Check In and Celebrate
Photos of TMWY in Germany by Stefanie Kastanie, @RedChestnut
Can I tell you that every one of these photos made my day, each time Steffi posted one on Twitter? There hasn't been anything quite as powerful for me as these images, from across an ocean and so many miles, to drill into my own mind this truth: we truly are together.
And that just leaves me with joy, wriggling in my lap.
Here are a few lines from my dear friend that I woke up to this morning:
all will be well
all this will be a distant memory then and you'll laugh
at how hard you tried before you remembered finally
at once
you could never not belong
you could never be alone
And it's true, isn't it?
I'd love to use the comments section today to take a collective tally of TMWY pages filled to date and other miscellany.
I'll start.
Things broken in the last 48 hours: 2. Favorite mug and pyrex measuring cup.
Things lost in the last 12 hours: 1. Coffee tumbler at last night's show.
Things found along the way: Upbeat tunes. A way to sit and fold my hands in my lap and trust. Two poems. Finally my way in a friendship. Permission to walk through a season of loss.
TMWY pages completed to date: fifty-three.
Now it's your turn. Please check in with your own categories, your own tally of things to release or to celebrate. Every comment will be like these photos of Stefanie's--marking the place where our journeys intersect, the moments and ways we are together and need to still, always, be reminded.
Community TMWY pages (running total): 372
Wednesday, January 27, 2010 at 7:48AM | Share Article | 27 Comments | Permalink | 1 Reference | in Take Me with You: A Journal for the Journey, The Journey Together through TMWY 
Reader Comments (27)
love steffi's photos! they made my day too ;)
19 pages filled in my TMWY journal and I actually posted a page of a journal entry on my blog as well. I am celebrating that my self expression voice is stronger and my private self is no longer tied up in knots in my body.
My journal calls to me when I feel I need to say something. I am more brave in sharing my private thoughts. Right now I am celebrating "the writer" in me. :)
Donna--I love this: "I am celebrating that my self expression voice is stronger and my private self is no longer tied up in knots in my body."
I'm celebrating your courage!
i filled 22 pages in my TMWY journal...yay!! :)
Island Jen-- hooray! Cheering for you.
23 pages. while i can feel the path ahead of me unfolding, i'm still uncertain about WHAT will unfold for me this year. but the writing has helped me invite it into my life. and it's felt like a quiet companion of the best kind in my days.
Meg, I love the part about not knowing what's ahead but inviting something new anyway. You'll be so happy to look back and have a record of your trust in this season.
Red blouses worn in the last week: 3. A crisp button-down, an old soft t-shirt and a cozy new sweater.
Pages filled in my current journal this week: 13, so far. (My TMWY journal was already full.)
Birthday parcels sent to my mom: 1 (she turns 51 today).
Knitting projects done for ME this month: four + one started, so far.
I love those photos, Jen - and the invitation to share little bits of our lives. We are, truly, together.
Katie, I love your categories. The red shirts, the knitting projects for you. So, so good. (And I'm adding your pages to the collective count right now.)
Page 22
smuged and stained and has a corner missing
notes from dying wool with plant due for knitting later
Interesting that others are on page 22 also... cosmic number or serendipity?
15 pages and inadvertently, without my even trying, I have started thinking that maybe i can be a writer, too. a very beautiful feeling goes along with that simple little sentence.
Alyssa, I love the description of your page,
and this line from Sandra: "I have started thinking that maybe i can be a writer, too."
Pages filled in TMWY: 54 and counting for the month. There is, after all, still time left this evening and between now and Monday. :)
Things Found: Comfort with my writing having changed forms from what I thought it "should be." My copies of 'Fortunes' waiting on me when I got home from work. The new remaster of The Beatles' White Album and Iron & Wine's 'Around the Well'. :)
Things Rediscovered: How great time spent on the yoga mat makes me feel. Mantra meditation. How much I love hearing my best friend's two toddler boys giggle, and being able to play auntie and cuddle them. How satisfying reading a good poem can be. How quickly a brisk walk can stamp out the flames of anger and irritation.
This is just great, reading everyone's comments and how each of us is connecting to different parts of ourselves, which for some of us had been neglected or forgotten.
