Friday, February 19, 2010

A closer look ... (by Ann Schrock)

A tangle of woods borders the parking lot of the factory where I work, and sometimes I eat my lunch in my truck for a moment outdoors.




At first the woods didn't look like much: just tangles of leafless branches and brush. Gray limbs and white snow.



But as I studied it I began to notice that at least two kinds of woodpeckers liked those trees, and so did a little flock of chickadees. Sometimes I saw cardinals, probably flying in after brunch at feeders in the subdivision behind the factory.



I'm looking forward to seeing the woods change as winter turns into spring. Will a low spot in the middle turn into a pond? Will there be toads? Tree frogs? Mosquitoes? Wildflowers?



In the same way, at first I found the factory full of strangers. Now I recognize my co-workers as single moms, recently unemployed men happy to return to work, young people just starting out ... all kinds of people with all kinds of stories.



As a writer I should study my surroundings -- not just see but notice the details.



What are some of our best ways to notice details, of our surroundings? Do little details add a lot? Can details help us connect with those around us and reveal more of Christ?


Ann Schrock
What's new down on the farm? Come and see ...

http://cloverleaffarm-ann.blogspot.com/

5 comments:

  1. Ann, this is so insightful. When we first start a book, I think we come into it like you say--with an overview and not noticing the details. As we get into our work, then we notice the story in the setting, the characters and their backgrounds, the variations and a theme.

    What a great way to look at it!

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  2. Great thoughts. It's the details that keep us in the story. Too many details and we lose the reader, too few details and we never hook the reader.

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  3. You're so right! God did not cooky-cutter-stamp His creation on any level. Nor should we.

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  4. Hey, y'all, thanks for your thoughts on details. Due to work it took awhile to get back to the blog yesterday!

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