why write?

Corrine Colarusso, a painter from Georgia, has this to say about her muse: "...what brings us to the studio every day - that mark, that surface, that color, that film of glaze, images formed, infinite possibilities unremediated and powerful."
I so get it. For me, it's words with precise meaning, nuances, inflections, the juxtaposition of syllables, the lure of a fine-turned phrase, the possibility of making marks that make sense to myself and others. I enjoy writing, even more so now that I don't have to do so. In college, I even enjoyed writing, but felt rather limited, as the professors weren't interested in random topics. Actually, I'd wager they would have preferred some randomness, rather than the same topic expressed through forty different pens.
Today, at work in a hardwood flooring store, just in casual conversation, I heard myself utter "auspices" and was amazed when it came through my lips. That is a word with a very precise meaning and I was talking on the phone with my Charleston bird at the time. He took it in stride; I was the one who noted what I had said and was surprised by it. Now that I think about that, it WAS rather nice that he took it as such a natural utterance. Yes, I do like that about him.
As I was saying, though, I am inspired to write because of things I hear, things I see, things I taste or touch or sense. Writing about these things makes them more real, gives them context in my world, helps me find my place in the universe. All artists create - not just paintings or poetry or songs, but a new piece of the world we all live in, a bridge between our personal space and that inhabited by all. I like to think that I'm helping to do that, too, for myself and perhaps, in some small measure, for others.