We all take many journeys in life - some good, some bad but almost all are educational. We learn about our selves through the events that take place and how we handle them. Many times I have wished I would have handled things better but even that was a step forward as I became aware. A friend of mine has started on a frightening journey. One against a silent killer - ovarian cancer. She is brave and courageous and I admire her spirit. Another friend is nursing an aging father whose health is precarious and requires daily assistance. Still others face the uncertainty of retirement. My younger friends face the challenge of growing up in the age of instant media. Gone are the days of blissful ignorance and innocence. They know too much too soon. When faced with difficult journeys, I always recommend that my friends journal. There is something therapeutic about getting it down on paper and out of our internal organs. I have journaled for years and some of it landed in my first novel, Threads - the story of a woman's journey to her true self. I chose only those journeys that were universal, ones that most of us travel - the pains of an awkward childhood, the metamorphosis into adulthood, loss, love, divorce and the growth of the soul.
I would love to hear from readers about their sweetest and toughest journeys. How did your cope? Did you journal and did it help? Who helped you most on your journey? What did you learn?
All journeys lead somewhere - where are you now and how did you get there? The road behind is as important as the road ahead.
1 comment:
This topic about life journeys is a good one. There is no way, of course, I could go into detail about all the people and circumstances that have helped or hindered me along the way. But I will say that two things have been extremely helpful and useful: books and random acts of kindness. I've been addicted to books my entire life and I've always found inspiration, answers, ideas, and thought-provoking words in them. They have helped me through, like old friends, during many a difficult span. It is sad to me that so many people do not include books in their lives--the polls are appalling. Aside from what can be found there to make your life and your understandings of it better, there is the sheer magic of its storytelling, entertainment powers. The second thing I've mentioned, random acts of kindness, has also been very important to me. On days when life seems tough, a smile or kind word, an unrequested kindness or service, can make all the difference and life me back into the optimism I generally feel about life. Thanks for writing on this topic-- Rosemary Carstens
http://carstensFEAST.blogspot.com
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