Volume IX, Issue 39
September 23,2020
Dear ,
How is your heart? Mine has been heavy recently, in despair at all the pain, ugliness, devastation, and disharmony afflicting our world. I've been forcing myself to plod along, doing the best I can to be there for my family, friends, students, and clients. To plug along through my phone messages, texts, and emails. More often than not, the gifts I record in my TAG, I'M IT! come from these encounters with
others—even others I don't know. This week's featured writing is one of those gifts that came to me through my new friend Jennifer Grant (last week's
featured writer), who told me about her writer friend Traci Smith, whose "Treasure Box Tuesday" newsletter I signed up for, wherein lay the gift: what Traci called "an absolutely breathtaking reflection" called "In the River of Light" by Rabbi Keller (another stranger to me) inspired by the death of Ruth Bader Ginsberg. Indeed, it is absolutely breathtaking. Not unlike the Milky Way itself.
It's a chance to consider the beautiful word river, to delve into the beauty and mystery of the Jewish High Holy Days, to learn some new vocabulary in the realm of faith. (I did not know that a drash is a sermon/an interpretation of text or that a mechayeh literally means a resurrection.) I hope that, if your heart is heavy, visiting the river of light will offer
hope.
WordPlay
Opportunities
Shaping Our Lives by Shaping Our Words:
Through the Pandemic and Beyond
What benefits can writing provide—physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually? We know now that the words we use and the stories we tell shape our daily experiences. Learn to shape words that bring out the best in you—and others. In this class incorporating Dr. James Pennebaker’s ground-breaking work, you’ll practice holistic, whole brain writing approaches that broaden your perspectives and deepen your
compassion. And, if you’re interested, you’ll create new poetry, creative nonfiction, and/or fiction.
WHEN: 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesdays, October 6th, 20th, October 27th, November 3rd, and November 17th.
WHERE: Wherever is best for you, online via Zoom.
COST: $165 for 5 classes, including handouts and resources.
Email info@wordplaynow.com for registration information.
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How Do I Say
Goodbye? and Praying You Goodbye
These two books are for anyone who is grieving the loss of a loved one—whether the loss is
impending, recent, or in the past.
The contemplative exercises within are a guide through the “many waters” of grief (from Madeleine L'Engle's A Two-Part Invention), including "treasuring" and "keeping" as well as regret and sadness.
What is grief, after all, but a sign of the depth of our love? On the far shore is always gratefulness, for, as the French proverb says, “Gratitude is the heart’s memory.” Those who enjoy writing will likely also find poems, essays, and/or stories emerging as they make their way through these
pages.
Both versions offer quotes, reflections, prompts, and space to write about your loved one, as well as beautiful photographs by Wendy H. Gill that enhance each part of the process. Either version makes a thoughtful condolence gift for a friend or family member.
How Do I Say Goodbye? is for those of any faith, with quotes from many different sources to accompany the process. It can be purchased on Amazon here.
Praying You Goodbye is specifically for Christians, with accompanying quotes from Scripture chosen by Reverend Rebecca Taylor. It can be purchased on Amazon here.
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POETRY ROCKS!
Would you like your writing — prose and/or poetry — to be more graceful, powerful, beautiful? Do you sometimes find poetry confusing or intimidating and wish you could “crack the code”? Or do you enjoy writing and reading poems, but want a more thorough understanding of what makes a
poem good? Then this poetry extravaganza is for you.
Expect a good time exploring what makes a poem a poem, gaining the knowledge you need to confidently create and revise poetry, and strengthening your writing skills in all genres. It would be a joy and an honor to share what rocks about poetry with you. Learn more here.
WHERE: From the comfort of your own home.
WHEN: Any time you want! And once you receive all 23 tools (delivered 23 weekdays in a row in both written and audio form) they’re yours to keep, to use them for years to come.
COST: $45
TO REGISTER: To pay with a check, email info@wordplaynow.com.
To register online, click here.
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TAG, I'M IT!
Both the year-long TAG, I'M IT! AND three-month TAG, I'M IT! journals offer—in no more than five to fifteen minutes—a simple
way to recap and celebrate the very best of each day of your life.
