Comments on: Four Jugs and a Writer's Tricks

By: Jamie Grove

Jamie Grove — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 12:20:09 +0000

@Charlotte Thanks! Glad you liked it and got the Ox reference!

By: Links: 2008-08-02 | Meryl.net

Links: 2008-08-02 | Meryl.net — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 19:36:39 +0000

[...] Four Jugs and a Writer’s Tricks [...]

By: charlotte

charlotte — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 16:27:20 +0000

Enjoyed the story. Tortoise and Hare with an Ox thrown in. thelifeilove

By: Jamie Grove

Jamie Grove — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 00:52:33 +0000

@Deb That’s really the heart of the story.

Applied to writing, I think a lot of writers begin with the idea that they can knock out a book in a few weeks – there’s nothing to it, right? It takes years, sometimes many years. They key thing is to show up at the keyboard each day and get to work.

By: Deb

Deb — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 00:32:41 +0000

My grandmother was always saying “the hurrier I go, the behinder I be” which applies to parts of this story. But really it’s about presence. Kisho undertook the job at hand, sized up what needed to be done and then just did it. He demonstrates that he is aware of his poles and jugs, aware of the hazards on the path, aware of the heat of the day, and aware that his co-laborers were in trouble. The other two were so distracted by how “famous” they were going to be at the end of the day, and by minor tragedies, they never fully engaged in the task.

Thanks for being patient.

By: Dee Stewart

Dee Stewart — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 18:30:31 +0000

Great post. Deegospel

By: Jamie Grove

Jamie Grove — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 01:00:04 +0000

@WriterDad Ah, but then you escape to Catalina Island! Great post, by the way! And thanks.

@Karen Indeed, indeed. When I wrote this, I kept wanting Kisho to do something, to say something, but he just kept right on being Kisho.

By: Karen Swim

Karen Swim — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 16:37:14 +0000

Jamie, what a great post and thought provoking story. It is interesting that we can focus so much on achievement and results that we lose sight of the task. No one said it was important to bring more than 4 jugs yet two of the monks focused on beating the goal rather than simply carrying the water. Karen Swim's last blog post..In the Zone

By: Writer Dad

Writer Dad — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 13:29:54 +0000

That was a terrific little story, thanks. You're right. We all have our little tricks. I always put far more on my plate than I can possibly manage, then I can flit around like a drunk bumble bee attacking whatever I want, without feeling bad about the things I didn't have time to get to. Writer Dad's last blog post..A New Renaissance