Continuity

I realized I had not posted anything since November of last year, when I was busy exploring the meaning of engaging culture. Somehow time just fell through gaps in the Christmas holidays and into the New Year, and here on the west coast there are rumors of an early Spring. Sounds good to me. I was contemplating the nature of my continuum as I geared up for an appreciative inquiry into my methodology, that is, the research design and methodology that will carry me to completion of my Doctoral degree. That was when a little note posted on my studio wall, caught my eye. I had written, "you must draw continually because you need to, and that will help you draw when you want to." It didn't take much to transfer that thought to writing, which is a major component of my research. And thus it reads, "I must write continually because I need to, and that will help me write when I want to." But, my need is not a burden. I love to write, as I love to draw and paint. And so, the New Year began with a return to writing my fourth novel, an historical novel of WWII that I had begun early in 2012. Within days, the continuum kicked in, and I found the process of writing fiction in complete harmony with writing academic papers, especially when I am prompted to add a good piece of narrative to my research papers. Just as charting or mapping the events of WWII lends credibility to my novel, so the mapping of the methodology of my research is similar to exploring a family tree. If I display a hit of excitement about the continuum, I am.