Making Time and Creating Chapters

I had an opportunity to participate in a Q&A at Beth Godbee’s Heart-Head-Hands blog. I so enjoy and appreciate collaborating with Beth through offering writing groups and workshops. We share many similar commitments to justice, writing, and education. We’re also excitedly planning more workshops and one-day retreats as part of our Pathways Through Burnout offering.

When Beth offered me five questions for the Q&A, I initially thought I’d be able to read and respond in a few days. Well, that turned into a few months. I spent the summer with these questions. In part because of the demands of caregiving and how that impacts my writing time; however, I also knew I wanted to honor the questions as a moment to pause, reflect, and set intentions for myself.

There are moments of reflection that are often built into our careers: annual reviews, going up for a promotion, applying for a new position. While we must reflect, these processes and forms rarely afford us the time to holistically review where we’ve been and where we’d like to go.

The tricky thing (for me) about reflecting is to do so in a way that doesn’t end with me thinking about all the things I lack or have yet to achieve. Don’t get me wrong, those thoughts are there, but I’m learning to purposely push back against those feelings. I want to think of this as a season of looking back to look forward to new chapters. I’m still working on offering myself both grace and space to reflect, feel a range of emotions, and ponder the what-ifs. The difference now is that this feels like a step in the process, not the final outcome of the reflection.

I truly appreciated the questions Beth offered. Each felt like an opportunity to tell stories, which I love to do. I enjoyed how one story led to another and how this process of writing also reminded me of the many commitments I hope to continue to honor: striving for social justice, working alongside writers, and continuing to ask questions and write about the ways we learn to be in community with one another.

I shared with Beth that my responses feel like I’m setting new intentions for myself, but the more I think about it, the more I can see that the seeds for these intentions have long been with me. Whether working with museum collections, exploring the connections between fandom and transcultural learning, or thinking about my grandmother’s stories, I am celebrating this as a period of renewal and recommitment to myself, my writing, and my communities.

I hope you’ll read the full blog post. I also hope that for anyone thinking about new chapters, pivots, and possibilities, this might be an invitation for you to consider what matters to you, whether it be music, museums, travel, or time with those you care about. May you find the space to reflect and connect with what brings you joy.