Greg Allen: Refining the art of articulate thought
I'm honored, yet humbled, to have a platform such as this - I can articulate what’s murmuring about in my thoughts and people then read it. My fan base is growing, numbering in the thousands, for my column appears in many newspapers.
One of my biggest fans turns 100 years old this year. I hear from her once in awhile. She has a few stories she could tell herself. She’d said I'm an intelligent man, that some of the things I write are quite deep. I consider that a compliment coming from someone who’s seen and done so much.
To envision her reading my articles every two weeks in that assisted living home where she resides is humbling. Her body may be failing, but her mind isn’t. To stir someone's thoughts, give ’em a chuckle, or make their day is worth it all; it’s worth the time, grasping for just the right title, groping for that word, or agonizing over the structure of a given piece. It’s more than worth the time spent from the standpoint it gives pleasure to a soul. (Thanks, Thelma. Because of people like you I shall pen those thoughts.)
A good friend, an old high school buddy, sent me an email the other day; I was taken aback by it. He said the world needs to hear what I have to say, to never quit verbalizing what flows from my soul. (Thanks, Sam. Because of friends like you I shall always pen my thoughts.)
Numerous, and I mean numerous, times I’ve heard people say: “Some of the stuff you write, Greg, is pretty deep.” Or I’ve heard people say: “You think too much!” I’ve been told a time or two I analyze everything. I even had an employer once write on my evaluation I had an analytical mind.
The fledgling thoughts for this piece were flushed into existence at work recently when I brought something up to another when I said: “I was thinking.” Their swift reply was: “Uh-oh!”
It's a writer's vocation to notice human behavior, the little things others overlook, I’m no different, and sometime back I saw a couple ladies at work discussing something. As I passed by I noticed one of the gals was wearing an unusual necklace. As I went past I said, “That necklace is a conversation piece.” Her response was: “Huh?” She then turned to the other gal and asked, ”What’d he say?”
The lady wearing the necklace is a beautiful gal, inside and out, but I can't recall ever having a lengthy conversation with her - I think she's much too busy for that.
I thought she was wearing a piece of fashioned art, but in reality it was something far less.
When I asked her if it was a piece of art she replied, “Huh. … No!” I tried to stimulate the conversation a bit further by asking where she got it. With a puzzled look on her face she replied: “JC Penney's.”
I envisioned in my mind a couple standing before a masterpiece in one of those world-renowned art galleries discussing the finer points of the master’s stroke, but then I snapped out of my daydream induced trance.
When I said, “Was it expensive?” she replied, “Twenty bucks. … Why you askin’?”
I said I was trying to strike up some conversation because I love art and thought that piece she wore was - that’s all.
She has a beautiful smile, when she lavishes it, and after she stared at her necklace for a while she began to garnish a polished grin. Her whole countenance changed after that and she began to wear that necklace more, showing it off and asking others what they thought of it. I told her that the premise of all that would make a good piece and asked if she'd mind if I used those thoughts. She welcomed the idea and is anxious to read about it, I'm sure. (Thanks, Michelle. Because of fellow employees like you I shall pen my thoughts to bless others.)
I am what I am, and make no apologies for the thoughts which swirl within me on a constant basis. I never thought I’d be a writer, but I am. Not all who read my pieces are fans. A few have hated what I wrote. I think they read what I say out of curiosity, but a few thoughts stirring within them are emotions that teeter on the brink of sane.
Not too long ago I wrote a piece about Sarah Palin that stirred the wrath of a few around the country. I got a few emails and phone calls from those individuals enraged by the piece. Who knows why they're so angry. They just are!
There's deep thinkers and shallow ones. I’d venture to say shallow individuals lack reason for any depth of thought held, all, self-induced attitude. We can strive for a fathomless depth of thought, realizing thought’s never ending, or we can be as a shallow mud puddle. (Be it, I’ll pass by the simplistic.)
Greg Allen’s column is published bi-monthly. He’s a published author, syndicated columnist, songwriter and the founder of Builder of the Spirit Ministries in Jamestown, Ind., a nonprofit organization aiding the less fortunate. He can be reached at 765-676-5014 or www.builderofthespirit.org.