Pencil to pen to pencil again

It just took me 10 minutes to locate a pen.Then I realized, things have come full-circle from when I was a child, because the writing instrument of choice these days is a pencil.

In elementary school I only used pencils (well,crayonstoo). I don’t think I ever wrote with pen because I was always having to erase. Sure, they came out with the 'eraseable pen' but it always left a mark on the paper.

I remember in High School when I really ditched pencils and used pens exclusively. I also remember having to buy highlighterswhich made me feel so mature. Not only was I going to be writing permanent things, I was going to mark things in very bright colors!

Since I never actually learned to type in typing class (sorry Mr.s Van D.A.) I used to have my dad’s secretary (ie: my mom) type anything that was longer than 2 pages. Yes, I was that kid. But then I got to college and I remember thinking how adult was of me to be typing up my own papers using (and this will date me) a word processor!

Enter the working years, and two very key things: a computer, and a Staples catalog. Oh the Joy! I would spend hours pouring through the pages of that catalog making a list of all pens I wanted to experiment with: Uniball, thin point, thick point, refillable, Sharpie, dry-erase – pens of all different colors, shapes and sizes. Pencils were the farthest things from my mind.

Then I had children.


These children learned to write. These children also started collecting pencils. I am now swimming in pencils. We have pencils from birthday parties, schools, pencils given out at fairs, the bank, the shoe store, the firehouse. We have pencils with hearts, with stripes, with jack-o-lanterns, with Christmas trees and snowmen, pencils with bouncy things at the top, mechanical pencils, really thick pencils, and colored pencils.

I did not realize until now that I appreciate the flexibility you get with pencils. The fairy you drew for your kid isn’t up to par? Erase it! There isn’t enough room on the calendar to fit the Girls Night Out you’ve scheduled? Erase everything on that date and fit it in!

Plus, pencils often offer a darker, thicker line than many pens. Pencils are usually free. And, unlike their tainted counterparts, pencils never run out of ink.

Janine