Friday, March 31, 2017

A Reflection on Eight Years of Slicing, Briefly

This was my eighth year slicing - and in reflection, it hasn't gotten any easier.  But, it's not gotten harder, either.  Just like our students, selecting a "slice" topic can be really challenging for me. As I contemplate writing - as all of you do - I question relevance, authenticity, connection to the reader...and validity of my thinking.  And then, I wonder is it interesting, funny or engaging.

I love it when Slice-able moments appear easily - and there have been a few over the years.  The words pour out of me like liquid on to the screen and very little editing has to be done.  The piece I wrote years ago about my daughter shaving her arms (hysterical), or the piece about our home-made raccoon "be-gone" tool my husband made, or the slice this month about my daughter getting into college -  these all rolled off my fingertips and into the computer and seemed to be highly enjoyed by you, the audience.

Other times it's a real struggle to focus on a slice of my life that might seem interesting to anyone. I've struggled more this month with the idea that much of what I write about in March seems repetitive.  It is the Irish month - and as the mom of an Irish dancer, we have many activities which spotlight my daughter's dancing.  But, how many years have I written about Irish stuff now?  How redundant are the slices? Perhaps over spring break - which is in another week - I will reread eight years of Slices and analyze my redundancy.  It is interesting to contemplate just how cyclical our lives (perhaps especially in education) really are.

Ultimately, I'd like to shout out to - and thank - my writing group members, without whom I would not write regularly - certainly not for the last ten years.  I truly love our discussions about writing, our philosophical discussions about teaching and learning, the pieces of writing we have shared, and our friendships.  Thank you:  Tracey, Mary and Leah.  Can't wait to share my favorite piece at writing group next month.

You are the best.


5 comments:

  1. Wow! Think of all the moments you've recorded in 8 years that might have been forgotten had you not blogged them! How fun! Congrats on 8 years!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I've not been slicing so long -- and, until this year, sporadically. Blogging since 2006, I know about the ebbs and and flows. Right now, I'm coming off a long dry stretch.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I always think it's looking back at the collection of slices that's the most rewarding. For me it isn't always the single slice I like, but the collective project. I'm looking forward to our meeting next week!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I have found that I tend to blog about the same things around the same time every year. Life is cyclical.

    Also, rather than thinking of your slices as redundant, you can think of how much new readers to your blog are learning about Irish dancing season and old readers get to keep up with something important to you and your family. :)

    ReplyDelete