Julie Unplugged

How to Have a Full Hearted Mommy Experience this Summer: Be a Haiku Mama, naturally!

Listen: It is to live consistently as simply as this inhale and that exhale, one in and one out, peaceful, content and open for whatever the next thing is your children, your boss, your partner or the weather or the construction on your street sends you next.

This is the most basic sense of what it means to be a Haiku Mama.

One of my great and simple joys is teaching people in journaling and writing classes the pure joy of writing one of the most condensed forms of poetry possible: the haiku. If you don’t remember from elementary school it is – traditionally in Japanese and this is only a very short bit of it – a three line poem with the first and third line consisting of five syllables and the middle line being seven syllables.

A Haiku Mama (or Mommy, which is what my children call me) is a Mom who takes live one moment at a time not with a heart pounding in fear about the "what shoe will drop next!" but rather knowing that whatever comes, everything will truly be just fine.

I do some of my best contemplative “work” while driving. Maybe it is because as a Mommy, I spend more time than I would necessarily choose to spend behind the wheel of my Mom - Mobile.  I don’t know how it works, but today I was driving along thinking about this exceptionally fine, exceptionally full week I just experienced.

There were whirlwind elements and a lot of moving and hustle and bustle, but within all that flittering and fluttering there were moments of deep soul that will carry be above and beyond all the heres and theres and the other places.

This is important, especially during the Summer when the children’s needs are not only the highest priority, but everyone is underfoot all the time and reminding me I need to spread myself out amongst them… as equally and lovingly as possible.

If I look back and tell you all the activities from this week, you might get tired before I highlight three major “wow” moments. These are times when everything slows and expands, moments where we will remember and tell and retell or perhaps just like at each other and smile, connecting over and over again.

1)      For the love of a fallen Sequoia.

My love of Sequoia trees is not a very well kept secret. I love my Sequoias so much I have put off visiting Yosemite again because it feels like I am cheating on Sequoia.  I know, my logic isn’t sound but my love is pure. I took Emma, Samuel and our Couchsurfing visitor, Sara, to the Trail of 100 Giants – a very familiar and beloved place only this time we were in for a surprise. One of the giants had fallen.  These are no minor giants, either. These are fifteen hundred year old trees, as in were one thousand years old when Shakespeare was first putting quill to paper. To see a friend, fallen was breathtaking. To reach into her cracked open side, like reaching inside a living person, offering her heart to me. I need to work on the description of that moment. It is so beyond words still for me.

 2)      Space Mountain & Trust at Disney – I wrote about our Space Mountain adventure in my blog yesterday. You may read that here. I loved exploring Disney with my children, but I was also gripped in fear and anxiety much of the time. Each time Samuel, my son with autism, said, “I want to go on that again!” my heart stretched. He was so afraid of Disney until we went there and he overcame each and all of his fears. We all stretched on this trip. I will also forever remember when Emma and I spent time there alone in Fantasy Land, primarily, going on the kiddo rides and Small World and laughing a lot together.

 3)      Jacaranda Buds Fall into my Hair – I took the train home and left my children with their Dad because I had a show and didn’t want to worry about being late home. You can never tell with Los Angeles traffic. I had a bit of a layover in Union Station which I filled with writing. I sat inside for one point and a random woman asked me to watch her things. I agreed, knowing it was impeding on “what I wanted to do” but I also believe random kindnesses are important in this day and age. In doing so, I got some incredible photos I wouldn’t have gotten if I turned down her request. I also went back into the garden at a glass topped table under a jacaranda tree. I was in heaven just at that, but when one of the flowers from the tree offered herself to me by landing in my hair unexpectedly, once again my heart grew in my chest.

 If I had to dissect each moment, I would say they were an exercise in mindfulness, just like the haiku poetry form. Awareness + breath + full hearted experience = abundant rewards as a way of life.

Follow me on Twitter: @juliejordanscot  

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© 2012 by Julie Jordan Scott

Julie Jordan Scott has been a Life & Creativity Coach, Writer, Facilitator and Teleclass Leader since 1999. She is also an award winning Actor, Director, Artist and Mother Extraordinaire. She was twice the StoryTelling Slam champion in Bakersfield. She leads Writing Camp with JJS & this Summer will be traveling throughout the US to bring this unique, fun filled creative experience to the people wherever she finds the passion & the interest.

