Writing Like the Wind
I finally ran out of ink today in a pen I bought nearly a year and a half ago.
I know, big whoop. Pens run out of ink.
But it’s actually kind of a big deal for me. I tend to buy new pens and not completely use them up before moving on to another pen I like better. Same with notebooks and journals. I like physical writing and creativity tools so much that I often switch around without finishing the one I’m using. I’ve always called it a “tools of the trade” fascination. I’ve heard some call it G.A.S. (Gear Acquisition Syndrome). My dear mother, God rest her soul, encouraged this fascination because she figured if it motivated me to be creative, it was worth it (and she also liked pens and stationery for the same reasons).
I bought this pen (a Pilot G2 Limited with a metal barrel) for two reasons: I liked the body of the pen, and I could swap out the ink cartridge when I was done with it for a different kind of ink cartridge from a different brand that I like better (Uni-ball Jetstream—if you know, you know).
But I thought, why waste ink I’ve already paid for? I pledged to use up the G2 gel ink in this pen before moving over to the Jetstream hybrid ink, just so I wouldn’t have the less-preferred G2 ink hanging around, collecting dust, and maybe eventually getting tossed in the trash without a single drop of it ending up on a page.
And so I’ve written with this pen. I’ve journalled. I’ve jotted down notes. I’ve put up with it smearing on my hand in a way the Jetstream ink doesn’t.
Beginning with this pen (and using others along the way), I have for the first time managed to build a daily writing habit that is slowly turning the squeaky wheels of my creativity. Earlier this month, I hit 100 days of daily diary journaling!
And after posting this blog, I’m going to finally replace the used-up ink cartridge with the one I’ve been wanting to use all along.
The fact that I managed to follow through with using up the ink in this pen shows me that I’m slowly but surely getting to a point where I care more about creating than consuming. Granted, consuming fuels the ability to create, but on balance, I tend to consume far more than I need to in order to create. It’s a lot easier to consume than it is to create, after all.
And the more I create, the more I want to create. I want to be someone who writes like the wind: some days slowly, some days quickly, but at very least consistently. It doesn’t matter what I’m writing, really, as long as I’m doing it. There’s no telling what story, essay, or poem ideas I might discover simply from writing out whatever’s in my head.
I’ve written more poems, essays, and blog posts in the last year and half than I ever have at any other point in my life. I’m still working on getting back into fiction writing, so that’s a work in progress; something to look forward to!
The point is, though, I’m doing the work! Running out of ink and filling up notebooks are a tangible way to remind me that the work is changing me and leveling up the quality of my creative work.
I want to keep writing like the wind and see where it takes me.