March 27, 2015

My Eur-Ek-A moment by Melanie Fischer


My Eureka moment hasn’t really been “A moment”. It hasn't appeared in a flash of light, a flick of a switch or a bolt of reality. It has trickled in, and has come in three parts. 1.Eur 2.ek 3.a.




PART ONE

"Eur"…as in "yur a writer" 


Part one happened when I was about seven years old. 

I wedged my pale-blue-colored, Holly Hobby sticker-covered dresser into my bedroom doorway. I plunked a pile of scrap loose leaf and a jar of pencils on top. Mom’s manual typewriter weighed about as much as I did, but I managed to hoist it up on that writing surface. I then positioned a stack of side tables behind that chest of drawers and crawled up them. I popped open the typewriter cover, slid a pencil behind my ear, then declared my journalist’s office “open for business.”

That was when God told me “yur a writer.” It wasn’t for another 30 years that I would take Him seriously though. And why would I? Sure…I could type a line of “sdkfjlskjflkjldskjf” so fast that it would make those little metal arms jam together. But my English teachers certainly never took me serious. And this brings us to Part two.


PART TWO

"Ek"…pronounced "eeeeeek"


As for my English teachers, it was harder for them to make me write an essay than it was to get the gum off the bottom of the desks. I didn’t like structure. I didn’t like the rules of grammar and punctuation. And I certainly didn’t like writing what I was told to write. I protested against such controlled writing all the way to a solid “C”. A day came though—there was that list on the chalkboard under the heading “choose one of these people to write about.” As if it were flashing in neon lights, the name “Mozart” caught my immediate attention. As luck would have it, I was fascinated by this musical genius. I could hardly wait to sprint down to the library and take out every book I could find. I ate the history of Mozart for breakfast and poured out his story onto my scratch pad. With the confidence of a champion I handed in my completed work. 

I could hardly wait to get my grade back. I was more eager than a kid in the lineup to Splash Mountain. The day finally came. In traditional teacher fashion, she placed our assignments face down on each of our desks. I flipped those pages over to reveal…”Eeeeeek!” Instead of my anticipated A+++, the words written in red pen across my page said, “plagiarism is not acceptable.” I was a bit confused. I didn’t know what plagiarism was. I probably wasn’t paying attention in that class. Once I had it explained, I trucked back to the library, took all those books out once again, plopped them on my teacher’s desk, and told her as nicely as I possibly could that if she found a single sentence that I took out of any of those books I would accept an “F”. I ended up with my only A in that class!

Interesting enough, that false accusation of fraudulent activity didn’t discourage me from writing. It was simply a very loud “not yet.”


PART THREE

“A”…said like this “Ahhhhhh”


“Not yet” alright! And it wouldn’t be “yet” for another twenty years. Life took me on a detour through parenting, a career in science, some hobbies, many interesting experiences, lots of ups and downs, some self-discovery, and eventually into a relationship with Christ. 

And then. My path collided with desperation to understand my purpose. That was when the Lord began to rearrange my life and awaken my calling to write. Opportunities began to emerge and I was clocked on the side of the head with a resounding “Ahhhhhh…now it’s time!” 




As it turns out, if it wasn’t for all the "Eeeeeek's" between the “Yur” and the “a” I wouldn’t have anything to write about. The Lord knows our path before He even places us on it. The time comes when we will see the little crumbs of evidence of our purpose peppered along our trail. We just need to do our best to be patient and wait for His timing to bring our Eur-ek-a moment together.


For more of Melanie's writing visit www.hungryforpurpose.com/blog

21 comments:

  1. Melanie, your approach to writing is unique and utterly engaging. Your breakdown of the Eur - ek - a had my attention from the get-go, the stories made me laugh, but got your message across too. I can't wait until your techie book is released - not just for the tech stuff, but for the fun of reading it! What's it called? "Yeah, But How?" I think that's it!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Bobbi, you always have such positive words for me! The techie book which is coming out hopefully very soon is called "Ya...But How?: Online platform building for the Very, Very beginner!" Thanks for asking! I will be sure to let you know when it is hot off the press :)

      Delete
  2. Anonymous6:08 am GMT-7

    Glad you had the fight in you to show that teacher they were your words, no one else's!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love the way you weave a story together in such an engaging fashion. This post alone 'proves' that you are, indeed, a writer!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Melanie, I love your fun, engaging, easy-to-read style of writing. I know I played "library" and "newspaper reporter" as a kid, too. Fun how God used "play" to prepare us for His work.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love this Marnie "Fun how God used "play" to prepare us for His work." How very true! Maybe we need to play more in order to understand what His purpose is for us :)

      Delete
  5. Great writing, Melanie! I love your sense of humour and clarity.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thank you everyone for such encouragement! What a blessing you all are :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. What fun is this! Would have loved to read your paper about Mozart. You have a zippy way with words!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I wish I still had that paper Violet, if I did I would share it with you!

      Delete
  8. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Melanie I love your spunk. I love that nothing seemed to get you down ... you just kept going. I love your writing voice. And, as your guinea pig, I can testify to the fact that your book "Ya ... But How?" will be what many many people need and will gobble up! God Bless You!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming..." Dory was onto something!
      Thanks Joy :) And thanks for your confidence in my book...it is almost cooked up and ready to serve!

      Delete
  10. Melanie,
    That tale is so awesome. You can see God's hand in it. May He bless your writing for Him.
    Blessings,
    Janis

    ReplyDelete
  11. I love your imagery, Mel. How about, "a bolt of reality"? or "My path collided with desperation." or "more eager than a kid in the line for Splash Mountain." I too enjoy the way you played with the word Eureka and used it as a frame for your blog. A story well told, my dear. Keep up your unique writing style. When God made you, he threw away the blueprint, because no one will ever be your double. Special is what he made! Thanks for the enjoyable read.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Such a wonderfully creative post, Mel. I thoroughly enjoyed it and love your voice. It's very attention grabbing. And I"m glad you persevered, despite what others told you and that you are now in your "ahhhhhhhhhh" phase.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Thanks again for all the encouraging words. Sharon you made me blush :)

    Blessings on everyones "ahhhhhhhhh" phase!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Melanie,

    What a delightful post -- engaging and fun to read your writing journey. Exciting times ahead!

    Happy writing...
    Brenda

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "Exciting times ahead"...thanks Brenda! I imagine there will be a few more "Eeeeeks" along the way, but let's try our best to keep moving along :)

      Delete
  15. Melanie!!! "As it turns out, if it wasn’t for all the "Eeeeeek's" between the “Yur” and the “a” I wouldn’t have anything to write about." So True! So well said. I loved this!!!
    Pam

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Pam! Your "!!!" was super encouraging :)

      Delete

Thank you for taking the time to join in the conversation. Our writers appreciate receiving your feedback on posts you have found helpful or meaningful in some way.