Why write? Who cares?

I bought a physical dictionary. It slows me down, makes me pause, alerts me to looking beyond the screen and the pathways to understanding laid by a gazillion others on the interweb. Returns me to a deliberate expression of agency as an embodied act of inquiring, rather than the frantic search for something that leads to something else beyond the point of what sent me looking.

I used to have a physical dictionary, many in fact, beloved ones. Then the internet came along. And my attempts to be austere and live with less. But how could I live with less when it comes to words? I could, but life and my vocation would feel impoverished, even though in reality, it would make no difference.

I bring this up because I went looking for the meaning of rhetorical. I think I know, of course, but it’s interesting to see, in relation to the question – why write? A question I ask myself often and look to other writers for their answers.

Rhetorical, from the Oxford dictionary: “asked for effect or to make a statement rather than to obtain an answer.” A half truth as to my why for posing it. There is no definitive answer to the question why in many contexts. It’s mostly relative, contextual and personal.

I write for many reasons, personally and professionally speaking. Primarily, for the stimulating process and the life-affirming practice of finding the sense in things.