The Dry Spell

I feel like I've hit a dry spell with my blog writing.  It isn't that I don't want to write - I long to write every day!  I just don't know what I have to say that is worth reading.  So I've been thinking about the point of this blog.  Why am I writing?  What do I hope to accomplish here?  Who is my audience and what do I want to say to them?

Well...

I love to write stories.  I love to live them and then I love to write them.  I like to make up stories too, but I am not as good at that as I'd like to be.  Most of the stories that I live are about running, health and fitness, and I am really passionate about these things.  I'm passionate about them because I believe they are important.  I believe they are important because they have made my own life great.  And by great I mean happy, fulfilling, fun, adventuresome, and I think they have made me a better person.

But I haven't really done anything great.  I love to run, but I don't run fast when compared to others who write stories.  I don't run far when compared to others who write stories.  And while I have traveled to some interesting places, most are all on my wonderful home continent.  I haven't lost a limb, or fought and beaten cancer, or been chased by wild boars while out running.  I'm just regular.  At both running and writing stories. 

To put it simply, I am your regular, average Jane. 

So what does the average Jane have to say?  Am I just going to say things because I like saying them, or do I really have something to say?  Something interesting, compelling, moving or life changing?  That leads me to the purpose of this blog.

The purpose is to show that an average Jane can do things she never thought possible. That she can reach a little higher, stand on her tip toes, stretch tall and grab something new.  She can try new things for fun and challenge herself in new ways.  And if the average Jane can do this, that means the average Joe or Jill or John can too. And if Joe, Jill and John don't know they can do it, maybe I should tell them. 

So that is what I'm trying to do.  But then I think they probably already know this stuff.  Or what if they don't want to know?  Or what if my telling is not interesting?  What if I don't really know?  I suppose I have to let that stuff take care of itself. 

I'd like to think God could use these stories in some small way to reach out to others, to encourage, inspire and uplift.  I'd like to think that He could use me and my small, simple life to draw others closer to Him.  It may seem like a stretch to believe that stories about running, health and fitness are connected to God, but they have connected me to Him in many ways and they are what I have to work with.

Lately I've been writing about training, the day-to-day stuff.  Weekly activity and the challenges of adding new workouts to a busy week.  And it just seems dry.  Then I think I've got some adventures coming up, some races, some triathlons, some rides but I told these stories last summer.  So they feel dry too.

My fingers stand poised above the keyboard and my mind desires to produce great stories in print but there is nothing but dry dessert to be found.  Cobwebs in the dusty corners of my mind.  While I feel interested in my day-to-day activities, my thoughts, my hopes, my imagination at work - I also recognize all of it for what it is.  The regular, average thoughts of the regular, average Jane.

I'm not really sure where to go from here, if there is another direction to go or if I should stay on my current path.  I'm looking for inspiration and ideas but for now, dear reader, I have hit a dry spell.