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How to Break All the "This is How to Parent a Child on the Autism Spectrum" Rules & Build Your Child's Confidence

Today on the train home to Bakersfield I was having one of those soundless, no facial expression changing cry fests.

It had been a rollicking three days: one in Sequoia and two in Disneyland/California Adventure and I had to let go of some of those emotions that had stayed safely tucked away while waiting on line or cheering the children on or laughing or screaming.

The rules of parenting a child on the autism spectrum are all quite clear: to keep your child's behavior calm, predictability is paramount.

I have taught Samuel for years the only thing he can ever expect is the unexpected.  Some things MAY be predictable, but he needed to know the biggest most important "rule" (folks on the spectrum live by rules and rituals) is life is unpredictable. Sometimes the best we can do is move forward into what seems really scary and be happy because people who love us are either right there or nearby.

Samuel’s defining Disneyland moment: we were waiting in the Fastpass line at Space Mountain, Emma’s favorite ride. Samuel had crushing anxiety, asking if it was totally dark, if there was solar system stuff in there because he "hates the solar system", does it go too fast… and on and on and on. At one point he bravely wiped tears away with his arm. I could tell Emma was dangerously close to just giving up her favorite ride experience if it would make her beloved brother feel better.

I knew the signs well. He didn’t want to let anyone down, least of all himself, but he wasn’t sure he could do it. He climbed into the seat next to me soundlessly. I was afraid to look at him as our rocket ship started the climb up into the stratosphere and as I listened to the countdown, all I could think was, “This must be a sensory nightmare for a child with autism!”

It is noisy, it has flashing lights everywhere, you can’t see where the next move will be: all a spectrum child abhors IS what makes this ride exhilarating for a neurotypical child. Perhaps I hadn't given my child who happens to be on the autism spectrum enough credit.

He and I screamed together for most of the ride. I tried to laugh at one point, but I couldn’t make it sound authentic. I wasn’t sure if I was going to get pummeled or thanked when we were done. I was convinced I was going to take abuse worse than last January when walked out of arms reach when he was taking photos in an unfamiliar section of an unfamiliar cemetery.

When we pulled into the station, he took a deep breath and said, “I want to do that again!”

Space Mountain became his favorite ride in Disneyland. He  stayed the course - even though petrified with fear - because he had been taught the only rule was unpredictability and he also knew I was nearby always - even when not physically present my presence was with him.

Nearly every hour – at least – in Disneyland, I was nervous because I wasn’t sure if Samuel would hold onto his anxiety. I didn't know if we would ride one ride too many, if suddenly something would tip him over the edge or what might happen. He did, though, even while chewing his fingernails (and at times fingertips), manage to keep calm.

Each time Samuel has a win every neurotypical child takes for granted, he feels more confident and I take another deep breath of relief.

The life of a mom of a child on the spectrum: loving the best we can, parenting the best we can, hoping as best as we can, praying as much as we can. Sometimes that means allowing our kids to do the same stuff "normal" kids do and allowing them to work through it on their own with us by their side not intervening, however hard that may be for us.

 

Follow me on Twitter: @juliejordanscot  

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© 2012 by Julie Jordan Scott

 

Related articles

After Winter Break: Adjusting & Letting Go Along the Autism Spectrum

Loving the Moment with Your Child as He Outgrows His ASD Rituals

How to Break All the "This is How to Parent a Child on the Autism Spectrum" Rules & Build Your Child's Confidence

Celebrating World Autism Day: 10 Blog Posts from Our Experience on the Spectrum Journey

How to Spend a Perfect (Just for Me, Can it Be?) Day

Today on the Summer Blog Challenge asks us: What is the best ME time, best ME day?

This is a simple yet tough question to answer without sounding trite or condescending.

I could write a fantasy JULIE day, but that doesn’t serve me, I don’t think, so instead I will share several different ways I would share my ME day.

I would turn off all connections. No internet, no telephone, no tugging on skirts or tapping on shoulders. I could be anywhere to do this.

I would have books, notebook, camera, perhaps my calendar. I would have art supplies for my current projects right at my fingertips, all set up and ready for me to slide into place.

I would have radioswissclassic or perhaps, since I am unhooked from the internet, I would have classical music from a recording, if I felt the need for any music besides birds and the wind.

