057 Readers’ Digest and Writers’ Block

Two men were sitting under a tree in the African Savannah. One man was reading a book, while the other was typing a letter with a typewriter. A lion came along and the two men ran. The lion gave chase and in the end, it caught up with the pair. It pounced on the man who was previously reading a book while he left the other alone. As the lion walked away after his meal, the man asked the lion, “Why didn’t you eat me?” The lion answered, “Well, I heard that Readers’ Digest and Writers’ Block.”

Mmm… Writers’ Block. That’s exactly what I’m suffering from now. It’s Day Four of having a bandaged foot and well, nothing much, really. It’s another day of sitting in front of the laptop, typing out my Independent Study, and great… I’m suffering from writers’ block, 500 words from the end. I know, I know, you’re thinking, “500 words is not that much, Zachary, when you can write blog posts twice that length with so much ease, and you can’t type in another 500 words in your stupid study.” Let me tell you, I’ve spent the last 4 days, writing out 4/5 of the study and now I just can’t figure out how to write out the last section. “The roles of conspiracy theory in the construction of historical knowledge”, now I feel that the stupid study is conspiring against me, oh, and there’s the conclusion, but that’s chicken feed, compared to this last part.

So, I’m typing this out instead to take my mind off the Independent Study for quite a bit, and to avoid pushing myself too hard lest I start writing gibberish in my study, I rather keep the progress slow than to get the first draft thrown back at me after the holidays, which is a daunting thought especially after all the hard work that has been put in. Maybe I’ll try reading Readers’ Digest, which I have next to me now or something else, I’m not in the mood to comment on any current issues although I have a particular issue on my mind at the moment, which is about the maids from China oh well, you might say my writers’ block has spread to my entry as well, as a consolation here’s the next poem from the North Coast Poem Series… at Punggol Beach…

The Quiet Retreat
February 23 – Punggol Beach

It was a warm afternoon, about two,
It was quiet, too quiet, at the beach,
I looked on, ships at port, working,
Why am I here?
A worn-out path, snaked through the grass,
Leading to a secret beach, unknown.
I followed the path, through jagged rocks,
And a thin thread of sand marked my path,
Interfered only by the occasional crawler,
Intrepid enough to cross the paths,
Of many seasoned travelers in the past
At the end, there was a small bay,
Of fishing poles, wind and water,
A couple or two stare at the port across the strait,
A lonely place, but crowded with emotions,
Patience, love and compassion,
Then, it was time to leave, for it was hot,
And so I started on my journey home