I'm all about the numbers!

One thing about me is that I am a big numbers person. I’m not fanatical about numerology and I actually suck at math, but I am interested in numbers. (And I MAY suck at math, but I still try to do math in my head!) Maybe it’s because my birthday is 5/25 (I once told someone that and he said, “Five squared is twenty-five”). I definitely pay attention to number patterns and even use them in my writing from time to time. In fact, there is a secret number pattern in my poetry book, Touched by Fire. As a kid, I was crazy about codes. Cracking codes, especially number codes, was a hobby of mine. And I actually find the number patterns and codes hidden in the Bible to be quite fascinating.

Numbers have been known to show up in my life a lot. For a while, after we moved into this house, I kept seeing the number “13” everywhere (even on a nearby street!). After 9/11, I’d often look at the time to see that it was exactly “9:11” and it would make me shudder. The number “11” itself also popped up a lot. (I once lived on West 11th!)

On a personal level, I have certain favorite numbers. The number “3” has been one of my favorite numbers for a long time. I don’t know why. I’ve just always liked the number 3. And I’ve tried to incorporate “3” into my life somehow, either by reading 3 books at a time, working on 3 books at a time or even by being on the computer at 3 different times during the day.

But I have noticed recently that the number “2” is popping up quite a lot. It’s starting to become a pattern for me. I try something and fail, then I try again and succeed. It’s like I have to try to do something twice in order to get it right. I failed the first time I tried to self-publish a book, and I succeeded the second time I gave it another go. I failed at this one writing gig that I had, then when I tried my hand at it a second time, not only did I succeed but I made 100 times more than what I originally made the first time. I failed as an editor for one book, then succeeded the next time I tried editing another writer’s book. (This is what made me decide to return to editing.)

And there’s other things, too. I have 2 kids. I have 2 jobs. I have a husband that I married two times. (I kinda wonder if, following that, we’ll end up being divorced twice!)

You know, the number 2 is really prominent right now. And it’s a number that is growing on me. I still like the number 3, but I am starting to like the number 2, as well.

I hope the number 2 will continue to work for me. I once failed when I ran a race so I am going to run a race again and I hope this time, this second time, I will succeed. I have to rewrite a book that was submitted to my publisher, and I hope this second time I submit it, this one will work better. 

This numbers thing may not be so much of a big deal to most people, but for me, it’s something that has actually played quite a role in my life. I have always been interested in numbers and have paid attention to the patterns. I don’t like the thought of my life, my future, my habits being at the mercy of some kind of bizarre number pattern, but I have definitely noticed how the numbers have affected me and the things that happen in my life in a very big way. 


Update: OMG! This blog post was posted on 3/29 and at 9:23. 9:23 backwards is 3:29! See!!