Post
by sooZen » September 10th, 2015, 8:30 am
My dear Ms. Peri,
This is a letter to inform you that your writing days are not over. You will continue to write as long as you can even IF you 'think' you cannot.
In my experience (67 yrs now and writing since I was old enough to hold a pencil or crayon) I have found periods of time where I felt I could no longer write, sometimes long periods...a year even... No poetry, stories, haiku or even letters home. It really sucked!
This was depressing because I see myself, first and foremost, as a writer. Since grade school I have been told that I had a gift, that my writing was exceptional but I never believed it, not really. I tried to be better at the craft, hone it, edit it and make it as perfect as I thought it could be but there was always that insecurity that it was never "good enough."
As artists (yes, we know our craft is an "art") our egos are fragile things, especially as women I think. And it is difficult when you sit and stare at a page (or a screen) and nothing comes or flows... My solution was acceptance. I gave myself a talk: "Hey, nothings happening here!" "Do something else...!" "Go out in the garden and work or get busy with a chore you have been avoiding."
And I spent an entire year licking my wounds, taking care of a sick son and adjusting to my inabilities to be what I used to be, or do what I used to do. It was a process, necessary and painful, but needed. I lost hope but it found me again, and I started to write my feelings, my hopes, my fears, my everyday mundane happenings down. It kick started this old gal (yes I am, but my heart, mind and spirit are youthful) into gear.
So, Ms. Peri, I know you will write again for you cannot stop anymore than I could. We, you and I, are writers, no doubt about that...and a drought, a blockage, a grief will never stop us.
Sincerely and With Love,
S.E.A. Lee
Freedom's just another word...
http://soozen.livejournal.com/