Using Writing as a Tool
When we look at self-care techniques, writing can yield thoughts we did not even know existed. Writing can come in many forms, whether that be a poem, a short story, or maybe using our notes app on our phone to jot down a few things. This is a way for us to use our body to get our thoughts out in the physical world. Whether we want to read it later, share it with others, or tuck it away for safekeeping, we can learn a lot about ourselves through this form of expression. What a wonderful way to be vulnerable! Below is a poem written from the therapist’s chair. In writing this I discovered some of the most beautiful parts of the process of therapy and how this has shown up in my life. This was a way to practice that vulnerability myself. Enjoy!
Ode to an armchair
The place I learned
That silence can run deep
The depth like a tunnel
We found as children
“I wonder where that goes”
I would say
But it just existed
The same way I did
And that was okay
In the arm chair I learned
Ode to an armchair
The place I learned that longing
Is love
In a form
You watch from a window
In the arm chair
I sat
And watched as people
Touched the glass
And described the sensation
On their fingers
Maybe the window
Is just a way
To still have a view
In the armchair I learned
Ode to an armchair
The place I learned
Apologies for feeling
Come in bounty
I am sorry that you can see me
I am sorry that you can see me
Oh but how wonderful
To see new shades of blue
What an honor
To sit near someone
As they show you
All of the rooms they have painted
Through a door previously locked
What an honor
In the armchair I learned
Ode to an armchair
The place I learned
That anger
And love
Can exist simultaneously
Like the siblings
At a wedding
We sit at different tables
They are bound to create destruction
We say
But by the end of the night
A drink will be shared
And a laugh will be had
Under the same exact moon
We can not choose
What exists all at once
In the armchair I learned