Thinking Out Loud

Today there is rain. Actually, it is storming. I happen to like thunder and lightning. A lot. It is extremely dark outside at the moment and feels something like a song in minor key. (I like those too ~ a lot.) The girls are playing in the family room and I am reclined on the living room sofa, feet up and watching the downpour. I am quite relaxed and it is hard to decide which book (from my stack of four) to pick up next. The dryer is currently not working and I do not care. There is food to prepare but it can wait. I have words to read, words to write. I think a week of days like this will do nicely.

Much to my chagrin I seem to have writer's block before I've even begun...on my book, that is. I know the hero by heart, know the protagonists and the conflict as well. But the plot, well, it seems to be hiding somewhere in my head. That's okay for now, I suppose. I have the rest of my life to figure it out. I recently reread excerpts from my favorite book, a gift that I'll always treasure from someone who loved me, a story that remains of utmost importance. These are sentiments I'd like to capture...somehow.

"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view--until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it." To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch to daughter Scout, Chapter 3.

"You are too young to understand it ... but sometimes the Bible in the hand of one man is worse than a whiskey bottle in the hand of--oh, of your father." To Kill a Mockingbird, Miss Maudie Atkinson to Scout, Chapter 5.

"The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience." To Kill a Mockingbird, Attitus Finch, Chapter 11.

"I think there's just one kind of folks. Folks." To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout, Chapter 23.

"An' they chased him 'n' never could catch him 'cause they didn't know what he looked like, an' Atticus, when they finally saw him, why he hadn't done any of those things... Atticus, he was real nice..." "Most people are, Scout, when you finally see them." To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout and Atticus Finch, Chapter 31.

To finally see someone. Wow. That is what makes all the difference.