Now, lacking a fantasty day like that, I would love to share a snippet of perfect me day that happened yesterday. It lasted only about thirty minutes, but the energy from taking this tiny little mini-retreat definitely carried me forward all day long:

I'm sitting under a pine tree in Panorama park along the bluffs in Bakersfield. To some this view is questionable. To me, it is as my now twenty year old daughter says, "Sometimes you have to admit it, Bakersfield is beautiful."

It is June and the air feels crisp. In Bakersfield.

A chubby squirrel sits on the edge of the bluff. I lift my camera and he disappears. After we go through this ritual several times, I notice his tail is shorter than usual. I wonder about his injury – and how he copes with it on a routine day.

Even though I  chose for unknown reasons to wear a white girly  blouse I found myself crawling under this tree to get a photo of a heart stone, waving at me from a dappled spot of life amidst shadow. It was compelling me to get a halfway decent shot!

Now the same rock is completely in shadow and its neighbor rock is digging into my butt through the denim of my jeans. I wiggle off it.

I sit, silently, and listen to the silence. It isn’t completely silent, ofcourse, but my attention makes everything so clear. I notice a bird on the pine tree next to me. She had a long, slim beak, sort of plain grey black feathers. She looked like a hummingbird, but I had never seen one sit still like that and I certainly didn’t think that strange bird sound could come from something commonly called “hummingbird.”

When the bird takes off, I see she is, in fact, a hummingbird. The name doesn’t mean her voice is extraordinary, I guess. It just means her flight is a hummmmm. Or something like that.

 A branch from the tree hugs my eyes as if to say "Thank you for paying attention. Thank you for seeing us so clearly."

I find myself in tears. My tears are soft, easy to brush away at first, until the slow trickle turns into a storm of gratitude and wonder.

This is my life. I love it.

 

Follow me on Twitter: @juliejordanscot  

Be sure to "Like" WritingCampwithJJS on Facebook (THANK YOU!)

© 2012 by Julie Jordan Scott

Julie Jordan Scott has been a Life & Creativity Coach, Writer, Facilitator and Teleclass Leader since 1999. She is also an award winning Actor, Director, Artist and Mother Extraordinaire. She was twice the StoryTelling Slam champion in Bakersfield. She leads Writing Camp with JJS & this Summer will be traveling throughout the US to bring this unique, fun filled creative experience to the people wherever she finds the passion & the interest.

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#CED2012 - Giving the Plant -and Ourselves - the Space to Breathe

I have been having quite the creative flurry lately. It feels great – and at times a bit overwhelming but somehow I always seem to have something, some creative project to carry me through to the next thing. Then I manage, somehow, to find an extra snippet of time to create a ritual of remembrance of passionate fulfillment.

Last night, after a week of theater, working on my novel, publishing and oodles of family time, I repotted an hand-me-down plant who had been smooshed into a way-too-small planter. For mother’s day the only request I had was for some terra cotta pots so that I could paint them and repot some of the plants I was given last winter plus create new plots by propagating my golden pothos.

I now have three golden pothos plant and my next one will be snipped and put into water today.

Here are my latest: a repotting job in the big plant whose name I don’t even know, and my brand new baby golden pothos.

If you look carefully, you can see the next pot, waiting behind the other two. I let the plants choose which plants they want to live in before I plant them. I also put river rocks I have collected in the pot first, along with fresh soil and poetry pages.

It just feels right to me, as a poet, to be birthing plants that are also growing into poetry as they grow into larger plants.

I think I am satisfied, now, with the home I have found for my now in a larger pot plant, too. 

What do you think?

I can almost feel her relief at being in a larger pot. Look how smooshed she is, as if she hasn't realized she may exhale into more space.

As I took this shot, I felt so content. My plant in my purpose room. The whole thing just felt like a perfectly ripe, perfectly right creative space.

What did you create this week?

Follow me on Twitter: @juliejordanscot 

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© 2012 by Julie Jordan Scott

Julie Jordan Scott has been a Life & Creativity Coach, Writer, Facilitator and Teleclass Leader since 1999. She is also an award winning Actor, Director, Artist and Mother Extraordinaire. She was twice the StoryTelling Slam champion in Bakersfield. She leads Writing Camp with JJS & this Summer will be traveling throughout the US to bring this unique, fun filled creative experience to the people wherever she finds the passion & the interest.

