"How Will I Know If I've Done It Just Right?"

“How Will I Know If I’ve Done It Just Right?”

(About this piece:  I wrote this in response to a question from a fellow participant in a writing class recently.  We did timed writing, meaning we were given a prompt and a set time period in which to write.  During the sharing portion, afterwards, she seemed perplexed as to whether or not she'd written enough.  On the train ride home, I put this little piece together in order to help her feel more at ease with her writing.  Enjoy!)

How will I know if I’ve done it just right?

Will it give me a laugh?  Will if give me a fright?

How will I know if I’ve written too much?

Will I feel cold and clammy?  Or just out of touch?

And what if it doesn’t seem just the right way?

Should I have it bronzed or just throw it away?

I know I can write ‘til the cows come on home,

But by then, you know, I could be all alone.

There are so many things I could write down, you see,

Or just by chance, there might only be 3.

I’ll close my eyes and open my mind,

Get comfy in my chair on my fluffy behind.

I’ve chosen my subject, my pencil’s right here,

My coffee is brewin’, and munchies are near.

The coffee’s all done, my pencil is humming,

And the words, glorious words, they just keep on coming!

One page down, now two, three, four and five,

This is just amazing; I feel so alive!

Oh, but wait my hand’s feeling numb,

Hmm, I guess that must mean that I’m done!

 A childhood hero, Dr. Seuss