Christmas Tree Ornaments
The holidays are upon us bringing joy and happiness to some and triggers and isolation to others. Some of us seesaw between both extremes or find a hiding place somewhere in the middle.
Over the years, I’ve collected a lot of Christmas tree decorations. There are homemade decorations crafted by my own children and children in my classrooms. There are regal collector balls given to me by well-to-do parishionerd. My mother was an artist who painstakingly threaded acorns, then sprayed them with gold, creating a lovely garland. A local blacksmith made beautiful, individual icicles. Stars, angels, hearts, birds, even two Amish children hanging on my tree.
As I decorated this year, I thought of how each ornament is a reminder of some significant portion of my life, which for me — with such a faulty memory — is a gift! Even though some past holidays were painful and disorienting, the ornaments are reminders of something good. I guess that’s called selective memory which can be dysfunctional at times but, in this case, has sustained me through the years.
When I was decompensating and reconstructing in the 1980’s and 1990’s, I couldn’t seem to hold a memory for more than a week. So I splurged and bought a Polaroid camera and began to take pictures of all kinds of day-to-day experiences. For those of you who may not know about Polaroids, the picture is churned out of the camera instantly and there’s a large white band at the bottom for labeling or describing the event. I have lots of tiny picture albums that hold eras of my life in Polaroid photographs. I think it was a grounding technique so I wouldn’t lose the rest of my life.
Like each event in my life, each of my tree ornaments is unique. You are unique, too, with memories of good holidays and traumatic holidays. Because you are reading this, I suspect your trauma is behind you leaving memories and triggers that are equally as challenging. I hope you have found — or will find soon — a strategy for holding onto the good and releasing the bad. Remember that you are strong (even if you feel weak), beautiful (even if you feel less than beautiful), and worthy of love (even if it seems out of reach). I hope you have a good holiday and, barring that, a manageable holiday. Today is today, not yesterday, so claim it!
Self-Care
Do you have a strategy for remembering good things in the midst of trauma or triggers? Can you make a list of gifts you’ve been given like food, clothing, shelter, protection, hard work, safety? How do you stay grounded during the holidays?
You can create the holiday you want. You can claim the days you deserve. Let go of commercial and religious expectations and embrace what will make you feel safe, happy, and loved. Today is your day and this is your holiday!
Tuesday Social Hangout
Instead of traditional writers workshop, this Tuesday, December 20th, will be a social hangout. Come and join us for relaxed time as we enter into the holidays. Use your DW link to join us at 1:00 pm Eastern (12 Central, 11 Mountain, 10 Pacific). See you there!
New Year of Workshops
There will be no workshop on December 27th. Our new year begins with traditional workshop on January 3rd, 2023, followed by writing-in-place on January 10th. Check your calendar for all workshop dates in the new year. All workshops are held on Tuesdays at 1:00 pm Eastern.
Holiday Gift
Give a friend, therapist, or significant other the gift of my memoir Crazy: Reclaiming Life from the Shadow of Traumatic Memory. Available through Amazon or other online bookstores. If you can’t put your story into words (yet), maybe my story can help you find them.
If you’ve already read Crazy, give a gift to me 😇 by going to Amazon and rating and/or reviewing it. Thank you!
January Publication Date for Second Annual DW Anthology
Be on the lookout for Creative Healing: Volume 2 featuring writing and art from our DW writers. The anthology’s expected release date is January 15th, 2023 and will be available digitally for free on the DW website, as well as Lyn’s website. Thank you to Gabby, Debby, and Salli who are producing this volume and to all Dissociative Writers who contributed!
Are You Going To Healing Together?
An Infinite Mind is holding their annual Healing Together Conference in Orlando FL on February 17-19, 2023. If you are planning to attend or planning to lead a workshop, please let Lyn know so we can arrange for a DW reunion. Gabby is leading a workshop called Grief: Managing Loss through Art and Music and Lyn is leading a workshop called Confronting the F-Word.
🕊
I think there must be something wrong with me.
Christmas is coming but I’m not happy.
~ Charlie Brown
Lyn