The things we learn from others about our own world can be amazing.  Recently, I took someone on a trip to meet my family, on a route I’ve traveled so many times that I could do it blindfolded. However, on this trip I was determined to make sure my companion found it interesting.

So as we began the trip I mentioned a few places we might check out along the way. One of the stops was Turner’s Army Surplus on I-30, west of Texarkana. Now, I’ve passed by this place for years, but never bothered to check it out. I only mentioned it because of the airplane and the rocket in the parking lot. But my companion is a devotee of military things, so we stopped.

He patiently identified some of the military relics that cluttered the outside of the building. When inside,  we found what I had expected – shelves of old gear and garb, and a few newer things. But the man who owns this place is also a collector, and led us into a museum at the side of the store that was full of armed forces memorabilia. With friend by my side explaining what each item was and how it was used, we wandered through several aisles – reading old letters from soldiers, looking at photos, examining old uniforms and weapons. I’m a military brat, and many of the items brought back a few memories, or reminded me of ties to certain places. I’m so glad we stopped.

What does this have to do with writing?

Here’s the thing. We often have ideas stored away so long that they just fade into oblivion. We crowd our minds with unfinished projects and get bogged down with them. How many times have you told someone about a book or story you have in your mind but just haven’t stopped to write it? Yeah – me, too.  How many years have you had that little gem stashed in your attic? Exactly when are you planning on getting it out?

We have to make ourselves do the things we put aside. Bring them out into the daylight and dust them off.  Like that museum, they may have hidden gems waiting for discovery.

Maybe they require research we aren’t willing to do.  Maybe the story goes someplace, covering a subject or incident we aren’t comfortable with. Maybe we haven’t taken the time to really think it out. We have a tendency to write in our ‘zone’, and put off the ideas that bounce but need to be worked on.

The next time you sit down at the computer and think I need to write today, bring up that old outline or rough draft instead of starting something new. Stop along that well-traveled road and investigate the possibilities. Where should you go? What should you throw out? Where was this headed, and should it really go there or find a new path? Look at it like you’ve never seen it before.

Sometimes something old and familiar can give you a surprise. Just like a highway you’ve traveled hundreds of times before.