Sunday Journal Prompt

 “Look at every exit as an entrance to something else.”

– Tom Stoppard

 

Today, the day our youngest child graduates from high school, I’m thinking a lot about life’s transitions—his to his new life that awaits in college and ours at home without children under our roof. 

We don’t know what our new stage will bring, but I’d like to approach it from a different perspective than the term “empty nester” implies. As hard as it will be to have both boys gone, I prefer not to define our circumstances by what’s missing. Rather, I’d like to focus on the possibilities ahead: more time to spend with each other and our own endeavors.

What exits have you had in life, and what did they lead to?

 

 

Sunday Journal Prompt

 “It always seems impossible until it’s done.”

– Nelson Mandela

Origami is the only art form that transforms two-dimensional objects—paper—into three dimensions. “Together,” a green rounded origami structure displayed on a pedestal at the Dayton Art Institute, is made of circular, intertwined pieces of watercolor paper that have been hand-folded, alternating between “mountains” (creases at the top of the folds) and “valleys” (creases at the bottom of the folds. Its structure conveys a loose, relaxed state while simultaneously showcasing something not typically associated with thin paper: a sound sturdiness.

How can you pursue for yourself the combination of a loose, relaxed state with sturdiness?

 

 

 

 

Sunday Journal Prompt

“Peace of mind comes the moment you come to peace with the contents of your mind.”

 – Rasheed Ogunlaru
 

Last weekend I had the pleasure of sharing journal prompts with participants at a wellness retreat in Hocking Hills, Ohio—a place said to have healing properties. Prior to my first session, my mind was still spinning from all the input and to-do’s that come at the end of my semester of teaching. Although I’d been at the cabin overnight, I didn’t yet feel fully present, so I walked from the cabin into the woods to try to reset myself.

After journaling for a bit, I sat on a rock and just listened to the sounds of nature—the bubbling brook, the nearby woodpecker, the rustling of the leaves by squirrels, the bark of a distant dog. Allowing myself to be fully present in nature helped set aside the swirling thoughts I’d been having, as I trusted that I would accomplish my remaining to-do’s after the weekend away. Before long, I felt a sense of realignment.

How do you realign yourself? How can you make time to practice it this week?