Well, here we go once more; one more entry documenting events or occurrences in the life of my kin, community, or the world surrounding us.  Every week I write down the things top of my mind; while the entries themselves cover multitudes of topics, from the joys of being with my children, to the never-ending exploring of the outdoors, it’s the the writing itself I enjoy the most.  My week begins with me sitting in front of this computer, the empty white screen before me, begging me to type whichever thoughts come first.  Sometimes these thoughts will be moving – full of emotion or weight, other times they will be silly, built on rhymes, full of my own style of humour, or otherwise rich in the wisdom pulled from the countless experiences of our household; whichever subject is chosen, I simply enjoy writing.   Sometimes, however, I do like to push this exercise into something more – it’s one thing to put words on the screen, it’s something else entirely to discover inventive methods of doing it.  The weekly execution of this blog is routine, but I try my best to ensure the writing itself is not.

I’ve written previous entries in rhyme, or recounted stories of how my wife or my children enlighten me through unintended lessons in the form of some deeply insightful memoir (in which I will own-up to public suspicion, which suggests I might be embellishing just how much or often my wife describes me like some epic, revered, chiseled, godlike hero…she is obviously very nice to me, but there could be some slight stretching of the truth in which words she tends to use).  However it is I’ve chosen to write in previous entries, I try, with much effort, to ensure push into new territory or to strengthen my skillsets; coming up with new modes of doing so, mind you, does require effort.

Whenever I hit wriitng blocks, or hurdles, or simply just don’t know which event to focus on when the time comes to pull out the old computer to being typing, I’ll check in with my kids or my wife for their thoughts.  Often they’ll give me just the right nudge in the right direction to get things going.  They’ll remind me of some little tidbit or moment I forgot or lost sight of during the week, which is just enough to get my thoughts moving in the direction they need to go in order to hit the number of words I’ve promised myself I’d get out in these blogs.  This week they reminded me without intention just how wonderfully lovely it is to enjoy the ever-elusive weekend where there’s nothing we must be doing.  There is no schedule to follow, no event on the docket, no venue we need to get to or time we need to be there.  We simply get to enjoy the time in front of us.

These weekends do not come often, so when they do, we purposefully try to recognize them, welcoming them for the short time they’re here for.  Throughout the 36-hours or so since the school bus dropped them off, we’ve spent time lounging with the kids, hiking through the woods, exploring shops downtown, tidying up the house, giggle in front of the Nintendo, cooking up some delicious food, to list just some of the highlights.  With the world being how it is right now, with the news, the unknown, the snowy/slushy/muddy mix of mid-winter elements, it’s nice to get some time where our life is free to follow it’s own tempo; where nothing needs to be done. I’m sure we’ll find ourselves climbing or out building forts some time beyond lunch, but for now, the morning is free to be free.

[Ugh, 625 words in – this is difficult!]

Sorry, just my inner-thoughts showing themselves.  I’ve committed myself to ensuring every entry I write consists of 1,000 words.  It might not seem difficult to do, but I promise you it tends to be more onerous when I try to keep things cohesive while concurrently trying to keep with the principles I set down this morning.  I’ve done this type of exercise before; it stymied me then, like it does now, but yet I find myself struggling through it once more.  I think the intention in my mind is to do something clever, while stretching myself to study, review, consume, uncover or discern new terminologies, enriching my lexicon for the better.  I guess there is some truth to those thoughts, but I won’t deny just how discontented I’ve become by my own stubbornness.

I think, then, this is likely the best spot to throw in the towel.  I’ve done the thing I set out to do.  Since this entry is one intended on pushing my clever sensibilities, I see no better device to conclude but by writing something in rhyme.

1,000 words, from one to here
When I’m done, I know I’ll cheer.
It broke my mind to write them out
The whole time I felt steeped in doubt.

Yet here it is, the end in sight,
It feels so close to me, in spite,
Of needing still one hundred words,
This silly poem is for the birds.

But I write it for my promise kept,
With the one thing missing from this text
I’ve tried this type of thing before,
So thought I’d try it still once more.

With 26 letters I could choose,
170,000 words to use,
I chose in lieu of using them,
To pick one letter to condemn.

Throughout this post you will find
There is one vowel left behind,
It is not I or O or U
It is not E, I promise you.

One letter left out from the rest
To put my skillset to the test
Coherent story, it might not be,
But it simply does not bother me.

I did the thing I set to do
I’ve found some words I never knew,
Like ‘kowtow’, ‘wheedle’ or ‘genuflect’
Words I just did not expect,

To discover while I write this blog,
So I put them in the epilogue,
The ending here, which will convey
Throughout this blog there is no  ‘A’