Hay Is For Horses, Isn't It?

Hay Is For Horses, Isn’t It?

The word ‘hay’ has been in existence since before 12oo, according to my new Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, The Origins of American English Words (clapping hands together with glee!). According to the World Book Encyclopedia, ‘hay may be made up of cultivated grasses such as timothy, bluegrass, and redtop.’ World Book goes on to say that hay can also ‘be made from some of the wild, or prairie, grasses, Alfalfa, clover, velvet beans, rye, barley, and oats’. And, this ‘dried-plant food dates almost as far back as the taming of the horse’.

I’m a southern girl at heart, Texas born and bred, though I’ve lived all over the world. But lately, after spending many Sundays driving up to Tennessee to visit my father-in-law, who’d had surgery, I found myself taking note of the many hay bales dotting the countryside. Round monoliths weighing nigh to 1 ½ tons (actually 1.4 metric tons), the shapely/earthly sculptures caught my fancy. Soon I found myself wondering what it was about hay bales that intrigued me. Was it a reminder of the past glories of harvest time? A nod to simpler days when men were men and women outwitted them? (As an historical writer, I particularly love that one! )

Apparently, my fascination goes deeper. You see, when I look at a large round hay bale, I see a design that flows toward its center, swirling/curling to the focal point, the inner sanctum which can make or break a farmer’s harvest.

The round sculptured hay bale! Like a delicious chocolate dessert with a gooey chocolaty center pouring out onto a plate, I had an epiphany. You guessed it. Hay is a metaphor for writing. Indeed, my friends! When hay is baled wet and too soon, it spoils. Hay sweats. Therefore it becomes toxic when heated in a barn, a lethal weapon of destruction certain to destroy that which houses it.

Writing is like that for me. My stories need to cure in my mind, like hay needs to dry in the field. If I bale my harvest too soon and don’t give my ideas time to percolate, my characters, my plot ferment and mold, becoming unrecognizable, forcing me to rewrite again and again. If I follow through with preparation, allowing my ideas and plot to air/formulate, I prevent the ensuing motivation and conflict’s incineration. Further, if I keep, what I like to call, a character/plot book in which I can jot down character traits, names of the cast, backstory and important plot points, I house my story in a safe and adequate house.

If you bale it, horses will come. Okay, that sounds silly, but isn’t it true? Now, imagine that scenario with your writing. If you write from your center, agents and editors will love it. Readers will buy it. They will come to your house (the bookstore) and put down hard-earned money to own a piece of your harvest, which you as a writer have researched, prepared and stored properly for such an event. From the heart of a hay bale or a book, the reward is tangible. It all comes down to what’s inside.

Today, my wish for you is to think about your center. If you’re a writer, are you nurturing what inspires the muse, filling your well with positive influences and welcome praise for the smallest of everyday accomplishments as you achieve your writing goals? If you’re a reader, what books fill your well and what is it at the heart of a story that ignites your interest, be it historical or contemporary?

Katherine