Creature Comforts N°15
Your weekly newsletter coming in to slay the Sunday Scaries! Replenish and reset yourself for the week ahead. Why not lean on your journal for some support?
Happy Sunday, sweet thang!
Have you ever lived through a week that felt like an eternity? Between last Sunday and this Sunday, it’s as if years have gone by. Sometimes, that slowness is a deep blessing, like when you’re swimming with a lover in the warm summer saltwater of Calanques. Other times, time passing slowly is an absolute curse, like when you’re working a retail job on Black Friday. The passage of time is so mysterious, but I’m onto its devilish game.
This past week fell somewhere in the middle—not hellish by any means, nor total bliss. It was simply jam-packed. I had the privilege of working at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books (LATFoB) last Sunday. It was filled with voracious readers lugging book-filled tote bags and passionate writers pitching their craft. I couldn’t help but feel inspired by meeting so many people marching steadily in the direction of their dream to “be” a writer. Following your dreams is not the easiest path, but by golly, it’s worth it! At least, I think it is. I’m only 33 so I’ll have to get back to you on that in another decade or two.
This was the third year in a row that I have worked at LATFoB. Each year is a completely different experience, not because of anything at the festival, but because of my mentality. Everything changes with how you think and how you think becomes who you are. I used to think I wanted to be a writer. Now, I’ve let go of that label and just started writing. Though I haven’t submitted my writing for publication yet, I still feel like a writer thanks to my journal practice.
You, too, can be a writer. It’s as simple as writing a couple of sentences in a journal today. Go ahead, give it a go. It just might slow down your Sunday a little. Drink it in. Fill your cup. I think this week will be kinder to us, and we’ll be kinder to the people around us if we fill up our own cups first.
Thank you for being here ♥︎ I’ll talk to you next Sunday!
XX,
CZ
This Week’s Journal Menu
Reflect: How has time been passing for you lately? Are the days flying by so fast that it’s hard to keep track? Does one hour feel like a lifetime? In either case, zoom out on your life. What could be contributing to this experience of time?
Check-In: Get really present in your surroundings. This is your life today. What does it look like? Describe the quality of light. Can you hear birds chirping or the low hum of a highway? What are you most thankful for here in this space?
Expand: Draw a line down the middle of the page. On the left side, label at the top “Supposedly [insert your name],” and on the right side, write the title of someone you look up to as a mentor or inspiration. On the left, jot down some words or phrases that you feel describe you right now. No need to judge these qualities as good or bad. On the right, list the qualities of this inspirational person. Consider the ways you might be able to get some of those right-column items into your realm. It might be closer than you think.
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I have also been thinking about how the less I am focused on "becoming" and focus more on the doing of it. It's so silly--I look back at my journals and see a bunch of to do lists that never got checked off, a lot of pondering and speculation about becoming an artist and not realizing that I was fully in my power to just DO it.