Everyday i write the book

Jack Nicholson, The Shining, Warner Bros.

In the midst of new year’s festivities, I read somewhere that the new year provides each of us with a book of 365 blank pages and we should eagerly begin to fill them. A worthy, though somewhat hackneyed sentiment.

No matter that it’s “just-another-day”, it’s unavoidable that the new year brings with it a period of reflection. A time to look back on the year(s) gone by and forward to the days ahead.

This year, more than ever, I am feeling that my “book” is not the blank slate it may have been before. Parkinson’s has made an imprint before the year begins. It has smudged the pages. It’s stain has seeped through pages to colour all that I dare to write.

New challenges to my health have also left me feeling somewhat devoid of content – like I’m living desolate days. First I had a month of recupperating from bruised ribs sustained in a fall, followed by a wicked cold that I have been unable to shake. Day after day has been focused on trying to heal and little else. Stir in some frigid weather to limit my outings and you have a fine mix for a dearth of inspiration and production.

Yet, all that being said, it is but a few days – and just a few pages -into a new year. My pages may be tainted and somewhat devoid of content, but here’s my first blog of a new year. This entry is somewhat akin to what Steven Wright said about writing – “I’m writing a book. I’ve got the page numbers done”. Hopefully there will be more to come in the days ahead as I chronicle living my life with Parkinson’s Disease (and more!). Like it or not, and in fact, productive or not, everyday, I still write the book.