A New Direction for a New Year
Writing is so 2023. Video is 2024!
I don’t know how many of you might have noticed, but I haven’t written much lately. In the last month, here are the tasks that have kept me away from the keyboard:
Christmas
New Years Eve
Traveling
Learning about video
Onboarding a new editor
And that’s just the major items on my list. I could explain in detail each event and how many days or months each took to complete. So, when I look at my poor Medium profile or Subtack and notice the days between articles are getting rather long, I can’t help but feel like I’m missing out.
I miss the comments, feedback, and social commentary my readers provide. I miss reading articles from writers I love, like
and (shoutout!) But most of all, I miss the personal insights that writing gives me. Writing, like meditation, reveals more about who I am inside, spiritually and personally.I hate to write about writing, though. It feels like a journal entry. How many online journals do we need? “Today, I ate tacos. They were great.” BARF!
When I was 21 years old, I wrote in a journal nearly every day for months. Some of the entries were poems and thoughts on the day, and some of them were gems that I’m surprised I wrote even today. But, I would always burn out. Maybe life changes too fast to keep up with a pen or pencil. Maybe life has a way of telling you when it’s time to move on or try something new.
I can’t remember who I told recently that I’m still in the same room performing the same tasks in February 2020. March 1st marks the fourth consecutive year I’ve worked from home. I’ve been promoted twice, from support representative to manager and then to senior manager, but it’s essentially the same job with better pay. My team members come and go, but I remain. There’s something very Tao about that. In the movie Groundhog’s Day, Phill (Bill Murray) relives the same day repeatedly. In an attempt to convince his coworker of his predicament, he tells her, “Maybe God isn’t omnipotent. Maybe he’s just been around for so long he knows everything.” My name is Patrick, and I’ve been around for a long, long time.
The walls in my house have changed colors, and my kids are taller, but I’m still here. I am grateful for these last four years, I promise, but it’s getting old. I am getting old. Anyone over the age of 43 is probably laughing at me after reading the last sentence, but I suppose there’s a moment in everyone’s life where you figure out this is basically what you’ll be doing until you retire or die. I’m unsure I could work in an office again without going mad if I had to quit my job. Maybe that’s why I’ve begun to push myself over the last year.
I want to be sure that when my kids have left home, or if something tragic happens to my wife, I have something more than the people around me. I think adults put everything they are into relationships, even marriages, and when those end, they are left with nothing, so it’s hard for them to carry on. I always think about the future, and I see the end well before I get there. I don’t want to sit in front of this computer and answer support tickets for the rest of my life.
My great-grandmother passed away when she was 93, and I was 7. My mom told me after she passed away that Grandma always thought I would be someone when I grew up. I’ve never forgotten that, and it’s likely one of the last times she spoke about me that I can remember. When I quit working for Apple, one of my managers told me that she was surprised I left because “I thought you were going to be someone.” I said, “I am going to be somebody. Just not for you,” and I walked out of the store. That was the last time I spoke to her.
So, here I am, running two publications, a newsletter, and a YouTube channel, raising three children, married, with two dogs, one cat, and one fish. Oh, and let’s not forget my real job and my second job that pays for most of the other stuff I do. What can I say? I’m a glutton for punishment, but it’s not enough, not yet.
My new recording career is just getting started. I love recording my podcast, and it’s such a great opportunity to make myself study each week. I also enjoy having something to do in my spare time at work (shhh!). I purchased a copy of Filmora for video editing, a new Canon EOS R100, a green screen, and a camera stand. I feel like I have a pretty good little setup now, and for the first time in a long while, I’m excited about what I do. I like what I do every day, but I’m a goal-oriented person, so when I achieve something, I look for what comes next. Life is a journey that never ends, and neither do I.
I’m not sure why I always push ahead. It’s just who I am. Perhaps it’s Tao manifested inside, exploding outward.
If you want to join me on this journey, I highly recommend following me on YouTube and joining me every Sunday morning at 9 AM central time for The Taoist Corner Podcast! I can’t wait! You can also subscribe on Spotify or Apple Podcasts!
