The writer we all are
I am currently indulging in all the yummy coffee this morning (and of course water too:) coming fresh off of co-facilitating the Annual By Women For Women Retreat at the amazing spiritual center: The Christine Center in Willard, WI. (PS: I have a juicy retreat happening there in July). This is my 4th consecutive year being asked to bring my presence and gifts to be included alongside the other truly gifted facilitators. This year we welcomed the very talented Sarah Perry who is quite the accomplished writer. I especially was looking forward to her session because I myself love to write and think often of again publishing.
You see, I was reminded over the weekend that I actually am a published author! When I was in junior high one of my teachers asked if I wanted to submit for a book that would be created along with hundreds of other authors and mine did indeed get picked! Can I tell you where that book is? Nope. Can I tell you what the name of the poem was? Nope. Can I tell you what the poem was about? Nope! What I do know is that I AM a published author:)
What I love is how Sarah presented the prompts for her session. She read us a short poem or writing and we then took what we wanted from it and wrote for a set amount time. Then she had everyone get courageous and share (which is also one of my favorite things about her) and EVERYONE SHARED. She asked the women to share, she didn’t make them and not one of them said no I would rather not. Were some of them panicking inside when they heard the ask for them to read out loud, you bet and still they leaned into their courage and shared.
As the women began to share, it was so very interesting how everyone’s was so unique and different from the next. Some took a sentence from the writing that was shared and created something from that. Some took a simple word and created about that. Some others simply wrote about the anxiety they were feeling having to even try to put pen to paper. It was all brilliantly orchestrated!
What I so appreciated about this exercise, it was a great reminder to us all how very unique we all are and how each of our perspectives is so unique and individual to every single one of us. Even how I perceived this exercise to go, what I created was different than what the others wrote and will share that at the end.
The Gift in this….we can be different and still appreciate one another because that is exactly what happened in that room. There wasn’t anyone in that room that said “you took how the exercise was supposed to go and did it wrong” or “you are wrong”. None of that happened.
Although we had a different way of taking on this writing exercise, we all were writers. Why? Because we wrote.We shared, we listened with compassionate hearts, we saw people raw stripped down, being human, no judgements.
My question for you: How could you incorporate that into your life? How could you bring more compassion and love in who you be, in your presence, remembering deep down each one of us truly desires to be loved. In a world filled with unique individuals, our common thread is a desire to be loved.
And if you bring love to the table more often than resentment, anger, fear then I wonder could be possible for us…..the ripple effects we could each create.
I am going to share one of my free writings I created during the writing session with Sarah.
How I wrote about each prompt was, I took it in and then just let words pour out, whatever felt like it wanted to be written, I just let it.
So here you go, enjoy.
Love the greatest gift you can give to yourself.
To be your own best friend-this is the true reward, this is success, this is the end game.
To love oneself; jaw clenching, is to breathe deep, to soften, to cry tears of joy, knowing, right here with you in your heart, is where home is.
Look no further, You are it, You are the person you have been seeking.
Every day celebrate, rejoice, lavish her for she is the diamond in the ruff….
The sparkle in your own eye is You!
Rejoice! Celebrate! Rinse! Lather! Repeat!
by Theresa Falvey-Hunt