Dear writing sisters,
At the start of my Virtual Writing Retreats, I like to hold a space for participants to set their personal writing intention. I also like to set a group writing intention as a way to keep us unified and connected—to really ground us into the power of the group energy—before we disperse to write on our own.
Recently, in the days leading up to the final Virtual Writing Retreat for my Craft Your Truth/Claim Your Voice class, I came across this meme on a friend’s Facebook page:
I was so moved by this Buddhist prayer that I read it aloud as my group intention at the start of our writing retreat. To my mind, it goes straight to the heart of what so many of us seek for (and from) our writing: inner peace, an open heart, the light of our own truth, healing for ourselves and healing for others.
After the retreat, I found myself returning to this prayer/intention again and again on Facebook. Before I knew it, I had printed a copy on glossy photo paper, framed it, and propped it on my desk, where I read it often.
As I write this to you, I am preparing to leave home for a week at the VCFA—Vermont College of Fine Arts—where I will attend their post-graduate writing conference and participate in Sue William Silverman’s small writing workshop. Studying with Sue has been on my “bucket list” for years, and I am beyond grateful that I will have this opportunity to workshop an excerpt from my memoir-in-progress under her warm, smart tutelage.
Steve and I with Sue when she taught at Randolph College in 2015.
A couple of days ago, I reached out to Sue with a question about the open-mic reading we’ll participate in as a group. (I needed the logistics in order to ease my “reading aloud” nerves—no matter how often I read at open-mics, I still have to contend with my nerves!) In her response, Sue said that one of the things she loves about the VCFA is that it is supportive in a “we’re all writers together” kind of way.
Yeah, we’re all writers together, even when we’re scattered far and wide, writing on our own.
The more I read the Buddhist prayer propped on my desk, the more I find myself adapting it into a “writing prayer.” Before I switch gears from desk mode to packing mode—packing is NOT my finest quality—I wanted to share my adapted version of this Buddhist prayer with you. By the time you read this, I’ll either be on a plane or in Vermont, but my intention is that it will connect us as a community in a supportive “we’re all writers together” kind of way.
A Writing Prayer
May your writing bring you peace.
May your writing open your heart.
May your writing awaken you to the light of your own true nature.
May your writing heal you.
May your writing be a source of healing for all beings.
–adapted from a prayer in the Buddhist Tradition
Much writing love,
M
P.S. Want to hang out with a warm and supportive group of writing sisters? Writing Women’s Lives Academy hosts a free private Facebook Group called the Writing Out Loud Sisterhood. Come join us here!