When Writing is Therapeutic

I love picking up a pencil and writing about nothing in particular. I never know what is about to emerge onto the paper. I only know that something always does. It's therapeutic. It's the kind of writing that is the absolute opposite of what I've been doing during this last year. My work cataloguing the local cemetery can't, by any stretch of the imagination, be called therapeutic. My parents and other family members are buried there, along with a number of dear friends. I've spent too much time immersed in grave stones. I need a break. I need to do some therapeutic creative writing.

I'm a member of Lapidus, The Writing for Wellbeing Organisation. The local East Midlands group fell into 'disrepair' several years ago so I decided that it was time to repair it. The first meeting of our newly formed East Midlands Lapidus Writing Group will take place this Friday 21st November in Leicester. If you live in the East Midlands and you'd like to join us then please get in touch with me or leave a message in the comments below and I'll get in touch with you.

Talking of comments, it is with some sadness and a lot of irritation that I've had to put comment moderation back onto my blog. Most people post comments that are helpful, friendly and relevant. Why do some people always spoil things? I'm receiving regular comments from people who want to sell me dubious items, want to offer me dubious jobs or - and these are the most confusing - comments that are nothing but a list of nonsensical words. Why would anyone waste their time writing that when they could be writing therapeutically instead?

If you're interested in therapeutic journal writing then I would recommend you visit Kate Thompson's blog called Therapeutic Journal Writing. It's packed with inspiring writing ideas.

I had a dream... and some awards. Yay!

Over the last few weeks I’ve received three awards. Thank you, thank you. They’re from three lovely new blogger friends who I met through Rachael’s Platform Building Campaign. They’re well worth a visit.

Catherine from Catherine Johnson, Writer

Diane from Writer and Dreamer at Work

Michele from A Wanderer in Paris

I love receiving awards but as ever I’m going to break the rules. I’m now supposed to tell you things that you don’t know about me but I’ve decided to turn it on its head. I want you to tell me something I don’t know about me. You see, I had a dream...

...no really! The other night I dreamt that my diary was filled in for years into the future. Page after page of my scribbled handwriting told of events that hadn’t yet occurred, emotions that hadn’t yet been felt. I tried hard not to look at the words. I didn’t want to know but I couldn’t help myself. I started to turn the pages beyond today... and then I woke up. It was such a relief but I can’t get it out of my mind. The dream must have meant something only I can’t work out what. So, can you tell me something about me that I don’t know... please?

And now for the passing on of the awards and again I’ve broken the rules. I’ve created a brand new Friendly Blogger Award. 

It’s for those bloggers who chat to me, who take the time to comment on my blog. I love having visitors and thank you all for reading my blog but those who comment have gradually become friends. We know about each others’ lives, care about the bad and celebrate the good. I’d like to give all of you the award but I’m delighted to say that, at a rough count, I have are over 60 regular commenters... so how to decide?

I've had to select names randomly from the comments list of the last few posts. Many apologies to those who comment regularly and have not been recognised this time but I’m going to make another Friendly Blogger Award following my virtual Macmillan's World's Biggest Coffee Morning. It will take place here on my blog next weekend, 30th Sept to 2nd October, so come along, support a very worthwhile cause and have a fun time with all my competitions/virtual coffee and cake.

Finally my Friendly Blogger Award goes to:

Amy at The Green Bathtub

Barbara at From my Kitchen Table

Christine at 'And so the story goes...'

Giggles and Guns at GigglesandGuns

Hilary at Positive Letters.... Inspirational Stories....

Julie at Empty Nest Insider

Jemi at Just Jemi

Manzanita at Wanna Buy a Duck

Pauline at Scribbles

Rebecca at Rebecca Emin: Ramblings of a Rusty Writer

Robyn at Life by Chocolate

Talli at Talli Roland

Award rules: Send this award to about 10 people who regularly comment on your blog. A link back to my blog would be good... 

...and don't forget to keeeeeep commenting! [as they almost say on my favourite TV programme, Strictly Come Dancing, which is back next weekend!! Can’t wait!!]

Not enough blogging time

I’ve run out of time this week. I haven’t been to visit all my favourite blogs or made my usual blog comments and I know how much comments mean to bloggers. [In fact, some of us can be childishly overenthusiastic about them!] But I have a good/bad reason. Rod [Mr A.] was hoping [we were all hoping] he could avoid having that stem cell transplant that I’ve been muttering on about in my blogs, but the hospital say that it must be the next course of treatment. The amyloids are building up and if left unchecked they’ll damage his kidneys and spread to other organs in his body. He has no choice and so he will be going into the bone marrow unit on 3rd August.

I used to think that a stem cell transplant meant putting something new into the body, much like a heart transplant, but it’s not. It’s a way for them to give him an extremely high dose of chemotherapy. The dose would be fatal without the reintroduction of his own stem cells to help his body to recover. They were harvested last year and are stored at the hospital in what my mind imagines to be a container full of swirling dry ice, akin to something from a Frankenstein movie. Joking aside, it’s an aggressive treatment. He’ll be in hospital for about three weeks and convalescing for about three months. During that time he must avoid infections. He won’t even be able to touch his lovely garden. [I will try to make sure that it still is a lovely garden when the hospital gives him permission to dirty his hands again but I’m no gardener. Truly I’m not.]

And so we’re going to go out and about this week. We’re going to spend time with good friends, visit exciting places, keep busy and have fun. I won’t be around much in blogland for the next seven days so I thank you in anticipation [that’s a lovely old phrase, isn’t it] for your visits and your comments. Once he’s undergoing treatment I rather think I’ll be visiting you all quite a lot.