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By January Gordon Ornellas

By the time I realized the Virtual Erma Workshop would be starting at 3 p.m., I had already committed to babysitting my 2-month-old granddaughter, Holland.

(Note to self: You do not live in the Eastern Time Zone. Plan accordingly.)

Sure, I could watch it later, but this was my first conference and I wanted to watch it LIVE.

“Holland,” I said to my granddaughter. “Do you think you can be quiet for three straight hours?”

She cooed.

It was a non-committal coo, at best.

I needed to sublet this baby, and fast.

Fortunately, my parents were available. 

They arrived just in time for the Mike and Peggy Rowe interview.

I handed Holland to my dad, who took a seat next to me on the couch.

“Who are they?” my dad asked, pointing to the screen.

“Just watch.”

So, we watched.

Except for Holland, who slept.

Who sleeps through Mike and Peggy Rowe? 

About halfway through the interview, Holland woke up. My dad passed her to my mom.

“Get the good parts closer together,” Peggy Rowe said, paraphrasing her granddaughter.

My dad smiled.

My dad has been giving me writing advice since I was a kid.

On lazy summer days when all I wanted to do was slather myself in baby oil and lay in the sun, he would hand me one of his yellow legal pads, a writing prompt at the top. “You need to be writing. You’re a writer.”

My mom would add, “You’re going to regret spending so much time in the sun.”

They were both right.

Over the years, my dad never stopped pushing me. “Is your character wrestling with enough obstacles? Where’s your hook? Yes, you need to rewrite.”

At 85, my dad still writes every day.

Mike Rowe read his mother’s hysterical story, “Old Blue.” My dad and I leaned in, not wanting to miss a word.

Sadly, we did miss a few words because my mom had given Holland only three ounces of milk and she was screaming bloody murder.

Can you blame her?

Nobody likes a small pour.

Fortunately, Holland got a refill and her contented guzzling became merely background noise.

Something tells me we weren’t the only household with contented guzzling.

When the Rowes concluded their talk, my dad turned to me.

“Wow,” he said.

I smiled.

Watching a family share their writing journey with the person who has inspired mine... 

Doesn’t get much better than that.

— January Gordon Ornellas

January Gordon Ornellas is a comedy writer whose stories include everything from colonoscopies to triathlons (equally torturous). Her article, “Rookie’s Triathlon Lessons,” appeared in the LA Times (June 2019). Two of her other stories, “Gobble, Gobble” and “Almost Taken,” were recently published in Chicken Soup for the Soul: Laughter is the Best Medicine (April 2020). She is currently working on a book, My Nest Runneth Over. January also enjoys writing for her blog (midlifebloomer.com), traveling and spending time with her husband and two adult daughters.