I’ve written about this a couple of times during the Two Writing Teachers Slice of Life they offer for educators on Tuesdays. It’s actually good for me to remember because, sometimes, I forget why I’ve spent 10+ years working in this blog.
One of the reasons that I write is to just express myself. I’m a pretty good introvert and expressing myself has always been a problem. My wife says, “You don’t communicate well,” which is a true statement. I assume tons and on rare occasions, I mess things up. Here, I can get out what I cannot verbalize, tell stories that I would struggle to tell, and just see what life is like being more of an extrovert. I remember when we had our Brown Swiss, writing about the joys of pitching sh*t, something that not many people would care about locally, but it was fun to share with a large audience. I’m not a great storyteller, so stuff like that feels good to get in writing.
Another reason I write is for that “mind-dump”, that idea of getting the crazy, silly, dorky things out onto the page, rather than letting them sit and percolate in my brain. I’m finding, with my own “research” and watching my daughter, that I might have some ADD/ADHD tendencies, so anything I can use to help control/curve those tendencies without medication makes me very happy. I’ve found some funky music that helps, some helpful websites, and writing. All of them help me keep (for the most part) those demons at bay, so I get some work done.
The third reason, I model what “good” (or ok, marginal, iffy) writing looks like for my student. I talk about the time it takes to get words on a page. I also talk about how it takes time to BE a good writer. I’ve always made fun of myself for being a meh sort of writer, but 1,000 blog posts later, it’s amazing how much better I have become at writing. Will I win some writing awards? That’s laughable at best. Can I show how determination and will can create good writing? Absolutely!
And finally, it’s about that voice. I talk with my students all the time about the fact that they have a voice in our classroom. That voice can be amplified by doing the writing we are doing together. The voice I have is amplified too. I can share things out there that I can’t share in person because it’s not me to do so. It’s nice to have people from all walks of life see a post, like it, and comment. It brings me great satisfaction that I can make an impact, even on one person.
So, what makes you sit down at the computer and write to us? Why do you write? Do you have different reasons than I do? I’d love to hear from you in the comments!
And until next time, keep writing, keep real, and keep being you.
We need your voice and genius in the world! 🙂
The Life of a Conflicted Teacher 
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