Chapter 11 page 72
Wren: Oh, I found some really old drawings I made when I was a kid.
Do you remember our nanny back when we lived in New North City?
Wren’s little sister: You mean Emmie? A bit… I think most of what I remember is from you and Mom and Dad’s stories.
Wren: Fair enough, you were really little then.
Wren’s little sister: I do remember the giant stuffed sheep! Guess that’s why they call ‘em “fuzzy memories”.
Wren: Haha!
[Chapter 11 end]
Author’s notes: Dear all you lovely Now Recharging readers,
It’s with many different emotions that I write to say: with the ending of Chapter 11. Story Time, Now Recharging comes to a close. Thank you so much for your presence and support over the course of Emmie’s adventures! Can you believe it’s been nearly 7 years?
I’ve talked about it in a few places before, so some of you may already know this. Now Recharging started in 2015 as little more than a shot in the dark. I was having a difficult time with both existential/mental health and creative challenges, and at my lowest points felt like little more than a robot going through the motions of being. As a coping mechanism, I turned, as I often do, to imagining and making things. That’s how Emmie came to be. August 5, Emmie’s birthday, is the anniversary of a day when my thoughts came together into the idea of a curious and worried little android.
This little story has since seen me through a lot. It’s brought comfort in difficult times, including deaths of loved ones; supported deep conversations about joy and loss, including how to live and appreciate life more fully; enabled connections with wonderful people; helped me explore and process things and try to carry sometimes overwhelming thoughts and fears with more mindfulness and compassion – both for others, and for myself. The entire experience has been immensely meaningful. From imagining each scene, to learning and slogging through mistakes while making it, to putting the finished pages up and seeing people’s heartfelt and funny responses that warm my heart so much.
Slice-of-life is rather convenient in that you can kind of end them anywhere in a journey. There are many things that never made it in, half-baked ideas and concepts, and some pieces that just don’t seem to fit anymore. And there are lots of things that were not at all what I planned or imagined, but now seem to fit perfectly. I’m not entirely sure I was able to tell the story I originally aimed to tell, but I think I told a story as best as I could in a way that I needed to, so…
…I’d like to say “that’s that”, but I debated back and forth for a long time. To be perfectly honest, I don’t know if this is the end of all Now Recharging stories. I don’t think I’ll ever stop thinking about these characters and this world in some way. Maybe there’ll be revisits! But I have no guarantees on what Future Me will be doing or feeling, so it’s certainly an ending of some sort. Because nothing is forever, and that’s what makes everything special and worth treasuring.
I do anticipate posting intermittent updates for a while, probably little reflections and peeks into the world of making Now Recharging, because I still need to get around to compiling the rest of the chapters into books at some point. Digital for sure; print hopefully. You can subscribe to the RSS feed here, or follow me on social media to stay tuned. I’m on Ko-fi, Pillowfort, Twitter (update: I’m on Mastodon now!), Instagram, Tumblr – I do my best to keep each one updated in some fashion with regards to my creative projects. I know people usually say something like “sign up for my mailing list!” but I’m not terribly fond of managing things like that, hahah. Sorry for my selective blaziness! (busy+laziness)
Ultimately, I’m just grateful to have been able to make Now Recharging, and so very grateful to all my family, friends, and all of you reading it. You all made it possible for this story to be, to make it as far as it has, and to wind up where it is. It’s my greatest wish to be able to contribute in any tiny way to a gentler and kinder world. Every time someone reads Now Recharging and gets something positive out of it, and every time they share it with someone else to enjoy, that dream is fulfilled over and over.
In closing and in celebration, I’d like to give a shoutout to three of my favourite charities. They’ve each had a major impact on my life, and in turn the formation of this story. You may very well have local organizations doing similarly awesome, crucial work.
- Toronto Public Library – Libraries are true wonders. So many library spaces and services programs have brought me invaluable inspiration and magic since my childhood, and continue to offer so much to the community.
- Philip Aziz Centre for Hospice Care and Emily’s House – an amazing palliative care organization in Toronto full of caring people. As I always say – if you ever have the chance to participate in a palliative care workshop, take it! (As I’ve talked about before, my experience in one of their volunteer workshops played a role in the development of Chapter 6 A Part!)
- Plum Village and the Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation – for helping so many people to deepen a practice of mindfulness, and to live as fully as possible.
That’s it for now. I wish you all many lovely things, and that you can find and enjoy them no matter where you are. And as Emmie might say: Byebyeseeyoulater!
♥ Maiji (June 23, 2022)
