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Writer's pictureThe Monocle

Writing, Grief and Trauma on this day.

If you are like me- we are broken hearted, stunned and gutted in disbelief of the hate and apathy of the country in which we live. And yes the rage that burns within me if people say they only voted for the economy - makes it worse. I fear for friends and loved ones, those that don't fit a specific mold, those that are female and/or female presenting. Those fears are more profound, more clear, and more present now than even a few years ago.


What will get us through today and tomorrow and the hard years to come are the words of writers, the words of mothers and carers, the words of poets and if we are lucky enough, the tinkling laughter of children. These words and sounds are more than the strength to go on, but a hope and promise to support those that are afraid, those that are devalued, those that are worthy of love and friendship and wonder - even if society spews vitriol their way. No matter what - we are in this, this crazy f*&^ing world together.


Below I have included some quotes, some authors, leaders etc. that are guiding me through today. I hope at least one can be a bandage for your heart today, and maybe tomorrow one can inspire you to write, to pour out your grief, your fears and your disappointment onto a page, into your book, into a piece of art. Anything to help you process and leave you a little lighter.


Creating something from muck isn't just for potters, pain drives creativity - that is something we all know as practitioners of the written word. And that creative process can help soothe our soul, unkink (or maybe re-kink:) our traumas, but most importantly our creativity is what gives us humanity and compassion and understanding. So when you have the energy, the spoons, the space - take time to write- you can always delete it or burn it later. Until then check in on a friend or just tell them you love them. (Yes I know music is another processing tool - that is for the next post:).



James Baldwin


“Neither love nor terror makes one blind: indifference makes one blind," he wrote in If Beale Street Could Talk.


“The whole language of writing for me is finding out what you don’t want to know, what you don’t want to find out. But something forces you to anyway.” -Told to the Paris Review


“The betrayal of a belief is not the same thing as ceasing to believe,” Baldwin wrote in Harper's Magazine in 1953.



Maya Angelou


“My wish for you is that you continue. Continue to be who and how you are, to astonish a mean world with your acts of kindness.”


“Hate, it has caused a lot of problems in the world, but has not solved one yet.”


“The idea of overcoming is always fascinating to me. It’s fascinating because few of us realize how much energy we have expended just to be here today. I don’t think we give ourselves enough credit for the overcoming.”


Kurt Vonnegut


“And so it goes...”―Slaughterhouse-Five


“And on the subject of burning books: I want to congratulate librarians, not famous for their physical strength or their powerful political connections or their great wealth, who, all over this country, have staunchly resisted anti-democratic bullies who have tried to remove certain books from their shelves, and have refused to reveal to thought police the names of persons who have checked out those titles.

So the America I loved still exists, if not in the White House or the Supreme Court or the Senate or the House of Representatives or the media. The America I love still exists at the front desks of our public libraries.”



Iaian Thomas

Be soft. Do not let the world make you hard. Do not let pain make you hate. Do not let the bitterness steal your sweetness. Take pride that even though the rest of the world may disagree, you still believe it to be a beautiful place.” - I wrote this for you (I previously thought it was Vonnegut)



What quotes heal and inspire you? - Please post in the comments

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