The Art Of Rediscovery
I'm on a mission to find myself. You see, if you spend a lot of years trying to be one thing, you may lose a lot of other things. I've been a mom for a decade, and for a while, mothering was all I poured myself into doing. I don't claim the time was wasted, but I don't pretend it wasn't a season of loss for me in some ways, too. So, I am exploring the art of rediscovery. I am searching out creative ways to reclaim identity in the midst of the demands of this right now life. Oh, and lately, I am guest posting all over the place! (It's related. I like to write; I like to share.) Today, I'm talking about quilts and poetry. What a curiosity! Head on over to Cara's place to read my latest story!
“...The nine years following my fling with quilting have been consumed with parenting. For a while, I had no time for myself, and in consequence felt like I had lost my identity. I was feeling disconnected from past and purpose, and I was anxious about the future: was there space for me and my dreams? One Saturday, I was having a particularly desperate moment where it seemed like a good idea to hide from my family inside the hall closet. It’s a walk-in, and not the least bit soundproof. But it still felt like stepping away from the stress.
I decided to pull out a box of keepsakes in an attempt to regain that feeling of personal identity carried in my memories. As I fingered the jagged edges and scraps of ephemera from my past, I felt more at peace with my present. I found an old newsletter in which my words were published for the very first time as a cover article. I had forgotten all about it. I read through and saw the girl I used to be held in tension with the growth I had experienced since that time. I highlighted words that were especially meaningful to me; words that reminded me how much I mattered regardless of where I ended up in life...”