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10 Inspiring Quotes from Women Writers in Literary History

In 2011 I started studying Literary Grannies.

Back then, I was much more uppity title wise (Women Writers in Literary History was the original working title.)

This is a brief collection of quotes with links back to the original short features on 10 of the 26 Grannies from that first year.

Charlotte Perkins Gilman: "The first duty of a human being is to assume the right relationship to society -- more briefly, to find your real job, and do it."

Prompt: Before you write,  think of JOB as your life work. I don't have a JOB someone else pays me to do, I have LIFE WORK where sometimes I create an immediate income and sometimes I don't. My job is to share my message in a variety of ways to inspire artistic rebirth in others. This blog continues to be an example of that - so now, look at the quote and write from this perspective of "real job" not as employee/employer but what action you are called to do.

Prompt: My real job could be described as...... (write for five minutes) and then follow up later in the day with this prompt. "I am enthusiastic to do my 'real job' especially when.....

Elinor Wylie: “I love bright words, words up and singing early."

Prompt: The words I love best include.....(write for 5 minutes)

Octavia Butler: “In order to rise from its own ashes a phoenix first must burn.”

Prompt: To move forward, I need to burn (let go of...) (write for five minutes)

Kate Chopin: “The voice of the sea speaks to the soul.”

Lucy Larcom: “... it is the greatest of all mistakes to begin life with the expectation that it is going to be easy, or with the wish to have it so.”

Frances E.W. Harper: “Every mother should be a true artist, who knows how to weave into her child's life images of grace and beauty, the true poet capable of writing on the soul of childhood the harmony of love and truth, and teaching it how to produce the grandest of all poems - the poetry of a true and noble life.”

Gabriela Mistral: “Donde haya un árbol que plantar, plántalo tú. Donde haya un error que enmendar, enmiéndalo tú. Donde haya un esfuerzo que todos esquivan, hazlo tú. Sé tú el que aparta la piedra del camino.”

Marietta Holley (the Female Mark Twain). “Why, to hear Betsy Bobbet talk about wimmin's throwin' their modesty away, you would think if they ever went to the political pole, they would have to take their dignity and modesty and throw 'em against the pole, and go without any all the rest of their lives.”

Ina Coolbrith:"Tent me within your cool, leaf-latticed house.
Pomegranate bough!
A carpet, sown with blossom-rubies, spread,
A queen might tread.

H.D. (Hilda Doolittle) “Writing. Love is writing.”

Follow me on Twitter: @juliejordanscot

Be sure to "Like" WritingCampwithJJS on Facebook (THANK YOU!)

© 2012 by Julie Jordan Scott

Julie Jordan Scott has been a Life & Creativity Coach, Writer, Facilitator and Teleclass Leader since 1999. She is also an award winning Actor, Director, Artist and Mother Extraordinaire. She was twice the StoryTelling Slam champion in Bakersfield. She leads Writing Camp with JJS & this Summer will be traveling throughout the US to bring this unique, fun filled creative experience to the people wherever she finds the passion & the interest.

Did you enjoyed this essay? Receive emails directly to your inbox for Free from Julie Jordan Scott via the Daily Passion Activator. One inspirational essay and poem (almost) every week day. Subscribe here now -

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How to Stop Downgrading What You Do & Start Celebrating Who You Are Now

My kids sometimes use the phrase, “Oh, she thinks she is ALL THAT!” which usually  means the person in question thinks she is better than the reality.

I have the other problem: I have a difficult time valuing what I do without effort. It is as if I am of the belief things must be hard in order to be valuable.  

Does this ever happen to you?

I’ve been working really hard to build up my business again – my Creativity Coaching and Writing Camps – so I am doing my best to connect with new people. I’ve built my business online before, but the internet changes so fast, I feel miles behind. This weekend I am participating in a fantastic Blogathon. It happened to fall on a super busy weekend and I haven’t been able to do as much as I would like.

Naturally. And I HAVE gotten more accomplished than many would have!

I wanted to participate in a blog hop this week called “Mom Mingle” but I thought, “No, I need to show what I’ve done this week and what have I done? What have I made?”

I thought of all the talented crafty women out there in the blogosphere and sulked a bit, because even though technically I had done some art and done some writing and done some craft and done some business-building and did a heckuva lotta Mommying, I didn’t think I had anything to say.

