Skimming through an ocean of novels, I usually choose one of my favorites. Maybe, in this case, I would choose Fitzgerald (staying right in line with the “Midnight in Paris” theme). Usually, I would slobber and sit in awe over his brilliant and majestic sense of language (an understatement entirely!), but there will always be a voice in the back of my mind—my writer’s voice. On constant repeat, my writer’s voice will slip in comments like “Look at this incredible author, could you really achieve something like that?”, “Does your syntax compare…never!”, “Read his imagery.”, “He certainly thought of that story idea before you.”

           

Now, fellow writers, you all must admit that sometime in your life you have heard this ominous writer’s voice…you could even call it the Jiminy Cricket of all the writing Pinocchios. Constantly, as I would read, this voice would be replaying over and over again. My reading even came to the point of making me a nervous wreck. I lost joy in the story and saw literature only as a means to perfection. But, watching “Midnight in Paris” made me aware of my problem—I was reading like a writer. I tried to remember a time when my writer’s voice was silent and mute. When was the last time I had read a book with wide eyes ready to guzzle in all the splendor and imagination contained within literature? Salman Rushdale once said, “literature is where I go to explore the highest and lowest places in human society and in the human spirit, where I hope to find not absolute truth, but truth of the tale, of the imagination, and of the heart.” I saw myself journeying on the road to successful writing, while neglecting to bring that love of writing that got me there from the start. Sure, Fitzgerald, Dickinson, Frost, and even Hemingway were all top-notch writers, even masters of literature. And, yes, of course I aspire to write like them. However, I can’t let that aspiration reach a level of bitter competition—the kind that Hemingway (in the movie) mentioned.

           An even greater question is discovered—Where would I even be without these writers? These writers are some of the reasons that I have such a love for literature. If it weren't

 for great authors, then I would have never seen “real toads in imaginary gardens” (Marianne Moore’s reference) or seen a lion teach majestic truths through Narnia. These writers introduced me to Rip Van Winkle, Mr. Darcy, Katniss Everdeen and Schindler. Those pens allowed me to understand the oppression of the Uglies, but also allowed me to rejoice with Frodo when he finally destroyed the ring. These authors are the ones who inspire me daily to find a pen, paper, and in this case, a laptop. And, then all these realizations concluded themselves into one powerful statement—I needed to approach reading like a reader, someone who has had a feast of words, concepts, stories, and thoughts laid before her… all previously prepared by the great storytellers themselves. 

Why I Blog 101

                As I began writing my first blog entry, I asked myself what the heck I was doing. Would this simply be another twitter account or perhaps the ancient Facebook page? Was I simply just jumping into another boat of social media? As I scrolled over my thoughts and wondered this (a few cups of Earl Grey tea helped jump kick the process)…I realized what I was really doing. I was stepping foot into terrifying territory. I was officially proclaiming myself to the world as a twenty first century writer, who was unafraid to use the worldwide web in order to voice my writings.

            Yet, as I thought about it, the fear began to creep slowly and softly into my mind. The monster under the bed was hastily rushing towards all my thoughts and clearly making itself visible. I was afraid.

            Everyone will encounter a decision that will lead him or her to a journey or adventure some time in his or her life…at least, I hope. Percy Jackson had to realize that his pen was not really just a pen, but also a tool that would lead him into several adventures. Alice had to make up her mind concerning whether she would daydream in a tree or see what that white rabbit was up to. Even King Arthur had to make the decision of staying where he was, inside the safety of his kingdom, or facing the perilous “monsters under his bed”. Well, I’ve not a pen/ sword hidden anywhere (although that’s up for discussion) and I’m not technically the head of a round table yet, but I do have some decisions in life to make. As you can probably guess, one of them is this blog. You could compare me to King Arthur because I am in fact leaving the comfort of my blogless life and am departing into the perilous cyber universe of blog writing. Blog writers who have seen, done, and have probably written more than I have.

            But, all have those intimidating factors appear when we encounter any adventure. Bilbo Baggins certainly didn’t complete his journey without an intimidating dragon breathing down his neck (no overstatement intended). So, if this is one of my many adventures I will have to decide on, then I should consider myself lucky, since I haven’t read of a “blogger’s death by dragon” yet. I could be intimidated by the soaring bloggers and the oh-so-many cyber writers, but I won’t be. I will look at blogging in the face and with as much guff and gusto as Bilbo, Arthur, and Alice, I will start adventuring.

            Also, because I am a fan of quotes ( you may see my obsessive tendencies with quotes very soon), I couldn’t think of a better way to end this first post than with one of my favorite quotes—“ “People wonder why the novel is the most popular form of literature; people wonder why it is read more than books of science or books of metaphysics. The reason is very simple; it is merely that the novel is more true than they are.” G.K. Chesterton wrote this and I’m so very glad he did. Now, to set things straight, this blog is not going to be a novel, yet as Chesterton wrote, I hope that this blog has a similar impact as the novel does. I don’t want this blog to be a confusing set of writings that makes readers strain their eyes. Rather, picture this blog as me meeting you at an authentic little café in France. We’re strangers who have somehow met each other. We both order a classic cup of something or other and then we begin to talk. We talk of life, culture, religion, politics, and everything that constitutes this majestic and complex universe we live in. You will be honest with your thoughts, as I will with mine. We will share words. That’s why I want this blog…to simply conversate with my readers. Welcome to my blog--"Living with Freckles". You will see and hear how I live…with my freckles…& words.