Throughout the month of March, I am participating in the annual Slice of Life Story Challenge, an event hosted by the team at Two Writing Teachers. Every day in March, I will share a story and comment on the stories of other participants. Please join us in writing, sharing, reading, and commenting!
As I write this post at 4:40 am, I have just googled when exactly the first day of spring begins. I'm ready. It begins at 5:01 this morning. That's when the vernal equinox happens, when the sun's rays are directly over the equator, and we have exactly 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness. I've always been a fan of the solstice days-- those days in June and December of longest and shortest days-- but there's also something about the equinox that's calling me this morning.
Sleep's been a commodity over the last few weeks, and my pre-waking dream this morning was dappled by dreams. Someone named Max Winter (I'm not joking) was my writing critic/mentor/tormentor... I'm not sure which. And he kept nudging me to find my throughlines. I was nudging back. Slices don't need to have throughlines, I think was my message back. (If it wasn't, maybe it's what I wanted the message to be.) Slices are greenbelt, free writing... a way to capture moments in time. A time to play with words and b build writing habits and figure out writing identities... leave me alone, Max.
But what are you trying to tell me, Max? I know my world's been small these weeks, and sometimes finding a moment to expand and celebrate has seemed hard. I'm not a bare-my-soul slicer, you're right , Max. But there have been a few emotional moments in my 2025 slicing... leave me alone, Max.
I had whispered to myself a while ago that during this pause in life that I'm having, I'd have time to return to that novel that's been dormant in my google drive. Funny. The plot purposely and intentionally happens between the vernal equinox and the summer solstice. Could Max's timing be purposeful? His arrival woke me up in time to post literally as the 2025 equinox is about to happen. And his last name in my dream was winter? Okay, okay.
Dreams rarely make sense, and I'm not sure Mentor Max makes sense without a lot of interpretation.
Today, I will write. And how weird is this? As I finish, and by the time I get this post into the SOL comments, I think it will be just before 5:01, an important moment in the Earth's 2025 pathway.
The timing is interesting! I didn’t know you had a novel in the works. ❤️Jess
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing all your inner thinking around an early morning dream. I have noticed personally that some days I awake, glance at the clock and see I have 2 more hours until the alarm goes off. And then I'll start to plan out my writing. On these days, I tend to write the BEST. My fingers are cross that you open your google file and see where it takes you TODAY, the longest day of the year. This reader is already hooked my the setting, the time between the vernal equinox and the summer solstice.
ReplyDeleteOh, wow! This is almost creepy. What timing that Max has, and I think it could be a sign to retrun to that novel.
ReplyDeleteAh, this is cool. Love the almost free flow yet clearly thought-through pacing and full commentary.
ReplyDeleteOk this is weird. I'd be a little weary of your day today. I never remember my dreams.
ReplyDeleteI love the background story of your mentor and the equinox. There is something lovely about writing in the wee hours of the day! Enjoyed reading your post:)
ReplyDeleteYou wove together so much here -- dream and the equinox and writing! Not sure it needs any interpreting because you just a got a damn good slice out of it!
ReplyDeleteOh, I'm impressed and happy that you looked up the exact moment of the equinox BEFORE it happened. Nice throughline, Melanie. I like the conversation between you and Max Winter. Now, Winter is gone, though, so I wonder what mentor will show up next.
ReplyDeleteI love your beginning: " I have just googled when exactly the first day of spring begins. I'm ready." --and love all the interpretation you've done around Max Winter's appearance. I'm looking forward to reading your novel some day!
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