An entire river of consciousness...

Blocked.

Sometimes the hardest thing to do in the world is write.  I’m not talking about adverbs or discovering a synonym to help articulate a particular thought, I’m referring to the simple concept of finding an idea to write about.  

That ever-elusive idea. 

At times that idea is like one of those helium balloons that you used to chase as a kid.  You reach and you grasp at that thin nylon string and just as you think you have it, the balloon slips through your fingers and you are left standing there watching it float away.

Other times, the most unlikely source inspires you and it gives you a burst of energy.  You rush to your computer or grab your pen and pad and start writing.  The moment the first words come out, more ideas rush in like a tsunami.  Before you know it your original thesis quickly becomes a contradiction or you have run so far off on a tangent that a GPS is necessary to find your way back home.  The result is usually a half-written page with amazing potential and an almost equal possibility of never being completed.

Most of the time when your blocked, your mind is like a tornado – words and idea fly around your head at 100 miles per hour.   Like pit row at a NASCAR race, they move so fast past you that all you can make out are colors.  Your best bet is to just close your eyes, reach out and hope that you can grab something.  Unfortunately this task is easier said than done and exhaustion wears you out before you can even come up with the title.

Lastly – well more like a contradiction of the first point – what blocks you isn’t the idea at all.  There are those times where the idea is as clear as the clearest diamond ring.  It’s a topic that you know people are interested in and you have that unique point of view that will make you stand out.  The problem is you can’t find a single word to express it.  The idea is stuck in your head like quicksand and no words in the world are good enough to pull it out. 

I guess writing and life have a lot in common because every once in a while there seems to be some kind of block or barrier in your way.  Eventually you have to find your way past it and keep on going.  Sometimes you go over it, sometimes you go around it and sometimes you have to go through it.  And then sometimes, you just write… and hope it makes sense.