In praise of the blank page

They say ...

... Just who are 'they' anyway?

There's nothing worse than staring at a blank page

I personally LOVE a blank page/screen.

It is still in a state of perfection. The blank screen is actually unsoiled and unspoiled. There are no typographical errors. The illusive showing but not telling mix hasn't been disturbed. Nothing offensive or insensitive has been recorded for the world to see.

The first keystroke changes all of that. Then comes the doubt, the fear, the concern. The next keystroke redoubles it. It can almost be paralytic.

But no longer.

The screen can easily be deleted, sometimes too much too. 

The journey can always be begun again.

Maybe things were better longhand or via typewriter. There was more courage and less second guessing. More permanence and less redrafting the same line over and over again.

They, the unknown, those who live in the ethers should exert no more control over me than I do over them.

With that, it is time to get out my three ring notebook and scribble. 

City Museum, Florence, AZ