"YES you buy a new pair of cleats!!!"

10 things so lit ️‍🔥 including our fathers, and realizing it's never too late

Hello friends!

I hope you had a wonderful father’s day. I’m thankful for good men. If you’re reading this, I’m sure you’re amongst the best. Thank you for supporting this woman’s (my) writing.

Here are ten things so lit…and my favorite one might be the last because of how it made me feel (remember: they might not remember what you did or what you taught, but they’ll remember how you made them feel).

But don’t scroll too fast, there’s good stuff in-between, too!

1. I’m fairly obsessed with THIS HAND DRAWN DAD MAP by Isaac Dushku (he has tons of maps, for mom, too!) I attempted my own and will show you next week!

2. Writing a short story, poem, memoir, fiction, or narrative non-fiction? These SCENE MAGIC questions will help you get to the finish line! AND, Kelcey’s hand-drawn pictures are to drool over…

3. “Confidence doesn't always come from believing in yourself today. It often stems from recalling the obstacles you overcame yesterday. A history of resilience can silence self-doubt—challenges conquered are clues to hidden strengths. Past progress is proof of future potential.” by

   Adam Grant
   , my italics added (note he did not say past perfection, but progress…)

4. Which reminds me of a forever-favorite article: “The bottom line: if you want a happier family, create, refine and retell the story of your family’s positive moments and your ability to bounce back from the difficult ones. That act alone may increase the odds that your family will thrive for many generations to come.” THE STORIES THAT BIND US (Bruce Feiler, NYT)

5. Helping Our Boys Why Boys Today Struggle with Human Connection (Ruth Whippman, NYT) When it comes to developing spaces and skills for boys to make friends, we have a long way to go.

6. I’ll always be her dad. After reading this NYT Modern Love article, I immediately subscribed to

   Tina Hedin
   ’s newsletter. I love her writing, and I always cry. Read this and weep, reflections from Kiki’s dad, Eric ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ and then after the weeping, seek those who suffer. We need one another.

7. Love Jane Eyre as much as I do? If you are writing a sweeping, coming-of-age tale yourself, watch pro-teacher

   Jennifer Lauck
   show us how!

8. Okay, this might be a weird but mighty important one: GET BLOODWORK DONE. I just had five vials of blood taken from me so the lab can test all sorts of things like estrogen, testosterone, estradiol, and lipids. As we get older, estrogen starts to drop and YOU NEED IT (bones, muscles, brain, energy….) Estrogen is so lit ️‍🔥

9. Um, this resonates with me: “Women artists… they made their art on the back porch, they made it on top of the washing machine, they made it next to the kitchen sink, and they made it anywhere they could, for the hour and a half while their kid was taking a nap, and for the two hours while they were at the play group. They made it in between…. There was no time… for the ritual of getting into your work! You just snapped into that taking 10 minutes and making 3 lines on your drawing or whatever was possible.” by

   Austin Kleon

10. Last week I asked the question: “I’m 49 years old, do I buy the new pair of soccer cleats?” I’ve had an internal debate with self. Soccer is HARD on the body and every summer I say it’s my last. Then, I received an email from Mia:

“YES you buy a new pair of cleats!!! When I was a kid, I thought that you stopped learning once your brain stopped growing. I was TERRIFIED that I wouldn't be able to learn everything I wanted to before then. Then I learned about Georgia O'Keeffe, who learned new techniques and tackled new ways of painting very late in life. It's never too late, and never slow down! Keep growing and developing your passion! 49 is such a YOUNG age. Georgia started studying aerial view painting at 73. That's TWENTY FOUR whole years away from you. Totally keep going and going and going. You really never have to stop until you literally die. <3”

By the way? Mia is 16-years-old. I love her for this answer. Many times I have told myself, “I’m going to do such-and-such until I truly can’t anymore. I’m going to do this until I die,” but sometimes I forget my own knowing or conviction. Sometimes I start to doubt or think I’m “too old” or the time has passed me by or “it’s too late.”

False.

Tell yourself a different story.

It’s never too late. Full stop.

Thank you, Mia. From all of us.

xoxo

Amy

p.s. HAPPY 6th BIRTHDAY TO GUINEVERE ST CLAIR. Guinevere was my first novel, published in June 2018. Thank you, Maine librarian Amy Hand for this great REEL, and to Iowa for hosting me in August to celebrate Guinevere being their “One Book Community Read.” It makes me so happy that Guinevere is being read!

p.p.s. On the topic of “never too late,” writer

Sarah McCraw Crow

often interviews “mid-life” women about writing later in life. It’s a good kick in the pants! WRITE.