The Script and the Blank Piece of Paper

My New Year message

Everyday we are handed two things

THE SCRIPT

And

THE BLANK PIECE OF PAPER

Sometimes, as we grow older, THE SCRIPT gets heavier, more complicated and THE BLANK PIECE OF PAPER gets neglected.

THE SCRIPT tells us what we ought to do, our duties.

Some would rip it up, but for others, our sense of duty is too strong, particularly if we have children or caring responsibilities.

We can’t always ditch THE SCRIPT, nor would we necessarily want to.

But what we must NEVER EVER do, is forget

THE BLANK PIECE OF PAPER.

It is still ours to dance our doodles upon.

To make moon and stars and gold guitars.

.

Open your heart.

Feel the scarlet blood within it become your unstoppable ink with which to spill and glide and gleam and slide.

Grace that blank sheet with all that does not speak in words but has always lived within your soul.

Give wonder the form and chance it deserves.

We may not be able to put down our script - I certainly can’t - but we CAN embellish, ad-lib.

We can cross out some of those shit lines we’ve been given and insert pauses for laughter and song. Turn our tragedy into a black comedy, our drama into a musical.

.

Fruit and glow, let sparkle flow,

The past is dust, how could you know

Where each road led and where you’d go

Just trust you’ve so much more to show.

You will not rust, you’ll only GROW!