• Latest
Just Some Thoughts

What, in ‘THE WORLD?’ By

March 22, 2022
African Queen (1951)

Exodus (1960)

March 21, 2023
Just Some Thoughts

“Don’t Worry”

March 21, 2023
Job Training Well Done

Job Training Well Done

March 21, 2023

ACLU, Partners Call on Legislators to Oppose Plans for Prison Expansion

March 21, 2023

Conservation Supports New Farm In Central Vermont

March 21, 2023

Vermont Hunter Education Courses

March 15, 2023

Vermont Philharmonic and Green Mountain Youth Symphony Present “Awakenings: Music of Young Composers”

March 15, 2023

Central Vermont Council on Aging (CVCOA) Joins in Month-Long March for Meals Celebration with Communities Nationwide

March 15, 2023
African Queen (1951)

Divorce, Italian Style (1961)

March 15, 2023

Following Successful Public Pressure Campaign to Lower the Cost of Eli Lilly’s Insulin, Sanders and Bush Introduce Bill to Finish the Job and Cap the Price at $20 Per Vial

March 15, 2023
Udderly Crazy 4-H Club Members Take Part In 4-H Dairy Quiz Bowl

Udderly Crazy 4-H Club Members Take Part In 4-H Dairy Quiz Bowl

March 7, 2023
Hunger Free Vermont Receives $36,090 Nourishing Neighbors Grant from Shaw’s Foundation’s Nourishing Neighbor Campaign

Hunger Free Vermont Receives $36,090 Nourishing Neighbors Grant from Shaw’s Foundation’s Nourishing Neighbor Campaign

March 7, 2023
  • Home
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy
  • Sitemap
Monday, March 27, 2023
The World Online
Advertisement
  • Home
  • News & Features
    • Local News
    • Letters & opinions
    • George Shuman
    • Max’s View
    • Local Sports & Outdoors
    • Births
  • Calendar
    • Art Exhibits
    • Calendar of Events
    • Ongoing Events
  • Obituaries
  • Submit
    • Submit Calendar Listing for Non-Profit Events
    • Submit An Article To The World
    • Submit Letter To The Editor
    • Submit Sports News/Photo
    • Submit Birth Announcement
    • Submit Engagement Announcement
    • Submit Wedding Announcement
  • Advertising
    • World Rates and Ad Sizes
    • World Distribution Map
    • World Deadlines
    • Audit and Reader Surveys
    • Advertising Inquiry
  • Classifieds
    • Place Classified Ads
    • View Current Classifieds
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News & Features
    • Local News
    • Letters & opinions
    • George Shuman
    • Max’s View
    • Local Sports & Outdoors
    • Births
  • Calendar
    • Art Exhibits
    • Calendar of Events
    • Ongoing Events
  • Obituaries
  • Submit
    • Submit Calendar Listing for Non-Profit Events
    • Submit An Article To The World
    • Submit Letter To The Editor
    • Submit Sports News/Photo
    • Submit Birth Announcement
    • Submit Engagement Announcement
    • Submit Wedding Announcement
  • Advertising
    • World Rates and Ad Sizes
    • World Distribution Map
    • World Deadlines
    • Audit and Reader Surveys
    • Advertising Inquiry
  • Classifieds
    • Place Classified Ads
    • View Current Classifieds
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
The World Online
No Result
View All Result

What, in ‘THE WORLD?’ By

G. E. Shuman

vt-world by vt-world
March 22, 2022
in George Shuman
0
Just Some Thoughts

I’ve recently realized that I’ve been writing this column for what is becoming an awfully long time. The column has been in my favorite paper, The World, every other week, since mid-May 1994. Okay, so, since it’s now the middle of March 2022, that adds up to approximately 27 years and ten months’ worth of these wonderful (hardly) bits of humor and wisdom being foisted upon Central Vermont readers. At 26 columns per year that amounts to 729 columns, plus about twenty more for the last ten months. Whew!

So, approximately 750 times this great Vermont paper has honored me by publishing my work; in 750 issues they have not once refused a column from me. (They must not read them. That’s all I can figure out.)

My realization here is that in all those weeks, months, and years of writing this stuff, I have never lacked for something to write about. (My wife used to call me an endless pit, and I never knew if that was supposed to be a compliment. It didn’t sound like one.)  The truth is, I have never had much writer’s block; I’ve never had huge struggles with the ‘terror of the empty page’ problem, as it has been called.

