A Few Random Thoughts

Perception and POV Again:

On the subject of perception and point of view, they are not always accurate. It’s hard to remember what we think is going on isn’t always the truth. We can’t know someone else’s heart. This false truth, this perception or point of view is often a point of contention or conflict. It is where the story is.

As a writer, it’s good to notice these situations as we go about our lives. It makes for great ideas for the scenes of our stories, but it also lets us step outside the problem, just a bit, and maybe see that we do not know someone else’s heart, so we don’t really know what that other person is thinking, why they are doing what they do.

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Reassess:

It’s mid-year. I like to take a look at my goals and resolutions about now and see where I am. I reassess and sometimes, I see I need to adjust goals to the reality of what else is going on in my life. As the primary-care giver to an aging parent, very often…most of the times, really, things just don’t go according to plan. That can send my writing off-kilter, too. And as much as I want to dedicate every spare moment to my writing, that is not the reality of my life or what is very most important.

That is the one thing I’m determined to remember in everything I do—what is truly important. People before things, accomplishments before money, writing what I want to, to the very best of my ability and time before publishing.

Anyway, every once in a while I need reminding of some little thing I’m determined to accomplish. For instance, I’ve been going through old files, deleting duplicates, mooshing documents about the same story or subject so ideas are hanging out together, both irritating habits of mine. Some mornings I forget I planned to spend ten minutes on that and another ten minutes going through the books, files and junk that I’ve used already or has just accumulated in my office. That small block of time I spend has already helped so much in my organization and helped get a few stories and essays done or at least, farther along.

Oh, and that last ten minutes of the first half hour of my writing hours, my house plants on Mondays, tidying up or reading writing magazines or books the rest of the week. The Monday house plant care is for my soul, I guess. Plants fill my house and yard, but the house plants keep me sane through the winter. I value them, so the few minutes it takes to groom and water them is like a hedge fund. The tidying up and ‘assigned’ reading is my way of keeping my head in it, so to speak.

A musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write, if he be at peace with himself. —Abraham Maslow

Point of View

Perspective is everything, isn’t it? As a writer I ought to remember that. While I was crying in my soup…well, garden, really, others are trying to save their homes and farms. Calls for volunteers has gone out for today. The rain, the snowpack has been unbelievable and the reservoirs are predicted to spill over tomorrow to add even more water to the waterlogged downstream.

Me, I’m on high ground, my garden and flowers and vegetables small potatoes. We took a drive to look at the river last night. There are two days to prepare for the run-off due to the high temperatures from today and tomorrow. Yesterday, it struggled to reach 50°, there was frost and today it will near 80°. Spring here.

I lost way less than I feared and so many aren’t so lucky. Family farms underwater, homes flooded. I feel ashamed and very blessed. And in the writing lessons of life, I see clearly today what point of view truly means.

A point of view can be a dangerous luxury when substituted for insight and understanding. -Marshall McLuhan

Point of View

I have read tons of articles on point of view. I’ve studied whole books on the subject. Still, sometimes when I’m writing I lose track of what that really means. This last week I’ve had a number of lessons.

Several years ago, in article in RWR, November ’03, The View from Here by Leigh Michaels, she pointed out how perspective has to be considered, too, when trying to get point of view right. How true I have found this in my writing and in trying to understand others, whether characters in your work or flesh and blood people you interact with.

Point of view and perspective work together to make up character. It’s what you see and hear but also how you feel about what you see and hear. It’s about what’s come before because that gives a character reason to react in their own unique way. It’s about how a person expresses himself, too. That’s a lot to think about.

How often do you observe someone do something and you wonder why. Years ago, my husband and I were at a diner having a nice Sunday morning breakfast. As the family next to us prepared to leave, their actions caught our attention. Carefully, the mother picked off every smidgen of food left on each of the plates and put it in a Styrofoam container, then stacked the dishes. Then, she dumped every bit of water left in the glasses into a Tupperware container she pulled from a diaper bag and stacked the glasses inside each other. She placed both containers carefully into the diaper bag while the father took napkins and cleaned all the surfaces of any crumbs, then gathered the discarded napkins and folded them neatly before shoving them into the top empty glass. This was done with practiced efficiency as the three solemn kids look on. It was obvious they had done this before.

I could think up a dozen scenarios. They were on the run and needed the food so they didn’t have to stop so often, and maybe, be seen. They were starving, but found a twenty-dollar bill and decided to use it for one good meal in a warm restaurant. Leftovers would get them through the next day. They were raising pigs or they fed their dog the scraps. (Still doesn’t explain the water, but…)

To me, what they did was cause for speculation, to them, just the way they ate at a restaurant. My point of view and theirs, but what was their perspective? Were they embarrassed by the situation or did they even notice the stares because it was common to gather food scraps for their livestock? Were they scared and hungry and desperate and just doing what they had to do to survive?

Memories are another area where point of view and perspective can be so different to all involved. Just ask a sibling or friend what they remember in a given incident. It might be close to what you remember but I guarantee there will be things that are off in your memory. Next reunion, family or school, ask around. You’ll be astounded at the different descriptions of the same incident.

My point of view: yesterday’s snowstorm will be a wet, sloppy mess for my walk today. Perspective: My daily walk is one of the elements that I believe has contributed to my getting better. So, I pull on my boots and do the walk. I’d be letting myself down if I don’t. Besides, the sun is shining, the sky is a patchwork of blue, and gray, and white, and I haven’t been outside for days. I might even be lucky enough to see the deer or at the least, their tracks.

From my dog’s perspective, there are the most wildly interesting smells out there. What’s not to be happy about?