"I can shake off everything as I write; my sorrows disappear, my courage is reborn." As a powerful collection of words having come from diarist, Anne Frank, there is one ability that we are taught and become self-sufficient at before we can even remember, this being the act of writing. At any moment in time we can garner a single thought, feeling or entire collection of such and materialize them through pen, pencil or software, no longer being trapped in within us but physically and mentally free to inspire, empower, educate, attack, haunt, or even destroy. We can all hear and understand words that may incite similar responses through our ears, though it's all too often that we tend to forget certain terms or phrases we may have heard, or perhaps only hear what we wanted to hear. Within written text, there is room for neither mistake nor delusion. What we read, we understand absolutely. We hear what we want to hear, but we read what is derived from the heart and mind of the writer, which leaves a much thicker imprint on our person than the former. With this phenomenon in mind, consider what a wonder it is for us all to have access to such magic; while we may not all be gifted at speaking and piercing the heart and mind through our outward voice, we all possess the ability to bring to life the words we write into existence, and allow them to outlive even our own bodies. How, though, does writing allow us to communicate with ourselves and strengthen our own core? By what means can we write in such a manner that will open the doors of others and give them the key forever? Lastly, how can writing remain prevalent today without losing its most crucial purpose?
To consider the very first idea in history that was written onto physical matter, it's obvious that this wasn't done without reason, but for the sake of making sense of whatever was going on inside, provoking the writer. A prompt was generated from within which could have been derived from any source, such as a question, a sound, an observation, a lesson, a dream, or perhaps just a feeling that one needed to get out of their head and in front of their eyes in order to decipher and understand completely. Whatever the contents may have been, a conversation was thus initiated between the one transcribing the words and the passage itself. As the writer feeds thought and emotion to their medium, the medium responds by simply helping in the one way that it can, which is permitting one to read their own words and not be bothered or distracted by the irrelevant notions that never made it to paper. Like a masterpiece painting, reading our own written words provides the insight and answer that we may have needed for so long, though were never fully aware of until having been confronted with it head on. With this painting, we know it to be a true work of art when it fills what is missing within our hearts upon seeing it, the same way we know that when we take the time to write, we free ourselves to become conscious of what we needed to materialize. In doing so, this becomes a natural, organic flow as our hands do the rest and release what had been fermenting as a mixture of genuine idea and angst. This form of self care is powerful, and only knows as many bounds as you do. Like a conversation with a great friend offering a word of advice that knows we what we need to hear instead of what we want to hear, practicing our writing with ourselves can either be empty, without paying attention to what your friend is giving you, or listening and taking to heart fully how our written words connect us with the person we are within and maintain strong communication with them wherever we are.
With this newfound perspective and ability in mind, writing for our own individual growth is not completely foreign when compared to writing for the sake of others' self discernment and awareness. Should we learn how to open a door of our own through what we find compelling, valuable, stimulating, or even saddening, we should know that our findings are not so unique as to not be able to use the same key to find common ground with that of another. Meaning, any one of us can write in a manner that permits others to understand their own character and human nature if communicated in a broad enough perspective. Once personal matters are set aside in private works, we can produce passages that can allow even one soul to realize that they were not alone in harboring such a feeling or idea. Or, we can call forth from the most beautiful and painful depths of our world to share observations and stories that will send others from a cage of mundane to a world of absolute wonder and vision. How amazing an ability this is that anyone able to form a sentence can engage in at any moment in their lives! As every being has come across a story, poem, song, essay, or even single quote that changed their entire view of life, we are given the privilege of being able to produce the same material that levels mountains today, and all that is needed is an awareness, passion, and will to do so.
With a system as divided and full of calamity and distraction as the one we currently inhabit now, there has never been a more crucial time to dwell on what your own thoughts and intuition tell you to transcribe with every chance you are given. This sense of urgency follows suit as does your own strength of character and sense of self; we are no longer encouraged to develop our own resolve but to let others do this for us, lazily, without any genuine thought or input to what is required individually for our hearts and minds, unlike those who wrote centuries before us. While polarized, the only true difference between those of years ago and those now is that we are alive. We have access to more literary work than ever before, and possess both our own originality and all of history's guidance prior. Once taken heed, wage war on the inclinations you feel and know within by boldly bringing them to life! What you do with these writings afterward varies upon motive. However, as they are a part of you these works should be made with vigor, to reflect on intently, share with those like minded, or even burn moments after reading if need be. Regardless of purpose, let your words be written as clearly as the ocean of life that inspired them. Upon doing so, their waves will then continue to wash over all that they come into contact with instead of drowning the beauty that was once kept within.
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