Running (or Writing) After Our Passion By Andrea Cumbo (AndiLit)

Hi folks,

Andrea Cumbo of AndiLit. From: http://goo.gl/dhGd1

This is an invited post by Andrea (Andi) Cumbo, my writing teacher. I recently heard a ‘serious writer’ say on National Public Radio that “blogging is graffiti with punctuation.” I, like many bloggers, work hard to do better than that, and I must admit that I took exception to this comment. So I signed up for one of Andi’s courses, during which we aspiring authors were challenged to generate eclectic writing commentary and analysis, in addition to essay homework ranging from descriptive narrative to lyrical constructions (tough for left-brained people such as myself). I learned a lot, and I really appreciate Andi agreeing to write this invited post.

 Running (or Writing) After Our Passion

Andrea Cumbo

It’s a simple scene – a group of men run down the beach, their clustered bodies breathing with the life of the run.

This clip stands out to me for two specific moments that remind me of what it is to run and to write.  The first happens as Eric Lidell is running and the man before him kicks sand in his face.  He smiles, wipes his mouth, and runs on.

What better testament to our work – be it running, writing, or whatever we find as our vocation – to get a mouth full of dirt, smile and keep going.  Nothing worth doing is going to be easy.  There will be lots of times when we could choose to step out of the race because we got a little sand kicked in our faces.  The best among us will keep going.

The second instance in this brief scene that strikes me is at the end when the pack of runners shrinks into the distance.  A man and a boy stand and watch them as they run by.  The observers are enthralled by what the men are doing; they gaze after them, captivated by the scene.  In fact, the pack of runners attracts their dog to follow.  That’s powerful stuff.

To do what we do so well that people stop and watch, maybe even want to join in, now there’s a goal.

So whatever it is that you do with passion – run, write, play music, make furniture, balance books, parent children, work to end hunger – whatever draws your heart, keep at it even when you eat sand.  You never know who might follow you with their eyes and even with their legs.

Andi Cumbo is a writer, editor, and writing teacher, who is currently working on a creative nonfiction book about the people who were enslaved on the plantation where she now lives. She blogs daily at http://www.andilit.com and regularly at http://www.grayhairandacne.wordpress.com and Chez Ollie.