I’m a bit of a reluctant collector of journals. They always seem like such a great idea. I have PILES of them. Seriously. Piles. Now, thanks to the world of Google Drive, I have more documents than I can count, with ideas and stories and lists just waiting for me to return to. There’s something about writing that has always been a release for me - weaving the words together to tell a story or set a course that may allow me to sit down and be quieter is attractive. Having a voice has never been a problem for me. Focusing in on what that voice needs to be used for, on the other hand, is not always as easy.
There is an abundance of blank pages, waiting to be written on, if people are willing to put forth the courage to memorialize the process. As I page through those journals, perhaps the best part is the percolating. The ideas that start somewhere, and grow, and bring the idea somewhere else completely, fill up the blank pages and eventually become something of value.
From “For She Who Leads: Practical Wisdom from a Woman Who Serves”:
Finding your voice, and listening to that voice. Sometimes as women, we feel like we can’t speak up or out. Sometimes it’s because we fear being too much, or not ________________enough. Push through those fears in this moment and write down five words that describe the voice that is yours: Who is she, and what is she saying?
What matters most. When we don’t know who we are, and pick our own voices, it gets really hard to figure out what steps we need to take. We get wrapped around the axle of all the shoulds, clouds, and woulds. It takes courage to give yourself permission to use that voice..
(p17)
The good news, not everything written needs to be published and shared. Some things are just for you, or just for me. There’s a power that grows from figuring out what matters most for yourself, and leaning in to those pieces.
As “For She Who Grieves” kicks off in the development phase, brave and strong women are writing on those blank pages and journeying from grief to hope for themselves and each other. The blank pages matter. Well, actually, everything matters.
