My March Manifesto

Announcing the arrival of spring, the sun, bright and warm, shines as if everything is as always. And in my living room it is - the same sofa, the same coffee table, the same glass tea cup filled with nettle-raspberry fusion, the same pair of reading glasses, the same laptop and the same blog as always. Yet, not so far, imaginably close, people fight for their country, flee their homes, say good-bye to the loved ones and are cut off from the ordinary life. Cut from life.

Carrying the images of the sad war scenes from the morning news in my head and delivering a grocery bag filled with shampoo bottles, toothpaste packs, bars of soap, toothbrushes, and baby wipes to school for Red Cross, the craziness of the violent destruction clashes with my mundane life, and the ordinary becomes precious. I am deeply grateful for waking up in my own bed, the morning shower, the water boiling in the kettle, the piece of bread and the slices of cucumber. 

I question my decision to join the writing challenge. Perhaps writing my slices is too trivial. No. From the past two years, when the pandemic threw us into unknown and uneasy, it was the writing that helped to stay in the present, not to drown in the worry, keep the sanity and build resilience. Writing is sense making. Maybe something I write will be exactly what someone needs to read and hear. I will write. 

Now a mild panic strikes. I am not prepared at all for the challenge. I quickly flip through Julia Cameron's "The Artist's Way" and "The Right to Write", look at the tasks she provides, jot down some ideas in my journal, and then shake my head. The last minute writing doesn't prepare me for anything. I am like a child grabbing random things and stuffing them in a bag before a trip. Nevertheless the bizarre list calms me. I hope it will be like a band aid to cover the scratches when I fall and scrape my knees, or like a pack of nuts in chocolate that give me a sweet boost when I am low in energy, or like a little seaside pebble painted as a ladybug that carries memories and I can write more than once about. 

If I don't use any of the ideas from my list, this is ok too. 

For now, I will have a bold start and write My March Manifesto (it sounds so much grander than agreement, promise or affirmations, and I need grand today). 

My March Manifesto

I show up and write daily, whether it's one line or several paragraphs.

I approach the days with open eyes, mind and heart.

I trust that the words will come.

When I feel stuck, I write anyway.

I shush the critic and show self-compassion.

I let go of the self-imposed expectations and the need of approval. 

Only I can write the slices that I write.

I believe my words and stories matter.

I will create light, colour and kindness with my words.

I am who I am, beautiful in my imperfection.

I value process over the product and joy of writing over perfection.

My stories are part of a bigger story.

I celebrate my slices and the stories of my fellow slicers.

 

 #standwithUkraine #stopthewar