Several years ago I found a deficiency in my education. It probably occurred when trying to figure out grammar rules that didn’t come naturally, which is not good for a writer. Or when I went to a writer’s conference and a speaker lost me when talking about ‘troubleshooting your syntax’ (why didn’t I remember what a gerundive was?). Maybe it was spurred by seeing a list of the ‘Top 100 Books of All Times.’ Even as a college graduate, I had read, what, one or two of them? And did I ever finish them?
This is no fault of my educators. It rests on me, the person who was more interested in social activities than scholarly pursuits. I remembered just enough to get through a test in college.
But like most of the people on this planet, I wanted to write a novel. This turned out to be harder than I ever imagined. It also brought to life my insecurities about writing. Following advice of those who are published, I decided I needed to read the classics, the Great Books, hoping that I would glean some smarts along the way.
I started this educational process on the zigzag road that life often presents us, around the adoption of two wonderful children, and the care of a few acres, a few animals, and a very understanding and supportive husband. I’ve been on this path of self-discovery for a while now and have been led to a wide variety of books. I want to document my journey in case there are other seekers, like me, who want to increase their knowledge of themselves and the world we live in. Maybe we can share ideas on any number of topics or about self-education. I’m also writing to nurture that spirit of self-expression by doing something I enjoy: talking about books.
So this blog joins the other 174,999 blogs that are started each day. I hope you will find something useful in it. Stay tuned.
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