Everyday Canvas

May 20, 21, 22

Prompt: Have your unexpected motives or your perspective (about anything) ever surprised you about yourself? If you don’t want to talk about yourself, then what about the sudden finding out about the motive or perspective of a person or persons you know? What were your feelings like?

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I surprised myself when someone who had harmed me in some way, whom I thought I’d never forgive, had an accident and was hurt badly. I forgot all my rancor immediately and was genuinely sorry for her pain. Then, I found out that I had forgiven her even though I hadn’t caught on to that fact. Seeing my interest in her welfare, I think she was surprised, too.

Sometimes, people do things they earlier thought they’d never do, and together with people who know them, they are surprised or shocked at their own behavior. I think our hearts and minds are at work non-stop, trying to heal us all the time, whether we are aware of their silent workings or not.

The human subconscious is, I think, more powerful than our consciousness. We think we know who we are, our likes and dislikes, hopes and fears, and the ways we act, and we often think we are better or worse at something than we really are. In that, even the most introspective people may view themselves with distorted lens. Because we are absolutely convinced we are this way or that, when we act opposite to our views of ourselves, we are shaken or surprised by our own actions.

Then sometimes we do things without any motive evident to us. What we do impulsively or as an instantaneous reaction, I think, says a lot about us. That is why it is a good idea to try to figure out why we act in the way we act suddenly without thinking or as an immediate reaction.

Prompt: Do you find your work in real life, past or present, has affected your writing, positively or negatively, and do you use events from your work in your fiction or poetry?


I try to stay away from mentioning my real-life work in my writing, but only on the surface. Since my work has affected me, and to a degree, has caused my life vision and beliefs to change, it has also affected my writing, by proxy. Sometimes, something escapes from my earlier work, especially into poetry, but then, it is reflected mostly as impressions.

Yet, there are many fictional characters who are given real-life vocations the same as or similar to that of their writers. That is why there are many writer-characters in today’s novels. Then, Cronin who was a doctor made most of his characters into doctors or put them within the reach of the medical profession. Lawyers, too, write good courtroom, murder, or police-procedural mysteries.

Not just our professions or what we do as a vocation, but all areas of our lives have an effect on our writing, even showing up in the supernatural or fantasy genres as metaphors.

Prompt: It's been an interesting week in the news, what caught your attention the most?

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Santa Fe School shooting. Unfortunately.

While I am at it, I am going to rant about something related. I hate our political parties. Both of them.

One of them insists the only way is taking care of mental health and gun control, the other insists on policing. Why can’t we do all of those things at the same time? A problem this huge deserves attacking it from all sides.

You do not put only a Band-Aid on a cancer site. You try to take care of with surgery, medication, emotional support, and even radiation. This problem is no different than a cancerous growth. I think, however, our real cancer is not because of this mishap or that, but the failing of the political system, plus our personal failing of taking sides with those good-for-nothing parties.

I think every one us should register as independents and make those parties really work for us. Just my two cents.