--- but I do know when I'll be back again.
I'm off to Vermont College for my penultimate intensive residency on the road to my long put-off MFA in Creative Writing.
For ten days, I will sleep by myself, every night. If there is too much noise and commotion, I can choose either to join in or go to bed. It will be entirely at my option. I will converse with adults for hours on end about things that matter to me. People will comment on my writing. Some of them will have something useful to say.
There's a lot of debate in the literary community about the value of MFA programs. My favorite comment on the subject comes from Flannery O'Connor, who reportedly replied when asked if MFA programs discourage young writers: "Not enough."
But getting to be with other people obsessed with this quixotic practice, and sleeping without little kids kicking me or wanting milk or etc. etc. tips the scales for me.
Yes, I will miss my husband and my kids. Paul especially may have a hard time with our separation, and I always worry that any emotional difficulty will land them on a professional's couch where they will stay well into their 40's. On the other hand, there is some danger that the kids will want me to go away again after they see how much fun Daddy can be. Daddy plans to set up the tent in the living room, take them to McDonald's, and maybe the Carousel -- and that's on day one.
We all get a chance to do a public reading, and I plan to read something from my collection of coyote stories. In Native American mythology, the coyote is the trickster and there is usually a moral associated with the coyote stories.
My coyote stories refer to an expression used when you drink too much and wake up with your arm underneath the sleeping form of someone so ugly, you would rather chew your arm off, like a coyote in a trap, than wake that person up. There's an element of the trickster in them, too. I'm having a great time writing these stories when I have the time.
Have a happy, safe and sane enough New Year.
3 comments:
Have fun Anne. What an opportunity. Don't miss a moment.
Wow, what an amazing 10 days you're going to have! I can't imagine being away from my kids for so long, and I can only dream of the opportunity to be so fully immersed in writing. Enjoy every second and share the details when you get back!
Thanks for your encouragement!! It's a mixed bag, I miss my family so much, and it's so wonderful to be among these creative, talented people. I want to make the experience worth the heartache. And the other aches -- I have to pump every night. I hate that.
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