If only it was that easy…When I was 22, like most people, I had no idea what sort of job(s) I’d end up doing during my lifetime. I started out as a legal secretary (I was so not cut out for following orders all day), taught high school, then shorthand (does that even exist anymore?) at Acadia, became a mom, designed and made toddlers’ clothing for 15 years, did some substitute teaching, and finally, I’m a writer. Which, next to being a mother, is the job I love best. But it took me 30 years to get from new university graduate to here.

Son Liam’s among the many new grads currently roaming the streets of Toronto in pursuit of a career. I’ll be sitting proudly in the audience next week, wiping away a tear or two, as he receives his Bachelor of Commerce (Hons) in Accounting from Queen’s University (GPA 3.8, if I’m allowed to brag – since this is my blog, I guess I can:) The job market’s tough – accounting ads calling for fewer than 3-5 years of experience are non-existent, but I know somebody will eventually give him a chance, and his working life will begin. What I hope, is that he finds something early on about which he’s passionate (and that pays well!) My father spent 25 years doing a job he hated, but he had a family to support, and in his day, people stuck with the same job for most of their working lives. Husband Don retires from Horton High at the end of June, after a 32-year teaching career, most of which he’s enjoyed (okay – not 100% of the time). So it’s a time of new beginnings for our family.

In today’s world, young people are probably looking at having at least a handful of different jobs before retirement. One advantage of getting older, is that you gradually come to realize that things most often work out as they should…and that patience is a great virtue. Once again, I give the last word to Dr. Seuss:

Oh, the Places You’ll Go!

by

Dr. Seuss

Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go…

Dr. Seuss’s first book, And to Think That I Saw it on Mulberry Street, was rejected 27 times before somebody said “Yes!” His most well-known rejection letter reads, “This is too different from other juveniles on the market to warrant its selling.” And we all know the happily-ever-after ending to his story!

In reading through various agents and editors’ blogs, it seems like nobody wants to publish rhyming picture books these days, but there are loads of them out there, and kids love them. What’s up with that? Apparently, there are lots of kids’writers who think they’re really clever at writing in rhyme, but, unfortunately, few of us actually have that gift. Or is it an acquired skill? I found an article recently, by Doria Chaconas, “Icing the Cake, Writing Stories in Rhythm and Rhyme, that’s full of in-depth, almost scientific, pointers about writing in rhyme. Some of it sounds vaguely familiar from my days as an English Lit student…but it’s worth a read.

For some reason, certain stories just start writing themselves in rhyme, weird as that probably sounds unless you’ve experienced it. I like to think I have a good natural sense of rhythm, but maybe I’m wrong. It’s fun, but finding rhymes and sounding out rhythms can be incredibly frustrating, too. On-line rhyming dictionaries come in handy, and when all else fails, I rearrange the words again and again, or dig up new ones, until I think it works. Oddly enough, the story I’m working on now can be sung to the tune of My Favourite Things – surely that can’t be a bad thing!