100 Apples

The Apple Orchard

I often imagine walking through an orchard filled with rows and rows of apple trees. Looking at different varieties in their many stages of growth. Gazing across these hundreds of trees and thousands of apples, I see one that catches my eye. As I move in closer, I still glance around to see which one will be most satisfying this moment. So many choices. If I'm not careful, I can just stand there all day looking and looking for the perfect one to pick. I see myself now, standing in this orchard scanning and searching for that perfect one for today. I'm on a hunt. Which apple will it be? Where will I find apple number one hundred? I think I see it. I’ve made my choice. And here it is.

Picking Apples

Two years ago, I made two decisions. Inspired by writer, James Clear, I decided to transform my hobby of writing into more of a craft. I spent the summer of 2017 reading nearly every article James wrote on his website. Two of his recommendations stood out. 1 Write every day on a schedule and 2 regularly publish a piece of work on a schedule. It’s easy to dream of getting better, but the secret to real improvement is actually no secret at all. We simply need to show up, do the daily work, and hold ourselves accountable. We can’t just wander around the apple orchard all day thinking about how much we would like to be apple pickers. We need to make a choice. We need to grab an apple. We need to dig in.

730 Apples For Me, 100 Apples For You

This week’s blog post marks two milestones. As I sit here now, I’m watching my 100th blog slowly take form. This is the 100th time I’ve watched these lines of text stretch across the page knowing this piece will soon become public. It's an odd, yet compelling and satisfying thought. The second milestone is that I’m officially two years down this path of writing daily and posting weekly. So by picking an apple every day, that makes 730 apples in a row. I haven’t missed a day in the orchard. As far as apple sharing, I’ve missed four weeks of posting over the past two years. So really, this should be apple 104. My apologies. Some apples just take a little longer to prepare.

How Do You Like Them Apples?

On my walk in the orchard this morning, I was simply strolling along. I had no intention of choosing perfection. If you’re a reader of my posts, I’m certain you know that. You and I both know that I’m imperfect and my writing is often a reflection of that imperfection. But I’m two years in and one hundred posts further down the path to being a writer. This morning was just a nice morning for a stroll. Glad to have you along.

Enjoy them apples.

And enjoy the day!

If you're interested, here's the first apple.