The Idea of an Essay, Volume 4

Narrative & Memoir 49 “All of this ‘small talk’ is actually necessary foreshadowing for later in the plot.” Of course, reviewing it later, I discovered that it was not. For all its failings, though, this story was undeniably mine. It was a tree that grew in its own right from my idea, with roots running deep into the soil of my experience, a far cry from the rootless sawdust tree-sculptures I had made before. Out of this story I gained a style and a tale that I could rightly call my own, at least far more so than what I had before. I had taken one small step, by the grace of God, towards originality. In the two years since I started to write that story, I have found several more stories to call my own, but that one will always hold a special place inside of me. It is about two-thirds finished at the time of this writing, as life and other such matters have interfered, but I thoroughly intend to complete it someday. God willing, I may even finish several more like it, but with better execution and hopefully more originality. Maybe they will even, in some small way, come to properly convey what I wish them to. I would like to say that I am growing closer to my goal, but if anything, I’ve just begun to realize how far away from it I really am. The simple truth of the matter is that my stories still are not really original. Likely, I will face this endless quest until I lay down my pen for the final time or lie down for the final time. I understand that humans as finite, created beings can never attain true originality; we can never truly create something new. However, as we strive towards the Original, the Author of creativity, perhaps we can grow ever so slightly closer to true originality ourselves. We can never reach the summit, but that really only means that no matter how high we get, we can always strive to climb a little higher. Though that is by no means an original thought, I don’t believe it’s a bad one.