P  R  O  J  E  C  T     N O. 3 

paintings & procrastinations

ENTRY 24

This is a pile of life. 

Fifteen years of life. 

A pile that is heavier than it looks.

My journals. Books that hold me in their pages. They are my best friends. Guardians of my thoughts. They always listen.

After reading "The Artist's Way," I started journaling in an attempt to connect with my creative self. 

I feel safe in their lined pages. I dream. I weep. I worry. 

I return day after day to the one place that is free from judgement. 

I am accepted. I am heard.

I write when I feel moved to do so. Not every day, but often. Entries evolve into poems. Sketches blossom into paintings. Thoughts grow up to be essays. 

I started sharing these essays with my husband. Mostly, I would read them out loud to myself. I woke to a new beauty — the spoken word.

I wanted to share my stories, but who would treasure them the way my journals did? There they were safely tucked away.

I grew restless. I wanted more. I began submitting essays for publication and one took root. My essay "Finding Home" appears on page 137 of Bella Grace magazine. Now my thoughts are held in their pages. Pages held in the hands of people I have never met.

My inner self is out, and yet — somehow — I still feel safe.

***YOU ARE INVITED to return to my blog this Wednesday, August 27th, for my first BLOG HOP. Bella Grace magazine has invited me to participate in a blog hop. I will be sharing an essay based on their theme, "Life is a beautiful adventure." Anyone who comments on my blog that day will be entered to win a free issue of Bella Grace. In addition, I will post links to the blogs of other authors who have contributed to their magazine. It will be a fun way to hop from blog to blog!