I am getting old. At least that’s what the calendar keeps telling me. Today, at 1:05am EST, I finally cross that demographic threshold into middle age. I am certainly starting out in style. In less than a month my position will be eliminated, and I have been informed that there are no additional monies available from the University. In a lot of ways, it’s like I am 20 all over again. Who knows? Perhaps this is the secret to staying young.
I know I should be upset and there are times when I am. My discussion with the financial aid office on Tuesday was hard and I was feeling quite discouraged until that afternoon. I met with a professor and we discussed narrative, new media, and the possibilities that are out there. We also talked about writers as storytellers. Storytellers were the original educators and in that sense writers should always be teachers in some form or another. Now, I may never teach in an actual school. Even after grad school, I am not placing my hope or faith in a professorship somewhere. That doesn’t mean I don’t plan on teaching in some form or another.
As I left that conversation and headed home, I began to think about why I loved the tech industry for so long and why, in some ways, I still love it. Technology expands our creative ability. It provides a playground for people to share and communicate on worldwide scale and it allows them to discover and explore their passions for themselves. This is especially true when the technology is put in the hands of the people. When that happens, they start to create. They start to tell us their stories. Sure, a lot of it is going to be things that seem silly or amateur but that’s okay. They still have that opportunity to share. What’s more is that some of those people are going to discover they love telling their stories and they will go even further. They will become storytellers, artists, creators, and teachers in their own right. There is something magical about that. Something that truly does border on the divine and if you know me and my attitude toward the divine you know that’s saying something.
So that’s my birthday wish. I know that, in some way, I want to be a part of that. As my “middle age” sets in (and let’s be honest, I could live to 80 or die tomorrow so age is a rather silly thing, indeed) I find that to be my driving desire. Yes, tech is in my blood and it will be to the day I die. I know that, for the rest of my life, I will write and create and develop with all the tools and technologies that I can learn and use. That is simply who I am. Truth is, I plan on making a living doing it, too. I’m still a fan of money. I like having money and it is a needed thing (I’ve not gone that far off the reservation, folks), but it isn’t the only thing. I’m more interested in using the tools and building something that helps people grow even if it means my bank account sits a little smaller.
I’m not sure what that is, yet. I still have a lot to learn and a lot to write, but I feel good. Every day, now, I wake up and I feel good. That makes this birthday, this opening of my middle age, a downright miracle.