Then I started thinking more objectively. It must have been that little Angel  standing on my shoulder.

This appears to be the magic key: thinking objectively rather than from that space of inner critic or chronic comparer. Celebrate who you are, naturally, and what you do will fall into place.

1. I taught Writing Camp Goes to College! 

Objectively, I actually taught two successful writing camps to college students. And guess what, they liked me, they really really liked me! My friend who invited me into the class tells me over and over how gifted I am, but I tend to think, “Ah, this is so easy. How could anyone find this difficult? It is just like putting my socks on, no big deal.”

Only it is a big deal. Some people could never think of standing in front of college students as an expert in anything. I do it easily.

1. 2. Did I mention I was in a play at the Empty Space Theater this weekend? This past week was tech week (stress!) and then opening weekend. Not only did I survive, I continued to grow my character and received kudos galore. I gave my all in my scene and then some. I have the bruises and blisters to prove it.

In the photo, I am a doing business social networking while in the dressing room...

1. 3. I participated in the Blogathon – created 3 new posts (5 Ways to Enjoy Solitude, Passionately; 5 Best Ways to Be Sure to Write Every Day and Enjoy the Heck Out of It!  ; and my initial: 5 Best Reasons to Join the Blogathon Bash Even if You are Ridiculously Busy. I joined BloggyMoms, discovered Tweriod, participated as much as I could in the twitterparties, started a couple other challenges which I will still finish and perhaps, there is time left, I can still write another “5 Best” post. I made notes in the dressing room (Blogathon2 from backstage!) so perhaps… you just never know.

AND… as a bonus – I took my daughter and her friend to the Norton Simon Museum for a tour with a woman who is going to be an AWESOME contact for me. AND I painted and planted another one of my golden pothos I grew from scratch.

I realize now I could go on and on with the ANDS but… I’ll control myself.

I look forward to getting to know each and all of you from Mom Mingle better. I appreciate the visit and hope to catch up on your blogs, on facebook and on twitter, too.

Follow me on Twitter: @juliejordanscot

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© 2012 by Julie Jordan Scott

Julie Jordan Scott has been a Life & Creativity Coach, Writer, Facilitator and Teleclass Leader since 1999. She is also an award winning Actor, Director, Artist and Mother Extraordinaire. She was twice the StoryTelling Slam champion in Bakersfield. She leads Writing Camp with JJS & this Summer will be traveling throughout the US to bring this unique, fun filled creative experience to the people wherever she finds the passion & the interest.

Did you enjoyed this essay? Receive emails directly to your inbox for Free from Julie Jordan Scott via the Daily Passion Activator. One inspirational essay and poem (almost) every week day. Subscribe here now -

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Stories of Life I Love, Love, Love to Tell. What are your "Love to Tell" stories? #SOCSunday

Today's prompt from Stream of Consciousness Sunday from AllThingsFadra.com:

 What are the stories of your life that you love to tell people when you have a chance?

Last Summer a passion for Storytelling opened for me. Two months in a row, I won the Bakersfield Museum of Art’s On the Porch Storytelling Slam. I had a good idea I could tell a story, but winning those two slams told me… I can tell a story WELL, even aloud without benefit of writing and editing first.

The two stories I told were a couple of my favorites: the story of being in a Korn music video where my wardrobe would have scared the weaker thinking middle aged woman away and when I tumbled back onto the stage via an acting class I never wanted to take.

I love these particular stories, yes, but there are so many more I could also tell over and over.

Have you noticed what happens when women get together, especially women in their 20’s and 30’s who are moms? Birth stories – these tend to get told similarly to stories of soldiers, together in battle. We find we know each other through these stories. Since I gave birth four times with four distinctive stories, I can relate to most stories that are told except for cesarean stories.

I am also a natural childbirth freak, so I can’t totally get epidural stories, but I respect every birth story, no matter the scenario.

Other stories I love/hate to tell: discovering my son’s diagnosis of high functioning autism on my own, without anyone else like professionals who should have known better telling me. The story of my family perpetually telling me last or asking me, “Hey, did I tell you Grandma died?” or “Did I tell you we’re moving to California?” or “Did I tell you (insert whatever tragedy you could imagine) here.”

I love/hate to tell about my daughter’s stillbirth.

