A Writer’s (Very Exciting) Journey
By Jenna Elizabeth Johnson, Coastal Dunes Branch
(This piece begins just as Jenna had arrived in Ireland, fulfilling a long-held dream.)
The next two weeks proved to be a whirlwind of adventure and constant scurrying about. This was my first trip, yes, but as far as I knew it might be my only trip, so we had to see everything. I quickly got used to driving on the opposite side of the road, despite the hedgerows making those roads far narrower than the ones here in the States. Every day was filled with one adventure or another. We drove from Oughterard, a little town just north of Galway where we stayed our first week, up to see Kylemore Abbey
and its grounds. We hiked Knockma Hill, where the legendary Maeve is said to be buried. I got to visit Knowth and Newgrange, ancient burial sites I had learned about in my Celtic studies classes, and from there to Dublin for a short spell. We also got to visit the Burren and see the Poulnabrone Dolmen and meet a practicing Druid (who also happened to be a poet, so we talked about writing, of course).
After Oughterard, we traveled down to Kenmare for the rest of our stay. While in our new rental house, my friend and I ventured out to find the stone circles of the Celts and pre-Celts. Just as I had hoped, there was an ancient presence amongst these profound structures, one so strong and vital even my young nephew noticed. Like me, he was compelled to walk from stone to stone and touch them, connecting with a past we all shared.
When it finally came time to leave, I had mixed emotions. I missed home and all my pets and friends, but I also didn’t want to leave Ireland. I had seen so much and wished to see more, but I also didn’t feel like I got much rest. But my soul must have held still long enough at one point to absorb just enough Celtic magic to know it now misses that place of ancient myth and wonder. And one of the best parts about this amazing trip was that, even though I brought my laptop along with every intention to sit down and write; to let that Otherworldly glamour fuel my subconscious and boost my inspiration as an author, I didn’t spend a single minute writing. In fact, I don’t know if I spent any time even thinking about writing. For once, that creative side of me shut off and just let me enjoy the world around me, and for that I will be forever grateful.
As writers, we all know what it is to have a thousand browsers open at the same time. It is what we are. It is what we live with, a part of us that so many people don’t understand. If we are ever lucky enough to find a place, or a time, where we can just be, seize it and appreciate it. The writing, the characters, the incessant plotting . . . it will all come back to us when it needs to. But don’t be afraid to embrace those times when your Muse takes her own vacation so that we can enjoy ours.
This first appeared in Jenna’s column for the October 2016
Coastal Dunes Branch newsletter.
Read more about her on her blog/website
Jenna Elizabeth Johnson, jennaelizabethjohnson.com.