Capture the Moment

by G.Ellen

If you've spent anytime outside lately, (at least in Utah) you've noticed that the mountains are on fire. The leaves have started changing and it's my favorite time of year. I love all the different colors. Every October it's the same thing; I need to have my fall foliage fix. It never fails to make my fingers itch for a paintbrush to somehow capture that essence of beauty. I rarely have the chance, but that is my lifelong goal--some day.

I find myself wishing I had a video camera on every moment of my life. I wish I could relive a precious memory, or remember every moment of a vacation. The time is gone so fast--the moments are gone before we realize it. It's like that every fall...I ache to capture the vision in my mind.

As a writer that's something we strive for every time we write. We are trying to capture a moment in our reader’s minds. We describe a scene or a moment in a character's life and if the reader gets that moment and sits back with a satisfied sigh, you know you have succeeded. The problem is, we will probably never see that reaction. We have to go on how it feels to us, if the right mood has been reached, if the feedback we get on something tells us the mood is being conveyed. In other words, we have to depend on others for the knowledge that we've succeeded.

Sometimes we can tell by reading it later. I have to put something away after I've finished it because it's just too fresh in my mind--I've eaten, read and slept that particular piece of writing for too long. After its been put away for a while, then it's easier to see if I like it--if I've captured the imagination of my reader--if it's what I wanted to produce.

But for now, I want to see if I can capture a moment for you.

The air is clear and sharp, the birds are a muted chirping in the background and there is nothing but the crunch of your shoes on the gravel road to disturb them. The aspen and pine trees mix together along the roadside, giving you an array of fall colors that are a feast for the senses--light greens, yellows, red, rust, gold and the rich green of the evergreens. You can almost smell hot chocolate with marshmallows melting or a fresh baked apple pie with its tangy cinnamon apple scent.

Mmmm. Makes me want to go bake. Capture the moment for your readers. Capture the moment for yourself--in everything you do.