Sunday, July 31, 2011

The Word is “Slow”


At David and Leigh’s wedding three months ago I got into an intense discussion about journaling with one of Leigh’s bridesmaids, Kristy Cuskelly. We both agreed we’d like to be more faithful about keeping our journals (or blog for that matter), but unfortunately “life” often got in the the way, and we both kept putting things off.
Kristy suggested that an easy way to keep a journal would be to pick one word that encapsulated what we’d experienced that day and just leave it at that. For some reason, I woke up thinking about her words this morning, and I've been mulling them over ever since.
I think my word for today has to be slow because that’s basically how the day unfolded. But what does slow really tell you? I could decide to take things as slowly as possible in order to savor each moment. Maybe things could go very slowly for me, but not in a satisfying way. Or I might just decide to be lazy and describe it as slow. Yes, the word can mean so many different things. On its own, slow is like a poem, then once you start writing about it, or trying to visualize it, slow turns into something else. So what did slow mean to me today? Go with the flow.

(Speaking of journaling, you might want to check out Strathmore’s free visual journaling workshops at
http://www.strathmoreartist.com/vj-workshop-about.html.)

7 comments:

Irene said...

Such good advice. Go with the flow, words to live by. It will keep our blood pressure in check as well

martha brown said...

My word would be "busy" aka " too lame-ass lazy to try". seriously.

Lucy Ladham-Dyment said...

I like the sound of picking a word and going with it some times.

jocelyn said...

I love the 'one word' suggestion, as I have often found that a single word will show up for me when I am quiet.I'm also loving the results of your online class in composition with Claudine. She's a doll, and I love her workshops, though haven't tried any online yet. I need a workshop in PHotoshop.... are you interested?

Unknown said...

You're right, I would feel less guilty about not finishing a project if I just said it was a 'slow' process :)

A bird in the hand said...

That's about all I could manage: one word.

I miss you. Hope to talk soon. xox

Ganga Fondan said...

Hello Susan. I can relate to the needing to keep up with writing. Although I've been continuing my digital art projects, I haven't written as much as i did in previous years. Now the time comes to activate this process again. Wishing you an awe-inspired and joyous 2012 and may you and your family continue to reach for your dreams and touch them!!!!
Smiles across the miles,
Ganga