I understand that, for many, my writing has become something of a meme; a mildly amusing joke. It's become something that people roll their eyes at every time it's mentioned. I get that. I've been writing for twenty years, working and reworking the same story over and over, letting it evolve and grow as my skills improve.

But let me ask you this: aside from a successful marriage, pets, and raising children, what is worth putting constant, life long effort into?

A job or a career will only afford you temporary luxuries. Luxuries that by and large, many of us can do without. There is nothing we can take with us when we die, and what we earn loses value and meaning the longer we have it.

Friends can be fickle and uncaring. Their loyalty being soley dependant on specific alignments of opinion. No matter the depth of connection, one wrong word can fracture the glass foundation any friendship is built on.

Education is useful, but means nothing if it's not backed up by words printed on a piece of paper, and endorsed by someone who's likely no more educated than you. Many of us spend our lives chasing scraps of paper that amount to little more than proof that you were able to sit and listen to the pontifications of those who assume expertise.

No, I fail to see how anything we are told is worth the effort of a lifetime, truly is. In my experience it is what we are told not to do that's really worth the time and the effort to do.

This is why:

If you pour your heart and soul into your job, you can still lose it. If you give everything you have to your friends, they may still leave. If you focus all of your energy on furthering your education, it still doesn't guarantee you a job.

I don't write because I think it's worth the time or the effort. I write because I enjoy it; because it levels my mind; preserves my sanity, and my life.
I write because I hurt, not because it might make a quick buck. I don't put the effort into learning about writing because I want to be world famous, I do it because I want to have something I can be proud of. To show to my children, and grandchildren and say "I did that."
It makes me feel good, lifts my spirits, and helps me escape reality... if only for a moment. It gives me something to look forward to, and to put faith in; something to rely on.

I understand that for many people, my writing is a joke, and that's fine. You can have your laugh, and a million more. I don't expect support, or affirmations. I don't need encouragement, or positive feedback. For me, it's simply writing for the sake of writing. I do it only because I enjoy it.

How many of you can say that about what you do?