Why

All right.  Lets do the normal intro stuff first.  A little about myself.   My name is Nick.  I’m from Alaska, my parents split up when I was 2, and growing up I bounced between Alaska and California.  Growing up in Alaska, I had some great childhood adventures. 

Currently, I live in the great Midwest of America and I am very much looking forward to leaving this region.  But I have a few more years to endure living in the Midwest so I do my best to look for the good within this area.

First off, I am not a writer.  My skills at writing are horrible.  So when I was asked to guest write for this blog, the one word that popped in my mind was, Why?

Why do this?

That question of “why” is constantly on my tongue anyways.  Partly because I like to mock little kids.  You know the younger kids that follow you around and drive you crazy with questions of Why.  But daddy, why do I have to…why…

Besides my mocking mindset I really do ask the why question to any creative venture.  Not just to myself but to others. 

Why express in whatever art form or creative outlet?

Why paint, play music, write, take photos, video, dance, cook, or what ever it is that you do to express creatively? Why do it?

And really the answer is very simple.

Self. Self. Self. Selfishness, self interests and self-desires.  Needing attention.

Now, I’m not going to stand up on a soapbox and lecture.  I know there is more to understanding this and why we need to be creative and expressive.  We all have a story or an interest and those who have creative abilities/desire to express those crafts or stories, should do so.  There is nothing wrong with this.  But I feel it’s healthy to step back before you go broadcasting your craft or story and ask that simple question.

Why am I doing this?

What do I hope to achieve or gain?

The answer of why is different for everyone.

So when I was asked to guest appear on this blog with no real writing experience I did ask that question to myself.

For me the answer is simple.  And yes it is a self-interest answer. 

I want to prove to myself that I can do something like this and not worry about being judged.  Like I said, I am no writer and I’ve had a lifetime of struggles dealing with my shortcomings when it comes to writing…spelling.

I want to grow my writing skills so that some day I can proudly put down some words on paper and express myself in the written art form.  I want to say that I can write and connect with readers. 

The other night I took my youngest daughter out for date night.   

We went to the movies and watch the animated movie, Leap!  Like most children movies today, the main character was filled with hopes, dreams, and optimism.  And like most of these types of movies, those hopes and dreams were achieved.  The main character conquers her challenges.  The viewer feels good and leaves the movie feeling better then when they entered.  It was another one of those types of kids movies.

But this one shocked me.  It had a little bit of a twist to the achievements made by the main character and I loved it.

The main character wanted to be a dancer.  Throughout her achievements in training, she was asked one question along the way, “Why.”  Why do you want to dance?

I won’t give anything else away regarding what happens, but love the fact that they asked  “why.” 

So now it’s your turn, ask yourself, Why?