Almost 5,000 Morning Pages. That's the count.

If my math is correct I've written 1,663 days of Morning Pages. Three pages a day means I've filled 4,989 pages in four and a half years. Friday I'll cross the 5,000 page threshold.

Whoop-dee-doo.

Having written that many pages is nice. Since I average 800 words per session I've likely written something like 1.3 million words. That's more than a few. But the only statistic that matters even a little is that I've done 1,663 days in a row. I haven't missed one day.

Even that's not crucial in any universal sense but it matters to me. I have a habit of starting or deciding but then abandoning. I have every intention of staying with things and making good on my promises but then get distracted, bored, or more likely frustrated and let things go. I've been distracted from and bored by some of my Morning Pages sessions. You bet your ass I've gotten frustrated. There was a week when I considered taking an intentional day off to break the streak as Cal Ripken Jr. did. I decided against it, worried worried (rightly so) that I would let the practice go. How long after he broke the streak did Cal Ripken Jr. quit the game?

Even the streak isn't much to brag about any more. It was more impressive at fifty days or one hundred or my first 365 because back then it was still a struggle. I had to overcome all that kept me from developing the habit. I don't have those problems any more and so at 1,663 days, the streak just feels meh because it's just what I do.

This morning I was too tired at 4:40 but got out of bed and into Morning Pages stopping between only to use the bathroom and make a mug of coffee. There was no more question about doing the pages than of going to the bathroom. At this point the coffee is more in doubt than the pages.

This isn't a heroic story. It's the story of a plodder. Years ago a fellow runner described me as a plodder. He tried to apologize for it but I agreed. Plodders don't run fast but they can run far. I'm happy when I become a plodder at anything I'm doing. Running or writing, it's the same to me. Plodders persevere. I've heard that a million words is a good start for most people. As a plodder, I figure it will take me a few million. I don't mind.

Friday, barring some disaster, as I write the last word on my second morning page I'll have filled 5,000 pages. There will be no fireworks, cake, or champagne. There's no need to celebrate. There's just the next page.