Are there moments you’d like to remember forever?

I sat on my balcony at midnight the other night and stared out at the view. Humanity tucked away in honeycombed high-rise apartments stacked side by side, and lights in the windows emitting a checkerboard of amber glow.

A sense of wonder overtook me—the thousands sleeping safely in a city of highly organized streets blinking alternatively red and green like a synchronized ballet below me. And the dark primeval hulk of mountain ranges resting at the outside edges of the town.

The phrase came to me: What have I beheld? And I meant, in my lifetime.

One way to preserve that sense of awe we feel during quiet times—an awareness of who we are, what we’ve lived through, and the profundity of what surrounds us—is to write it.

Joy sprang to Anna’s face as she viewed, for the first time, what she’d written about her history. It began with her desire to write a fitting tribute for her husband’s funeral. Then a Letter to the Editor which got published front page, first up in The National Post. From there, she recorded reflections on her own life. Motherhood and marriage delaying her entry to “First day at School” at nearly forty—her application to law school. A trip to Africa with giraffes poking their heads through windows for treats. Who knew their tongues were so long, black, and soft as velvet, she wrote.

Time adds joy and import to our experiences. When all her writings of the six weeks we worked together were gathered, arranged, pictures added and viewed, Anna realized, “OMG, what I’ve done is impressive!”

What are moments you’d like to write about? Join a six-week adventure to write about your personal history. Two seats remain for: my Spring Writing Circle starting May 4th. Special Price $497 Code to use: VIPwriters.

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