A Smile and a Wave
In nice weather, I’ll often go for a run. But where I live, all my routes involve starting uphill. (Yes, yes, yes, downhill on the way back, but that’s not what I’m thinking when I begin…:) )
One day I started my run, psyching myself for the not-gentle hill ahead of me when a runner going the opposite direction—that is to say, downhill—waved. Most of us runners acknowledge each other with a nod or a smile, but this woman went further. She lifted her hands above her head and clapped in support of my strenuous climb. I didn’t know her, she didn’t know me, but we were in this hill-thing together, and she was cheering me on. I’ve only seen her one other time: when I was on my way downhill and she was going up.
And she still cheered me.
This one woman and her one gesture has made tackling that hill easier ever since.
That’s what we writers can do for each other. One small gesture—a post on social media, a “good job” to a writer friend, a review online—can be enough to encourage us to continue. Not all of our writing life is uphill, but when it feels like it, it’s nice to know there’s someone there with us.
And if you haven’t yet built up your own support network? Then please reach out. I’ll be the one with my arms overhead, in victory, cheering you on every step of the way.