Today I am celebrating completion of the first month of my daily tennis essay writing exercise. To mark the occasion, I would like to spend today’s time in a self indulgent reflection on the first 31 days. There is nothing directly about tennis rules here today, so if that is all you are here for, please feel free to move along.
A large part of the motivation for this exercise was to force me to develop better habits in my morning routine. I am an early riser and while I do tend to get a few things done in that quiet morning space, I am frequently disappointed in myself for squandering large swatches of that time. My early morning time wasters have been minimized this month, so in that regard this exercise has been a resounding success.
A secondary purpose of this project was because I genuinely enjoy writing and want to exercise that part of my brain more to see what sustained effort in that area looked like over time. At this one month mark I find that I am enjoying it as much as I anticipated that I would. I also recognize that this is early enough in the process that the “new” hasn’t worn off yet. I am alert for signs that this is becoming a slog. So far none have emerged.
The reason for the year time bounding to the yearly commitment is to give the project a way to approach a finish line. It is a mechanism for encouraging continuation should the enjoyment wear off. It is easier to not stop if the end is in sight.
At the same time, my thoughts are dominated by the realization that I might not completely make it through the USTA Friend at Court within the year. I have also had thoughts about what the source material will be beyond that point. Those are signs that this might be a long term endeavor for me.
When I started this project and created the purpose statement, I struggled to define what it was going to be and settled in on the word “diary.” I am coming to see it as meditation or devotional rather than a diary. This weekend I will be updating the meta parts the blog to reflect that emerging understanding. Further evolution may occur and that is great. I am enjoying the journey.