The practice of writing out your “T’s” (things you’re thankful for),
“A’s” (actions you can acknowledge yourself for), and “G’s” (gifts
you’re grateful for) is a transformative one, especially combined
with the final step, I’M IT!, in which you intentionally choose three
do-able, most-important-to-you actions you’ll take the next day.
Thank you to Maureen Ryan Griffin for creating TAG I’M IT.
TAG, I’M IT is my new best friend. It’s a guided writing journal that
helps me sort through the mental travels of my day. And it helps
me zero in on the special moments by reflecting, acknowledging,
and saying thank you for the invisible gifts collected in my daily
journey. “TAG” gives me joy. And it gives me a sense of peace.
It helps me discover the small and large wonders around me.“
TAG” sits on my nightstand – it’s my last conversation of the day.
And I feel satisfied when I turn off the light. When I write in my
TAG, I’M IT journal, I’m giving myself a gift. What a treasure!
~ T. D. Taegel
More WordPlay opportunities coming soon.
Stay posted!
Featured Writing
In the River of Light
by
Irwin Keller
Today's loss of Justice Ginsburg makes it hard to talk about anything else. Hard to think about anything else. Hard to move past the fear that is undoubtedly setting in.
I'm still going to share some of my drash tonight. It's one about enriching our spiritual lives, about shoring up our ability to feel whole so that we can be doing this work of this world fiercely, compassionately, and not in a constant panic.
It is too early tonight to speculate on what will happen next. But it is not too early to feel into our love for each other, and our connection with the many people in this country who honestly crave justice and kindness.
It is hard being in a time of flux. Flux. Even our language about such times is liquid, watery. We are in a river of change. That has been clear all year. How we respond politically and practically, those are matters we will keep discussing over time, here and with all our friends and all the communities we're part of.
But how do we stay whole during these times? Maybe another kind of river holds the key.
Last month, Oren and I took a trip to the southwest. On our second night, we were at the home of a friend in Boulder, Utah, which is in the Escalante region of the state. At night we stepped outside and the sky was brightly lit. For a moment I thought I was seeing city lights reflected in the sky, as I would here or almost anywhere I've been. But when my eyes adjusted I realized that
all the brightness was coming from the stars themselves. Escalante is an official "dark zone." There is no light from any city that makes it far enough to penetrate this place. And dominating the sky was a vast river of light – the Milky Way. So thick, so dense, it utterly ceased being individual points of light. Instead it was a liquid brightness painted with a watercolor brush. And although this light was hitting my eyes for the first time, it was all ancient light, arriving from long ago. Who
knows, maybe some of it all the way back to the Big Bang. I was seeing the history of the Universe streaked right across the sky.
In medieval Hebrew the Milky Way is called nahar di-nura. The River of Light. Which for our ancestors was a little redundant. Because the Hebrew word for river, nahar, and the Aramaic word for light, nahora, are virtually identical. Our pre-modern ancestors clearly understood something about the shared nature of light and rivers, each being both particle and
wave. . . .
Read the rest of "In the River of Light" here.
WordPlay Now! Writing Prompt
This is WordPlay—so why not revel in the power and potential of one good word after another? This week, it's “river.”
PROMPT: Try a "leapfrog": choose a word or phrase out of "In the River of Light" and then set a timer for 10 minutes. Freewrite, beginning with your word or phrase. Let it be the entry point for you to speak what's in your heart. Some
possibilities:
- "flux"
- "But how do we stay whole during these times?"
- "Maybe there is a river of . . ."
MAUREEN RYAN GRIFFIN, an award-winning poetry and nonfiction writer, is the author of Spinning Words into Gold, a Hands-On Guide to the Craft of
Writing, a grief workbook entitled I Will Never Forget You, and three collections of poetry, Ten Thousand Cicadas Can't Be Wrong, This Scatter of Blossoms and When the Leaves Are in the Water.
She believes, as author Julia Cameron says, “We are meant to midwife dreams for one another.” Maureen also believes that serious “word
work” requires serious WordPlay, as play is how we humans best
learn—and perform. What she loves best is witnessing all the other dreams that come true for her clients along the way. Language, when used with intentionality and focus, is, after all, serious fuel for joy. Here's to yours!
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