Anna-Serena Lalli
Write what you know
Above is a photo of me at the Louvre. Last May (2023), I had the privilege of going on a Canadian battlefield tour with other students from across Canada. We had the opportunity to visit the battlefields of Europe and the cemeteries of fallen soldiers and also visited one of the many trauma sites. Throughout the trip, I had some days where I just absorbed: I saw, and I heard.
On other days, I felt this strong pull to write down all the things we experienced together. Artistic writing for me has always been like that since I was about 11 years old. It comes in waves. I write during certain seasons, moments, events, and experiences.
Sometimes I go through dry spells where writing feels so difficult it doesn’t even feel worth attempting. But no matter what, I always find myself drawn to writing again, as if there was an invisible string pulling at my soul. It fulfills me in an ineffable way. I can’t describe what writing has done for me, but I know that it satisfies an innate desire in my being.
Writing is intangible and tangible. Although it’s cliche, I write what I know. I write about my personal life experiences and the things that resonate with me. I find myself writing about feelings that I don’t know how to contend with. Writing allows me to go through my feelings in the form they come. Emotions are powerful and can be, at times, overwhelming. But by writing through these emotions, I can process them in a way that otherwise might have felt insurmountable.
I came to Medium because my generous aunt (@Sara) purchased a yearly subscription for me for my 25th birthday. For the first few months, I didn’t utilize the platform, but now it’s the primary place I share my poetry.
In September 2023, I began my first year in the PhD history program at the University of Western Ontario. I mostly write academic essays (surprising, I know). It can feel limiting and restricting sometimes being bound by so many rules and expectations. That’s why, since I started, I’ve made a conscious effort to still carve out time for my artistic writing.
Poetry allows me to unveil myself. I hope that if you’re reading this, you remember to write. Whether you stopped writing or you never have, try taking some time this week to write anything. Write about how the sky made you feel as you left for work. Write about how someone’s words pierced you. Write about that thing in your past that you struggle to contend with. It doesn’t matter what you write. Just write.