(And, Jen, sorry about your favorite mug. A good mug can be hard to find.)
Number of days until my version of the Lovebombers - a 3 day retreat for my friends to Relax, Refill and Reconnect - 6
Number of months I have been working on this retreat - 7
Number of times I almost chickened out because it is my dream and what if it failed - 3
Number of pages written in my journal - 19
Number of days I am grateful for the community found online - every single day
Jen, I wrote about this on my blog: http://christianefroehlich.wordpress.com/2010/01/29/take-me-with-you/
Your journal holds my Mondo Beyondo List. It is a safe haven.
So happy to wake up to more of these comments this morning!
I love Rebekah's line about finding "comfort with my writing having changed forms from what I thought it 'should be,'" and her observation about so many of us finding or reconnecting with parts of ourselves. This is the foundational idea behind the Integrate Retreat in April--that very experience, super-powered.
And Sandi's count of how many times she almost chickened out of her retreat, which is almost here! I so relate to that.
Christiane's list and photo are great--make sure you click over and check them out.
These are so great!
As part of the "take better care of myself and get back to the business of having fun" program I'm on;
Number of days since I decided I needed to cut back on the mocha lattes: 21
Number of mocha lattes I have had since that day: 19
My book reading goal for 2010: at least 12
Books read so far: 2 (ahead of the curve -yeah!)
Concert tickets bought: 2
Theater tickets bought: 2
Plane tickets bought: 1
Number of Pages in TMWY: 41
Love this!
Hours spent writing at library this week: 4+
Number of morning pages written this week: 15
Number of chocolate cakes eaten this week: 1
Number of pages filled in TMWY: 37
Steffi--Thank you again for the photos. And I'm so happy that chocolate cakes showed up on the community tally--yum!
Kathy--I love the idea of you on your adventures--concerts, theater and plane. Nice!
As a part of my current plans for doing more "me" stuff (anyway I can) and putting the positive in the forefront (well trying to!!!) Here is my list:
Number of TMWY pages: 1 (Oh how I hate that number! - But I DID Scribble :)
Number of days carrying my TMWY journal everywhere: Everyday since I got it in December!
Number of miles spent commuting to work: 900
Number of pages written in my head while commuting: Guessing...50!
Number of poems written: 1
Number of hours worked: 40
Number of beautiful art photographs taken: 13 (some at work or while driving!!! :)
Number of days read on my lunch break and at night in bed: 5
Number of days I've checked in here: 5
Number of diapers changed (I am one of 3 caregivers to 9 infants Monday-Friday): Don't ask!
Amount of fun I have had reading this post and comment and coming up with my own list: Priceless!
You gotta take it where you can get it!
Thanks for the thought-provoking deep and still light and fun stuff here Jen. I look forward to checking in each night when I get home. You probably never thought about the entertainment value you (and you readers/posters) were providing to those of us who work long 15 hour days. I laughed out loud when your first video post said we really do have the time to write! Time is my creative block!
Anyway, sorry to go on so long. But, it has been fulfilling for me!
Thank you again. Goodnight.
Great, list, Nancy. Lunch breaks and at night in bed are great times for writing, too!
Jen I have tried to write on my breaks but run into privacy and time issues. As seen from the previous post, once I sit down the flood waters burst forth with for a very long stretch. I could write forever! I am leaving to get my oil changed and I am taking you with me! :) Have a nice weekend.
I have 19 pages written so far. I like the idea of taking my journal everywhere and writing bits and pieces throughout the day...by doing it this way I have become more open and sincere in my writing.
Happy to be on this journey together :)
Elizabeth, I love what you pointed out here: "I like the idea of taking my journal everywhere and writing bits and pieces throughout the day...by doing it this way I have become more open and sincere in my writing."
I'm happy to be together, too!
i have 12 pages filled. i am going slowly but learning... learning more about me. and that is always a good thing. i will continue writing. pen to paper takes my breath away.
: )
Christina, Thanks for checking in. It's amazing how those words that leak out of our pens take us on a journey to parts of ourselves that live in a quiet place, somewhere below the surface.