Tag Archives: Spiritual Journaling

During Such Times, What Matters?

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Many of my writerly friends and students have contacted me recently discouraged and confused. What does any of “this” matter?, they ask. “Who cares what I write about?” Besides, they claim, “my story is not unique.” Let me respond first with a personal story. I found myself looking in the mirror lately with dismay. I see an old woman.  At the core of me I know a truth: that I am aging, and that I am doing a fine job of it. With the awareness that all judgment involves projection I looked around me. What do I see when I look at others? Do … Continue reading →

The Survival of Art and The Tailor from Aleppo by guest blogger Caroline Oldershaw

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Despite the fact that a current candidate for President of the United States asked “what’s Aleppo?” when asked about his Middle East policies – I will assume that most of us know – if nothing else – that Syrian people are leaving their homeland to escape violence, destruction, privation, and death. According to the Migration Policy Centre, “an estimated 11 million Syrians have fled their homes since the outbreak of the civil war in March 2011. Now, in the sixth year of war, 13.5 million are in need of humanitarian assistance within the country. Among those escaping the conflict, the … Continue reading →

The Magic of Morning Pages by Susan Eaton Mendenhall

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First thing in the morning. Three pages in long hand. Everyday. These are the basic guidelines of a writing practice called Morning Pages developed by Julia Cameron. Years ago I discovered Julia through her book, The Artist’s Way. I felt stuck in my life and her process of writing to break through creative blocks renewed me with hope. Perhaps this practice could give me direction. Morning Pages are not about being brilliant or artful or even making sense. It’s just putting words on paper as they come into consciousness. Julia Cameron makes a case that writing in long hand slows … Continue reading →

After The Final No

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After the final no there comes a yes And on that yes the future world depends.                          – Wallace Stevens I led my first book, Hidden Victims Hidden Healers with this verse from Wallace Stevens.  I chose it to remind myself, and the reader, that there is a yes there, somewhere. You know as well as me, life is full of various versions of “NO:” rejections, pit falls, mistakes, losses, disappointments, misses, and more rejections. With the above book it took three years to find a publisher and I could have wallpapered my … Continue reading →

Getting Into It

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I was a cat person, until I married Bill, who came with two dogs. Now I am a dog person. Soon after Lydia was born, and both Bill’s dogs had died (and my cat companion, Targhee), we decided to get another dog. (What child doesn’t want a dog?) Still not a full blown dog person, I had several rules: Dogs stay in the kennel or outside.  (I soon relinquished that rule and our dog Zafu lived in the house.) Dogs stay off the furniture.  (Well, our now blind dog Cookie has a favorite chair.) Dogs never, ever, ever sleep on the … Continue reading →

The Writer Friendly Life

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At last weeks Writers’ Institute I gave a short talk on how to be disciplined and inspired as a writer. I began my talk on how to make our life “writer friendly.” Really the entire thirty-minute talk got down to how we do this, –– how we can actually fulfill our writing dreams and intentions. Making our life writer friendly is the simplest part of the writer’s life. I said simple, not easy. So whose life is writer friendly? Yours. Mine. Every writers. The simplest way to have your life be one where you write is to write within the context … Continue reading →

Dear Writer, Here’s My Story

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Dear Writer, I hope sharing some of my personal story helps you.  The first several years of our writing (for most of us, and for me it was my first decade of writing) — we fall in love with subjects we want to write about. We are compelled to get it down on paper and then we fall in love with our words and stories… we see before us our life and ideas on the page. We have made a new world!!  Our love is intense, driven, …passionate, lusty, like all young love. It is also blind. Our beginnings are always romantic, intense, meaningful, … Continue reading →

Opportunities and Gatherings

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Dear Writers, Today’s blog is an invitation to join me in any of these upcoming offerings: September’s FREE Writing Retreat is Friday September 25th!  This is an opportunity to meet up with other poets and writers. http://www.julietallardjohnson.com/calendar/41 I offer these days in remembrance, and as a way to honor the poet and essayist, William Stafford. He appreciated the written word as a way to maintain the integrity of our shared humanity and felt it worthwhile to support other writers and poets. He lived an open life. Please email for directions and to register: julie@julietallardjohnson.com A unique opportunity to VISION THROUGH Breathwork: (Evening of … Continue reading →

A Writer’s Feast

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Dear Writers, Here’s my writerly menu. Join me for some great “meals” for the writer’s soul! Starting on Monday the 15th, I will be at the Write-By-The-Lake for a week. Attendees refer to this retreat as a “week at a writer’s spa.” My class is full but there’s still a chance to learn from some wonderful, fantastic instructors at this event including Kathy Steffen and Laurie Scheer. In June I begin my FREE series: Write Your Story Project. Come and attend three summer seminars on writing, held in the Spring Green area. The first one is Monday evening, June 22nd, from 6 till … Continue reading →

The Possibility of Doubt and Uncertainty

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The Ship’s Captain and the Ogress The ogress warns the captain never even to look, let alone venture, to the south of her island. This admonition arouses his doubt and uncertainty about what he is being told. He becomes curious, so, one day he evades her watchful eyes and steals away to explore. There in the south, he finds the king of horses, Balahaka, who will carry you away across the ocean to safety on the other shore if you hold on to even one hair of his mane. And so the captain escaped from the island on which he had been held prisoner.      … Continue reading →