About fifteen years ago, I developed serious hearing loss. It's hereditary: I wasn't listening to too much rock music. I would have noticed sooner, but I'd switched from teaching and performing to translating, and I worked in a sound-dampened office, so I figured that's why I wasn't hearing much. I was wrong. Eventually, my relatives noticed, and did what relatives do: harangued me until I shelled out the small fortune required for hearing aids. So I could hear all the important things they had to say.

The price and the quality of what you're missing are the two main reasons the hard-of-hearing are reluctant to get hearing aids. Now I hear all the drivel, as long as the batteries hold out. Call me bionic.

The woman in the cubicle next to me was also going deaf. Also did not notice. Cared less than I did. Whenever she misheard me, she asked me to repeat. Then she always said, 'What I thought you said was so much more interesting than what you really said.'

It's a shame you can't actually move cubicles. Say, to the next state.

Anyway, that callous remark inspired today's thought about writing. Why not use your imagination to imagine that people are saying and doing more interesting things than what they are? Let your imagination run wild.

Examples:

• 'That candidate is right on. I really hope he wins. He'll shake them up in Washington/Parliament.' Quit groaning and imagine: what if the voters were mad as H and wouldn't take it anymore? What might happen? Make up your own scenario. Then write a story about it.
• 'That woman who runs the shop is so irritating. Of course, they never do things right. Not Our Sort, you know…' No matter what group this person is talking about, she's wrong, sure. But what if you lived in a world where tolerance was actually possible? Imagine yourself a better neighbourhood.
• 'Global warming, trash everywhere, the environment's going to pieces…' So? Imagine something more positive. What could happen?
• 'Mom, I don't want to go to Grandpa's this weekend. Those old people are so boring. They never do anything interesting…' You wish your kids were different? Write yourself some. Make them intelligent, caring, enthusiastic, appreciative…

You see what I'm getting at. If everybody else is busy ignoring what we say, we might as well make up our own worlds. We might find, like Mr Magoo, that we've imagined a better place, and it works out all right. We might even be an inspiration to others, if they ever get around to listening to us.

Writing Right with Dmitri Archive

Dmitri Gheorgheni

04.04.16 Front Page

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