A Story in 6 Words

Hemingway was once asked to write a story in six words. He is said to have called it his best work. Here is what he wrote:

"For sale: baby shoes, never worn."

In the spirit of this question, and the famously terse author that first answered it, Smith, an online magazine, asked their readers to write their life story in six words.

I first heard about this listening to NPR, and decided to give the challenge a shot. I thought and thought about how to convey the great moments in my life, and to equally communicate the struggles. Then I thought, what is the most important thing? What has made the greatest impact on me and my life, and I came up with something.

She found her soul mate.

I know I'm a little disgusted with myself, but what can you do sometimes you have to acknowledge the great things in your life.

"What if all we have are regular beans?"

I think a fear I'm developing in my early 20s is the thought that perhaps I am not destined for greatness. Maybe I won't become a VP or a director. As an overachiever all through my K-12 education, I always believed in my abilities. I was never the pretty one, the popular one, or the athletic one; I was the smart one. I was defined by the honors and AP classes I took, and to a certain extent I was fine with that. Even in college, where I didn't really feel too smart, I was happy with the work I did. I believed if I put all my effort into something it would turn out well. Then I started working in the "real world," and now I worry much more about my future. I don't see a clear cut path to achieve my goals, and that scares me.

One night I was watching re-runs of Friends, as I often do, and it was the episode where Rachel receives her first real paycheck, and for her reality sets in. Her friends try to make her feel better by comparing her giving up a planned out life with a successful dentist to Jack giving up his cow for some magic beans. After some conversation Rachel says, "What if all we have are regular beans." It was the first time I understood the brilliance of the show. Its ability to capture the uncertainty of your 20s, this time in your life when you are starting your adult life, trying to find the right career, right spouse, and ultimately the right life. When I first saw the episode I didn't think it was too profound, but in that moment I felt that phrase captured all that I was feeling about my life.

Why I Decided to Blog

I never thought I had enough to say to keep my own blog. I tried it once and really didn't have the time to put into it. Then I graduated college and came to the real world. I realized sitting in a cube all day gives me a lot to say. Why a blog? I'm still not quite sure. A neat and tidy place to keep all my thoughts? Currently I split my writing between rogue post-it notes, my moleskin, and Google documents. The link to my blog from my Google Homepage doesn't hurt either.