August Again

When I was growing up, I remember enjoying solitary activities like writing and reading. Acutely aware of my thoughts and feelings I was in search of a platform to think aloud.

 As it happens, people used to ask me, “So what do you do?”
“I read and I write.”
“We all read and write. What do you do?”

I had no answers. I was not a ‘working woman’. Unable to complete my doctorate, I used to wonder whether having grey cells was an exclusive preserve of working women. The prospect of being a writer was so distant, and the idea so farfetched, that I never gave it a serious thought. And being a science student, I couldn’t be a writer of any acceptable denomination. After all, a writer’s language they say - like Caesar's wife, should not only be pure, but above suspicion of impurity.

Regardless, I wrote. And I read a lot. A decade ago, publications had no interest in what I wrote. They discouraged me by restraining my pen with words and deadlines. In August 2010, blogging provided wings for me to soar as a free bird. The desire to soar beyond word limits and deadlines was so strong that I named my blog ‘Freebird’. Each time I wrote a post, I felt lighter, happier.

As luck would have it, the editor of a city based newspaper was looking for writers. He read my blog and sent me a mail asking me to meet him. It was my birthday. And I was on board. An otherwise small step was noteworthy on two accounts. First, I was able to see my articles in print, and second, I was able to tap my major in Plant Physiology by writing articles based on plants and their health benefits. One thing led to another, and generic writing paved way for media critique and political commentary. The attempt was not to condemn or pass judgment, but to hold a mirror to the way the media was behaving.

Today, after four years into serious blogging, people recognize me as a writer. The regular,“What do you do?” has paved way for, “So, how’s the writer doing?”
Apart from social recognition, I notice phenomenal personal growth. We can win an argument inside our head but when we write for readers across continents, we try to put in our best. While this awareness is stimulating, it is also empowering. Blogging for me is like thinking aloud.
As far as I remember, my mind was always flooded with little thoughts pulling me in different directions. However, I am pretty focused when I write. Hours pass in minutes, minutes in seconds. It is as if I am centered on one thought. Who would have thought that blogging can also be meditative?

This August, I'll complete four years of active blogging. Despite the peaks and troughs, nothing is more joyous than being able to press the publish button to find that your words resonate with others. There is something about articulating thoughts on a public platform and comparing them with others that can be liberating. Moreover, there is an addictive kick in knowing that people across continents are reading what you write. Nothing is more exciting than writing being a soul mate for your solitude. I might not blog frequently, but  this space remains special. The passion endures.