writing exercise: threes of things

During September in Brora and November 2019 in Cambridge I piloted a writing-for-wellbeing activity – not in my customary group but as a one-to-one.

The first intrepid woman to entrust herself to this writerly companionship (in Cocoa Skye Cafe, of Brora) turned to me amazed, her eyes bright. After a few rounds of to and fro sharing of what we had written (the sharing not mandatory, yet unexpectedly warmly present, even the “blurts”) she ventured: “I’ve never come across anything like this before!”

The next day she texted me to say that she’d noticed her attitude to a difficult relationship had been surprisingly harmonious later that evening: empathetic and “kindful”.

I’m not promising similar results for you, although I’d not be surprised. (Do let me know)

Exercises like this can allow us to sidle up alongside our feelings, our stories, our fears, and to express them in a safe, caring way.

When shared with Trusted Others, this can shed some of the burden. Or double some of the joy

Make sure that you negotiate ground rules first, if you are going to share: agree self-and-others’ confidentiality; compassion, no comments (other than a smile and a whispered “welcome”); no judging; no interruption. And neither are you to share more than what you have written on the page! Not a word more!

That way, you will both/each be protected from over-sharing. The pencil is the midwife, the page is the safe nursery.

If you would like to use this exercise alone, please do, remembering these “running rules” for playful writing-for-wellbeing:

• Keep the pencil moving;
• No editing nor crossing out as you write;
• Just let yourself go; lose control
• Feel free to write rubbish – it may reveal unexpected treasure;
• Be specific, eg coffee- and-walnut  rather than “cake”; “gingko”,  more exotic than “tree”;
• Go for the jugular! Let rip! (And notice how your body feels after a particularly “ripping yarn”, bodices or otherwise.);
• Practise being your own best friend.

If you want to share it in a group, please also credit my work and my copyright. Be Kind and Show Respect to your companions. Please support my work and training by gifting a donation via Paypal. Or plant trees in my grove at the Trees for Life rewilding project at Dundrennan in Scotland.

And either way, I’d love you to share how you got on with your own playful wisdom. You can contact me with a sharing (or three), which I won’t publish, nor identify, without your express permission. Or leave a public comment.

Here goes, with my love, and with my appreciative acknowledgment of two of my teachers: Natalie Goldberg and Manjusvara.