Foundation

Without question, Chicago is one of the great cities of our nation and the world. During the nineteenth century, it served is an important connector between the two coasts as well as a major hub for commerce. "My kind of town" indeed. Despite that, in the city's formidable years, it was not without significant problems. In his new book, "How We Got to Now," author Steven Johnson writes of how Chicago lacked a strong foundation. Yes, it was growing and full of energy. At the same time, it did not have an adequate draining or sewage system enabling its residents to contend with human waste in a sanitary and healthy way. The result was that in the mid-nineteenth century dozens of people, adults and children, were dying every day. The lack of a foundation was keeping this metropolis from becoming great.


To combat the problem, engineers put forth an incredible plan that called for literally every building in the city to be raised so that a seamless, well-coordinated drainage/sewage system could be installed. The plan took over 30 years with each building being raised an average of ten feet high. The result was a much healthier city and one with a much stronger foundation. The success story of Chicago proved to be an excellent example to other prospective cities throughout the world. This story also serves as a dramatic reminder of how sustained greatness cannot occur without a firm foundation on which anything can or should be built or improved.


Such an observation applies to writing. No matter how creative one might be or competent in their use of words, if they do not have a firm understanding of and appreciation for the fundamentals of grammar and a good sense of how sentences should be structured, then any hope they may have of being viewed as an engaging and skilled writer will not happen. It is such a foundation that determines one's effectiveness as a writer. This is a hard-and-fast truism. This is also why writers of all levels can and do work so hard at this form of communication.