An epiphany really.  Allow me to explain.

A couple nights ago Heath and I watched The Soloist starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx.  Amazing movie.  I highly recommend it.  It’s based on a book written by Steven Lopez.  The story is true. 

Lopez was (maybe still is) a reporter for a newspaper in LA.  He was trying to come up with a story to write about.  While wandering the streets of LA he met a homeless man and neither of their lives were ever the same again. 

Nathaniel Ayers Jr. was/is musically gifted.  He had even gone to Julliard but never graduated.  The reason is clear in the movie.  Lopez and Ayers became friends.  It was a beautiful story. 

I had trouble concentrating on the movie in the first 10 or 15 minutes because there were so many scenes of the crowded and noisy newspaper agency offices.  All I could think about was how much I wanted Lopez’s job!  Obviously I wouldn’t choose to work in a noisy and crowded environment like that but it was the writing that I wanted to do. 

There was one scene where Ayers had asked Lopez if he (Lopez) dreamed of writers the way he (Ayers) dreamed about musicians.  Lopez said no, that writing was just his job but it’s not who he used to be.  I wanted to scream at the TV, I do!  I dream about writers!  I can’t sleep lately because I love writing so much and want to do something real with it. 

I have been blogging for a couple of years and I love it.  But I started feeling like I was torn on what to post every day.  I don’t know why some people read my blog.  Is it for my daily ramblings about my family?  Or is it my writing style in general?  I was having Heath design my blog in a way to attract more readers.  So I started feeling guilty for posting anything about my family.  I was trying to be The Piquant Storyteller and was forgetting my original audience; people who were interested in my family. 

The movie made me say an idea out loud.  I’ve thought of having two different blogs for a while.  In fact, I have had two different blogs for several months now.  Nobody knows that because it was private and only Heath and Dawn were invited! 

It was a place to practice writing.  But I never really did.  Some days I wanted to write things that I would never want anyone to read.  It wasn’t supposed to be a venting blog so I forced myself to write my story for the public.  That’s what The Westovers has always been.  A journal of our lives and because it’s public I keep my negativity to a minimum.  It’s true.  I could be a lot worse! 

Well, I asked Heath if he thought I should have two different blogs.  He agreed and said he had been thinking that for a while.  So the transition is basically complete.  This blog is back to what it was always meant to be; a place to capture my family’s lives.  And my new blog is for those creative pieces I crave writing. 

If you’re interested in keeping up with my creative writing you are welcome to visit The Piquant Storyteller in its new location.  I deleted the five posts from when it was private.  They weren’t worth keeping.  Most of them had been posted here in some form anyway.  Then I copied and pasted all the posts from the last year that fit The Piquant Storyteller.  I have edited the posts by going with vague terms or nicknames because it’s not about my family on that site. 

My cartoon chili pepper is on my awesome new header that Heath created for me.  It will be on a button soon.  The navigation buttons under my header on this blog will disappear since they are no longer needed.  Eventually Heath will make it so you can click on the pictures of the kids to read the posts about them. 

It’s liberating to separate my writing in this way.  It’s also a little scary only because this is just a hobby.  I would hate for anyone to think I am convinced I’m gifted.  I simply have a passion for writing and I love words.  I believe I have been given talents from my Heavenly Father.  We all have.  And He expects me to do something with those talents.  Like practice so I can get better.  Always enjoying the process along the way.  Now I’m living the dream!