A promise to keep

Before my father died, I promised him that I would "write an article, that on completion would be submitted to a magazine about (my) mothers hobby". That was almost exactly how he phrased it. While I may have a biased opinion, my mother, while not perhaps artisan level, is quite good at her hobby, although she herself would not agree. We are all our own worst critics of course, but a promise is a promise and he was terribly proud of her work.

The only problem is, how to keep the promise while allowing for my mothers sensitives and maintaining her privacy. So, a technical piece, in a field I know little about, with pictures that provide illustrative examples without compromising privacy. Sounds like an exciting challenge.

The problem is, I put it off (I am an expert at procrastination of course) and while I have taken the photographs, and have a few paragraphs in mind, I have in fact only written two sentences. It is not that I am uninterested in writing the article, I love to learn new subjects. Nor is it that I do not have the time, although for the last two years that had been a suitable excuse. My son now goes to bed at a reasonable time and allows me time to write. 

I think that it is in part because it was in fact my first commission, and that there is no one to hold me accountable. Perhaps its also a form of mourning - if I do not finish the article, I will always hear my fathers voice. However, it has been some time now and I hear my fathers voice whenever I need to explain something carefully to my son. The rest of the time, I hear my mothers voice... but it has made me realise that my father will always be there, I just need to look for him. Which means of course, that I had better get on with his commission, after all, I have a promise to keep!