A reason to write every day. A reason to keep showing up, even when life felt like a whirlwind of client projects, chores, and distractions.
So I decided to carve out a commitment, like a notch in the bark of a tree. One post a day. No pressure for perfection. No requirements as far as topic, length, or style. Just daily presence and steady forward movement, even if keeping up only meant posting a few sentences on certain days.
At first, it didn’t feel like I was doing anything special beyond creating a good habit I hoped would stick. But then something shifted.
Slowly, day by day, I started to feel steadier, and the writing itself eventually started to feel like something I could lean on. I found myself constantly coming up with ideas for new posts, finding inspiration in everything from movies I put on in the background while I worked to everyday conversations with Seth or friends online.
A Staff Built from Small Choices
I didn’t realize it at the time, but I was writing myself a walking staff. Not a literal one, of course, but something symbolic, solid, and supportive all the same. Each day I chose to write — even when I didn’t particularly feel like it, even when I felt like I had nothing to say — I showed up and added to what I was building. A bit of bark here. A twist of leather there. Occasionally, even a new groove or two in the wood for flare.
The staff slowly grew from repetition and quiet persistence. Some days my contributions were made of tea and incense. Other days, mental exhaustion and more cussing than I should probably admit to. But every time I showed up for it, it showed up for me in turn.
The funny part is that none of that really hit me until today, the last day of the challenge.
This morning, I pulled a card from my Green Witch Oracle deck as part of my morning reading. It was the same card that showed up not long ago in another reading –– the Walking Staff card. But it landed with a different kind of weight, since I knew I'd be posting my last Wandering Pen entry within hours. This time, I felt like it was saying, "Yes. You did this. You built something real."
