Tzatziki sauce on fries with cheese and grilled meat filled my taste buds. Lyrical words reached my ears. A poem delivered while a painter and musicians performed in the background.
I sat with Anna and her youngest daughter at the Unbound Poetry event one weekend. I felt uplifted.
We both attended an impromptu poetry workshop with Jude Neale. Together we wrote poems as partners, taking turns writing one stanza back and forth. Anna’s youngest daughter on her lap cooed and reached for our pens. We took turns reading our poems out loud and enjoyed the beauty that came.
Writing is a way for me to grow in mental wellness. Feeding my artist’s spirit with new forms of poetry helps me to understand myself more. It is a creative expression that fills my happiness bucket.
I need to do things to improve my mood like reading poetry or writing an essay to stay well. It not only helps my mental health, but it also gives my emotional health a boost.
Creating art, whether it be a doodle in a sketchbook or a little bit of writing, feeds my artist’s spirit. God has gifted us with the ability to create. We can add a new recipe or innovate a way to have more efficiency in an office.
Every one of us has talents and skills we can put to good use.
It was a pleasure to find out that the Bowen Island poet also has bipolar disorder and is thriving. Jude was an opera singer which you can tell by the timber of her smooth voice when she recites her poems. She used to teach writing to Grade 3 students as well has written many books.
She is a creative woman who has struggled with her mental health. And who finds delight in life even amidst periods of darkness. I am grateful to have met and learned from her, seeing life through a poet’s eyes.
Her impromptu class gave me the permission to write poems the way I liked. I often feel inadequate to write poetry. I stretched myself by giving it a try with the encouragement of a published poet.
On the inside cover of Jude’s poetry collection, she wrote to me, “To the beauty within you! Love, Jude.”
With a hug and a smile, she left me with a desire to write more poems.
I looked around the room of artists to find Anna and found her chatting with another guest.
It’s so good to be here!
I tucked my new book of poems into my bag and left Anna surrounded by books, poets, and inspiration. I started my trip back home.
Anne Lamott, author of Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life, says, “Writing and reading decrease our sense of isolation. They deepen and widen our sense of life: they feed the soul. When writers make us shake our heads with the exactness of their prose and their truths, and even make us laugh about ourselves or life, our buoyancy is restored.”
Illustrator and podcaster Andy J. Pizza has a few creative must-haves. The first thing you need is people – mentors and peers to help you along your way. You need to practise – have the habit of creative work. And you need a product – develop a product to have in the world. (Episode 401 -The Creative Journey Survival Guide: The 3 Must Have Essentials, Mar. 1, 2023)
I am blessed with a writer’s community of like-minded women who encourage and inspire me in my writing. We keep in touch on an app and schedule time to work on our writing together over Zoom. Without their motivation my writing practice would suffer. I would not find as many amazing opportunities to attend.
My resilience muscle strengthens while I write. It bends and moves as I share my stories of overcoming mental health challenges. Fear leaves the party as I pen my thoughts and feelings.
When discouraged, we can find encouragement in Rev 21:5, “And he who sat upon the throne said, ‘Behold, I make all things new.’ Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.’”
I hope I never lose the spark to write. As long as I’m breathing I’ll be making notes, producing stories, and forming poems. There is hope in the Lord who makes all things new!
Lisa Rumpel’s podcast, The Will to Thrive: Stories of Resilience, is available on popular streaming services.