I love to tell the story of leaving the conventional world behind when I had an epiphany while standing at a slim park overlooking the ocean in Santa Monica.

I love to tell the story of the first time my son brought me flowers, wildflowers from my garden… weeds, some would say.

I love to tell the story of how my daughter, Katherine, found her way to Smith College. The fact she goes to a prestigious school 3,000 miles from home is all my fault. Why do children listen to you when you are being nostalgic for the ‘could have beens’ in life?

I love to tell the story of Emma being a natural friend of the underdog, and how after her last concert she chatted with one of the boys in the men’s choir who happens to be in a wheelchair. “Are you going to King Leo’s?” she asked him. He told her he didn’t know. When she walked away, he used his cell phone to call his mom and said, “Mom, all my friends want me to go to King Leo’s. Is that ok with you?” I imagine the mother on the other line, relieved. I know the little boy doesn’t know the Mom standing beside the mini-van wiping away the tear was incredibly proud of her daughter and filled with love for this boy I don’t even know.

I could go on and on, but time is up and I want to read about your stories.

Thank you, Fadra, for a great prompt. Stories connect us. Let’s keep ours alive.

   This was my 5 minute Stream of Consciousness Sunday post. It’s five minutes of your time and a brain dump. Want to try it? Here are the rules…

• Set a timer and write for 5 minutes.
• Write an intro to the post if you want but don’t edit the post. No proofreading or spellchecking. This is writing in the raw.
• Publish it somewhere. Anywhere. The back door to your blog if you want. But make it accessible.
• Add the Stream of Consciousness Sunday badge to your post.
• Link up your post at AllThingsFadra.com
• Visit your fellow bloggers and show some love.

Follow me on Twitter: @juliejordanscot 

Be sure to "Like" WritingCampwithJJS on Facebook (THANK YOU!)

© 2012 by Julie Jordan Scott

 

Julie Jordan Scott has been a Life & Creativity Coach, Writer, Facilitator and Teleclass Leader since 1999. She is also an award winning Actor, Director, Artist and Mother Extraordinaire. She was twice the StoryTelling Slam champion in Bakersfield. She leads Writing Camp with JJS & this Summer will be traveling throughout the US to bring this unique, fun filled creative experience to the people wherever she finds the passion & the interest.

Did you enjoyed this essay? Receive emails directly to your inbox for Free from Julie Jordan Scott via the Daily Passion Activator. One inspirational essay and poem (almost) every week day. Subscribe here now -

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5 Best Ways to Be Sure to Write, Everyday and Enjoy the Heck Out of It! #blogathon2

I know "busy" very, very well. I am one of those many-dashes-women. I am a Writer-Performance Poet-Blogger-Educational Advocate-Equality Activist-Mommy Extraordinaire-Singer-Mixed Media Artist-Photographer-Director-Actor…. You get the drift. I am not easy to put into a box nor am I able to say “what I do” in one breath. One thing I know I AM is a writer, partially because of my daily writing practices. Even when I am in the busiest of busy weeks, by following these simple techniques I share here, I flex my writing muscles. Try each top one at a time and see your writing flourish.

1. Carry a small notebook for writing & sketching. Yes, old school with pages and require a pencil or pen to use. If you prefer using your smart phone, that’s fine. Just please please please do some doodling & sketching while you are out and about, too.
2. Learn and use a note system for your smart phone. I use ColorNote. Lately, I have been writing “story starts”,”poetry starts”, and interesting quotes I hear. Eavesdropping has become an artform for me… makes for some great creative writing. People just think I am texting.
3. In the beginning of the day, set a one sentence intention such as: Today, I intend to experience my work as a paralegal with passion, with integrity and with joy as I greet my clients and engage with whomever I encounter. I also intend to have enriching experiences outside of the office. YAY!
4. At the end of the day, jot a few sentences about your accomplishments or those gleaming moments you would forget if you didn’t write down. Something like these. “How did Samuel grow into a size 6 shoe? His foot is almost adult sized!” and “Hearing Highway to Hell on the way to opening night: absolutely perfect.” And “Wow, I started the Blogathon at a horrible time for me – Yay?” Each of these sentences also serve as possible blog posts later.
5. My old standby, when all else fails, is to list five things I am grateful for in my everyday life. Even if all I can be grateful for is running water and a clean shirt to wear, it is better than complaining about my part-time job or my child’s incessant whining. You may be grateful for even having the possibility of writing, simply, each day. Doesn’t that sound good?

