issue thirteen
for you and for me: a breather
Hello friends. It’s basically mid-November, and I am drowning in essays and Taylor Swift playing on my dorm hall. It’s a hectic time on campus, online, and in my brain, so this week I thought we could chill out for a bit.Â
I’ve been diving headfirst into so much critical nonfiction writing recently (for this newsletter or otherwise) that I kind of forget what personal essays taste like and what they feel like to read. Or poetry, which as I told you all previously, I’m getting back into! Both of these things are ones I am trying to savor, like good lemonade or Shake Shack. Gosh, I really miss my West Loop Shake Shack. Anyway, I have few moments to myself inside my brain that are full of decadent tranquility, or sometimes a good kind of stress. Most of these are when I’m writing poetry or some odd form of journaling, which I’ve also found escapes me when I get too busy.
The ability to get into a writing flow makes me feel like I’m 12 again, which is good on most days and bad on some. Observing the possibilities that creative thinking affords me is a magical thing, and I’ve been trying to carve space out for it as much as possible recently. With that new vibe in mind, I wanted to share some of the journal and poetry prompts I’ve received in class or otherwise (none are of my own mind) that have pushed me in the right direction and also drop-kicked me off the deep end. See below.
Where do you hold your pain?
What can hold your pain?
Where do you hold your silence/shame/fear/isolation? Physically, mentally, logistically?
What poem inside of you is burning to be written? Or begging to be written? Or both?
What is a memory you will remember until you’re 64?
Describe yourself at 8. 2. 13. 80.
What color is your soul right now?
If history could speak to you, what would it say?
When you look up, what do you see?
These are just a few of the words that have challenged me and encouraged me, for better or for worse. If you need me, I’ll be diving back into myself searching for the answers to some of these questions with gentleness and patience. Set down a bit of the hurt for another day and join me! Until next week, I love you. Be safe and be well.
be easy with yourself during these winter months!!