When I was teaching English language arts, I sort of invented an exercise for my creative writing students to do if they just could not begin a story. What happened was this. I had them take out one of those ‘empty pages’ and simply begin writing words. ANY words. Okay, so, I meant any words the Christian school I taught at would approve of.

Somehow, for most of those high school kids, only a few moments into this exercise I would find them with slight grins, writing sentence after sentence of a new story. The empty page was gone, and their creative juices had started flowing. To this day I don’t know why that works. If you’re having a problem getting started with a letter, a report, a poem or a 100,000-word novel, that exercise might be a good place to begin.

Today, and I mean the very day of this writing, 24 hours from my deadline for next week’s paper, I am struggling a bit to come up with a topic. This really is a strange feeling for me. And, in fact, I’m not sure if I ever will come up with an actual topic here. I won’t resort to the empty page exercise, at least not yet.

Much of the reason I’m struggling to write today is that I simply don’t feel like putting in the work right now, but that old deadline is still looming. That’s not a good combination. I think that most people who would never think of writing publicly themselves believe that there is some special thing in a writer that makes them just love to do it. For me that is occasionally the case, but most of the time writing is work. Writing a long piece, such as a novel, is a LOT of work.

Also, (Never begin a paragraph with ‘also,’ okay?) I just haven’t been in a good mindset to write the past few weeks or so. They say that you are what you eat, you know. ‘Also,’ we have all heard the adage ‘garbage in, garbage out.’  I confess, I’ve been watching the news a lot the past few weeks, and that has definitely affected my attitude. Like I said, garbage in, garbage out. News of inflation, gas prices, food prices, shortages of everything, and the whole political blame game has been pushing more positive stuff in my brain into a smaller and smaller corner, it seems. “Wars and rumors of wars.” Mark 13:7, Holy Bible, are competing for space in there too.

Well, I have come to at least one decision while writing these very words to you. That decision is to watch less news and stop fretting until The President, or a senior White House official calls on me to manage the war or inflation. So far, that hasn’t happened, and worrying about those things is getting me nowhere. Praying about them always helps.

I need to spend more time in appreciation of what I have, of where I live, and especially of the people in my life. That way it will be fun to write again, and not as much work. So, there’s my topic.

And with that I can begin the next 27 years and ten months in ‘The World.’ (Avoid starting sentences with And or But.)

Previous Post

Vermont Elections Ranked 1st Overall Again in National Index

Next Post

Vermonters Show Support for Ukraine As Governor Phil Scott Signs Ukrainian Aid Bill

Next Post

Vermonters Show Support for Ukraine As Governor Phil Scott Signs Ukrainian Aid Bill

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This Week’s Ads

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy
  • Sitemap
The World
403 US Route 302
Barre, VT 05641
Phone: (802) 479-2582

Copyright © 2019 The World Online. All Rights Reserved. Powered by CoolerAds.

No Result
View All Result
  • Art Exhibits
  • Audit and Reader Surveys
  • Births
  • Calendar
  • Contact Us
  • Daily Horoscope
  • Fall Guide
  • Food & Recipe
  • Home
  • Obituaries
  • Ongoing Events
  • Pay Your Bill Here
  • Senior Living Edition
  • Showtimes
  • Submit Birth Announcement
  • Submit Calendar Listing for Non-Profit Events
  • Submit Engagement Announcement
  • Submit Listing to our Local Directory
  • Submit Sports News/Photo
  • Submit Wedding Announcement
  • Testimonials
  • The World Coupons
  • Weather Forecast
  • World Deadlines
  • World Distribution Map
  • World Rate Card
  • World Rates and Ad Sizes
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy
  • Sitemap
  • About Us
  • Vermont Lottery
  • Advertising Information
  • The World Staff
  • Advertising Inquiry
  • Submit Letter To The Editor
  • Local Directory
  • Poll Results
  • Local Deals
  • Classifieds
  • Submit An Article To The World
  • Events
  • The World – This Week’s Online Digital Edition
  • The World Auto & Sports

Copyright © 2019 The World Online. All Rights Reserved. Powered by CoolerAds.

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Fill the forms bellow to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In