The Right to Write

As I've mentioned before, I think of Julia Cameron as the patron saint of writers. Heck, of creatives everywhere—a group which should include every human being. The Artist's Way is a glorious journey for anyone who has felt blocked or afraid, and all her books help writers feel the glory and beauty in what they do. Now one of her later books, The Right to Write, has performed a small miracle for me.

Has your life ever seemed so busy that you can barely remember to breathe? Yep, I thought so. It happens to most of us. And especially, I think, to women. We handle tremendous responsibility for our families and lives. (And, I'd argue, often more responsibility than is taken by men, even in this relatively enlightened era.) Women form the core of my coaching clientele, and most of my clients have told me they're overwhelmed by everything they're supposed to do/fix/tackle on a daily basis. When there are a thousand screaming things on your to-do list, it can be hard to find time to write. Or rather, it gets easier to tell yourself you can't...

In The Right to Write, Julia Cameron suggests a way to help you "start dismantling your sense of victimization around time."

Think about that. One hell of a concept, isn't it? Sense of victimization around time.

She suggests setting a timer for 15 minutes, during which you write 5 postcards to friends you love but don't stay in touch with the way you'd wish.

I did as Julia suggested. I mailed the postcards, the first to someone who's been like a sister to me—a wonderful woman whose deep friendship I have greatly missed, and even mourned, though I never quite took the right steps to get it back.

My friend got the postcard. And picked up the phone. And almost like the distance between us had never been, today we talked for hours.

I love you, Peej. *HUGS*

And thank you, Julia.