The Birds who told the truth

The most notable part of  Bird by Bird that I received as valuable above all else, is the notion that one should write from the standpoint of truth.  Truth is not a finite thing, it is something that each individual can find within themselves.  Truth, to me, is what you believe deep down before you let it get filtered through your expectations of yourself in other people's eyes.  What do I mean by that?  I mean that if you believe something deep down, but don't want to share it with other people or certain other people because they will not approve and you care about that non approval, you change it.  The changed truth is not the truth we should write from.  Our writing should reflect what is deep down inside.

In my own experiences with writing, I have struggled in this regard to truth. I do not like confrontation, and from that standpoint i find that I like to change things from the point I feel them, to the point that I express them.  In my writing now, I try to not filter things like that.  Like suggested in Bird by Bird, I try to reflect the truth as best I can from within. 

The fiction packet is very cool, not so much because of it's contents but because of what it shows me.  From it I can learn that a short story is not always the same format.  There can be a short story that is only four lines long, or one that is bizarre in many ways.  The shorter stories in the packet, like the one about two red coats, are really cool!  They really show that you can inspire mystery in someone with only a few words. 

Something that I would like to try with my short stories is to inspire questions in people.  I want to make people ask questions, things that they may not want to ask but feel they have to after they read my story.  This is a lofty goal, but I think that I would enjoy trying to reach it.  The journey, after all, is the whole point of a destination. 

.'Till next week,

David Teague Jr

There is a beach far out of any radar, on an island not known to the modern world. This island has no name and no population. To walk on this beach is sareal and unlike anything in the world to experience. The beach is always sunny, heating up the white sand such that when you walk the warmth from the sand between your toes warms your spirit. The water is clear with a light blue tone, that goes on forever. The smell is a mix of sea water and palm trees. Ah, the trees. The sound of the breeze through the trees mixing with the waves of the water breaking, calms you. You're left with one option: to breath in and smile. This beach takes away worries, opens up your mind, and renews your appreciation for every moment of your life. On a normal morning there once appeared a man. He was in a business suit and had a black briefcase. Of an older age, you could tell by the wrinkles on his face that he fears something. He may explain that it is stress or anger, but it must come from fear. His dark blue suit is too much, he takes off his jacket revieling his white dress shirt. He looks around, becomes angry and begins to walk. We don't know what angered him, but it is likely that he is in an unknown place, alone. He sits down and seems to calm down. It is obvious that the beach is beginning to touch his spirit. As he sits, his life starts to shrink. He begins to realize all the things he has done. He realizes none of them amount to anything. As he reflects under the palm tree in The shade, he discovers that the only way to be fulfilled in life is to contribute to the lives of others. He breaks down and cries, understanding that he has feared failure his whole life and never aimed to help others. He breaths in and holds his lungs full. He smiles, still holding the warm beach breeze in, as if to let it Osborn his selfish nature such that he can exhail it for good. He breathes out, and the world becomes available to him. He sees himself as an instrument for good, a tool for the betterment of humanity. He sees his life as an opportunity to be useful to other's well being. He gets up and takes off his clothes, runs to the water and dives completely in. He swims until he needs air and surfaces from the warm clear blue water. He looks back at the island, says out loud, "Thank you! I am a changed man, I will change the world!". He swims back to shore, lies under the sun on the white sand, and falls asleep with a smile. He never felt more complete, more aligned with his life's purpose. He slept better than he'd ever slept, as if he had touched the very core of the Universe. On the 65th floor of an office building in a corner office in a cities downtown, he wakes up. He gets up from his desk, walk into the lobby and empties his briefcase onto the floor in front of everybody. Now with his office mates attention he walks to the elevator without saying a word. He never returned and never wore another tie.

I would like to write about "Engine" from the City Eclogue because it really stuck out to me.  This poem is scattered around, essentially by space being placed in the middle of many lines as well as above and below them.  The poem has the words, "Tear you apart" as a lone sentence.  This really tells us that this poem is touching on the point that sometimes we are all over the place internally, or torn apart. 

It talks about how "in the mirror     scatter" which once again seems to be talking about how it is within ourselves that we find most of the conflict in our lives.  Even conflict outside from without, we can often attribute to issues within.  I think that this is very useful to know, because when we are going through our daily lives we can so easily forget that it is us that has most control over the very life we are living.  If we find ourselves in conflict, as we almost daily do, then we can simply look in the mirror and adjust our perceptions of the world to  better accommodate the circumstances we have found our self in. 

This poem says, "strip you down     throw things into gear you didn't know would shift".  How cool is that?? This line says that sometimes life pushes us to places we didn't think we could go.  Things happen that we could have never predicted were possible.  Cliche, yes, but how astounding an idea are most cliche things?  I believe that the best advice we can ever get is to not be set aside by the fact that things are cliche.  The reason they are cliche is likely because they are true and have been said so often.  In regards to the poem, and this line in particular, I think it would be a good idea to address the fact that life has this power, or nature, if you will.  When we are stuck or in a place we wish we hadn't gone, we can have 'faith' in the fact that we may be capable of things we cannot consciously perceive at that time.  Always go forth with the belief that when you step, the ground will be there to catch you. 

This poem as a whole may not be meant to derive these ideas, but I think that it does non the less.