The Element(s) of Freedom

Wowza, it's been a loonngg time since I've updated this blog. I feel like such a neglector! Ha :). But the good news is that I finally have something creatively relevant to say so it's time to post.

I entered the NYC Midnight Madness Short Story Contest again this year. The heat I was placed in had to write a story in the genre: drama and the subject I had to write about was a Photographer. Only having eight days to write a 2,500 word short story I struggled with both the genre and topic for the first two to three days. In frustration I finally just went back to the old rule of thumb to write what I knew. I had a terrible head cold the day I started writing the story and was frustrated with more than just my story. From that less than ideal circumstance I came up with a story entitled, 'The Element(s) of Freedom'. By the end of it I had worked through self discovery as much as my character and ended up creating a story within a story.

If you want to read the whole thing, click here: The Element(s) of Freedom

If you just want to read the summation of the self discovery read on.

There is an aching potential in all of us, this desire to be utilized and to be seen, to be beautiful and contribute something of beauty to society and life. So often the human struggle begins and ends with the means of discovery and unlocking that potential. And sometimes the risk it takes to expose that raw element of our core being seems more painful than missing out on meeting the fullness of the life we could attain. The unknown is just that. Who knows what obstacles, barriers, rejections and hardships we may or may not face on the road to blooming?

In my research I found that a flower simply requires warmth, light and just the right amount of water to bloom. Our souls require the warmth of relationship, the light that exposes, teaches and leads us and just the right amount of tears in order to reach our potential. And when you find that staying tightly closed in a bud of mediocrity is more painful than the risk that’s required to bloom, then and truly then, you will know the element of freedom.