Follow me on Twitter: @juliejordanscot

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© 2012 by Julie Jordan Scott

Julie Jordan Scott has been a Life & Creativity Coach, Writer, Facilitator and Teleclass Leader since 1999. She is also an award winning Actor, Director, Artist and Mother Extraordinaire. She was twice the StoryTelling Slam champion in Bakersfield. She leads Writing Camp with JJS & this Summer will be traveling throughout the US to bring this unique, fun filled creative experience to the people wherever she finds the passion & the interest.

Did you enjoyed this essay? Receive emails directly to your inbox for Free from Julie Jordan Scott via the Daily Passion Activator. One inspirational essay and poem (almost) every week day. Subscribe here now -

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5 Best Ways to Enjoy (and actually feel Passionate!) about Experiencing Solitude #blogathon2

I remember when I first experienced solitude. I was a young professional, living in a brand new city where I didn’t know anyone and I traveled a lot for work. I was alone a lot.

At first, I was lonely. Until I learned to tolerate solitude and eventually, I learned to love solitude.

I know a lot of people are afraid of being alone or get flustered with silence. My hope is you may begin to truly enjoy the gifts silence has to offer.

1. Start small. Set an appointment with yourself to spend five minutes with only yourself as your companion. Don’t plan to meditate, to write, to create art, to fold laundry or any other sort of activity. You may look at a beautiful view, you may gaze up at the sky, you may sit on your front porch and watch your neighborhood come to life. Five minutes. Then ten. Then 15.
2. Become playful with alone times by adding solo activities. Some of my favorites include taking walks with my camera in my hand. By being alert to the surprises wherever I happen to be, I get great shots and the experience becomes meditative. Go to a park and choose to play on the playground. Swings, balance beams, slides. Play for at least five minutes or more. Experience it fully… and don’t start the timer until you stop being self conscious.
3. Attend yoga classes with the intention of “being alone together.” For me, being alone with others (or creating alone side-by-side with someone else) has become akin to a spiritual practice. I am very social, yet because I crave alone time, these moments of alone with others birth some of my most powerful creative breakthroughs.
4. Teach your family to respect your times of solitude. You may need to give them a signal like your journal, open in front of you, means you are “alone” – like being on an island. During colonial times, a famous woman writer and mother of 12(!) would put her apron up over her head as a way to “get out of the house” while smack dab in the middle of it. Your family will learn, as mine has, that there are times Mommy just needs quiet.
5. Forgive yourself the time it takes to enjoy solitude. Remember the difference between loneliness and solitude. With loneliness, you feel an emptiness you want to fill. With solitude you feel a rich emptiness you want to sit with for a while.

Watch for an upcoming post with a list of quotes about solitude you may want to print (or copy) and use as a focus while stepping into silence, which, by the way may be quite noisy. One of my favorite places for solitude is with my notebook in a sports bar on Sunday mornings, for example.

Enjoy your solo journey and allow those times to fill you with delectable passion so that your productivity and enjoyment of life and work-life and family-life increase exponentially.

One of my goals during Biannual Blogathon is to create content using "Bests" and "Tips" and "How to's in # of steps." When I first started my on-line life in 1998, these were a mainstay of my content life and were republished over and over and over again. I am excited to get back to writing them again. Thank you, Blogathon2!

 

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© 2012 by Julie Jordan Scott

Julie Jordan Scott has been a Life & Creativity Coach, Writer, Facilitator and Teleclass Leader since 1999. She is also an award winning Actor, Director, Artist and Mother Extraordinaire. She was twice the StoryTelling Slam champion in Bakersfield. She leads Writing Camp with JJS & this Summer will be traveling throughout the US to bring this unique, fun filled creative experience to the people wherever she finds the passion & the interest.

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For the Writers Among Up...A Quick Visit to the Archives:

Summer Blog Challenge: --Share a post you've written in the past that you like.I rediscovered this blog post by going back 14 pages of lists of posts and happening upon these words.

Still so relevant and at the front of my mind all the time, a blog post about Sara Teasdale, listening to your wisdom, and how to continue moving when you just don't feel like it!

 

Home: a Woman's Sphere Post Still highly relevant today.