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If you look at the photo of this very old Beech tree, you’ll see that there are messages carved into its bark. We seem to need to leave a mark, proving that we were here, alive in this world. “These are my initials and this is who I loved at that moment in time.” In a way these marks are stories. Imagine young lovers returning to this tree 20 years later as husband and wife. The tree shows them where their story began and draws out the memories of an earlier time. I’m not saying that carving one’s initials into a tree is a good thing to do. Because the tree’s skin has been cut, it becomes vulnerable to all matter of diseases and ailments, just like an open cut on a human body can lead to a number of serious infections. I’d rather see people leave their mark in written stories to share with friends, family and the rest of the world.
That said, I’d like to share posts from blogs that speak to me and give me comfort. I keep returning to them, inspired by the words and the vulnerability the writers have allowed themselves. When we write and publish words for public consumption, we place ourselves on a world stage with nothing to hide our most private parts. But it’s not about T and A. It is about the story we’ve kept hidden, then suddenly release like a flock of doves, to share with those who choose to stop and read for just a moment. We might feel that what we have to say isn’t anything others will be interested in. But we also know that once the words have been read, someone who reads them might feel they are not alone. It is about letting ourselves stand tall and to speak of who we are, sharing experiences in this one wildly beautiful, terribly painful life.
If you choose, do check these out:
My dear friend Susan Preston, of Visual-Voice, takes amazing photographs that always seem to mirror the big questions she continues to ask of herself, as she moves through her days in New Mexico.
At The Direction of Intention, David Robinson, artist, thespian and life coach, shares this story of compassion and right action.
Shirley Hershey Showalter, of 100 Memoirs, writes of a major life change and the acceptance she brings to it.
And last but not least, on my husband’s blog, View in the Dark, Bill talks about his father and his own aging process.
It seems to me that these folks are leaving their marks so that others might read them and find company on their own journeys. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have.
