Dear Pen Pal,...
For the 'Write me a Letter' Challenge
This is for the unofficial 'Write me a Letter Challenge' posted by Heather Hubler-thanks for the challenge Heather!
https://vocal.media/writers/write-me-a-letter-challenge
Dear Pen Pal,
It is so lovely to hear from you. I am sorry to hear that life has been so heavy for you as of late. To be honest, it has been heavy for me as well in a way. There is so much in this ole' world that can cause us humans heaviness or strife to the point where it feels as if it is a battle just to breath every day, just to get out of bed. Presently, my grandfather is a very sick man and as he lies in his hospital bed day in and day out I see my father and grandmother's worry lines crease a little more day by day. I am worried for my two very best friends in all the world, my sisters if you will. So full of worry and anxiety they are which I suppose we all are but I just want nothing but happiness for them. I can't seem to find love that is lasting if my life depended on it so I've taken myself on a journey to learning to love myself which is both frustrating and exhilarating. Alas, we do not get to determine our lot in life. And finally, because honestly I find her and my biological sisters to be of the lest importance my narcissistic mother and her clones seem to be on the final stages of discarding me which is hurtful but I am doing the same to them so I can't blame them really and thus, it is for the best. I do hope your troubles lessen soon as do I hope the same for my own set of troubles.
Now, to look to the light my dear friend....I haven't had much time as of late to travel amongst the trees and hike the highest peaks. That is one thing that I greatly love to do but I, like yourself, have found some solitude in the words of others. Reading is quite the magical thing is it not? When you open a book or read a poem or short story from another person's hand you suddenly travel to another land, another dimension if you will and you become enveloped in said land and/or dimension. Suddenly, you put yourself into that main character's shoes and try to become that person and not yourself. You imagine what it would be like, what it would feel like, look like, how might they feel, what might they see, touch, smell...? Oh my, it is so very exciting! And with writing... Suddenly, you don't have to be yourself and you can be anyone you want to be... just imagine the possibilities! You can use writing as a tool to simply vent your frustrations with the world or it can be an outlet for your bubbling imagination. It is all your choice my friend. I am well aware that you know this already because we are writers, artists are we. We create, we design, redesign, full of zest we are, we elaborate, imagine...we live in our heads or above the clouds as some might say most days however (I don't know about you) I do quite prefer it here above the clouds. “But the wild things cried, “Oh please don’t go - we’ll eat you up - we love you so!” by Maurice Sendak I quite love that quote from Where the Wild Things Are and I think of it in terms of putting down a book your enjoying or leaving your writing. Writing is my happy place as I'm sure you feel the same. I wish you well my friend, until next time!
Best Wishes,
Lenora
About the Creator
Lindsey Altom
For me, writing runs in the blood. I've written songs, poems and short stories ever since I was a little girl. I mostly like to write about my life experiences mixed with a little fiction or just things that come off the top of my head!
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My hopes, dreams, future...
This past year has been so full of change and growth for me and my children and Vocal has been one of my biggest inspirations. You see, in September of 2022 I broke up with my narcissistic alcoholic now ex-husband, and since I had been with him for 8 years my brain had forgotten who I was anymore. I thought I knew but honestly, I had no clue. However, at some point in my healing journey I found Vocal...again. I discovered something that I had long since forgotten because according to Vocal I had joined in 2017. I discovered a world of writers much like myself here and more importantly, a place to express myself and not be judged. Here on this platform are my people. The forgotten in society, the swept under the rug, the creators, the artists, those of us who fight for the light but know sometimes you must know the dark well to appreciate the light... we're all here. I've worked for almost a year now on Vocal honing the writing skills that I once used so often and was so proud of but had all but forgotten thanks to my ex-husband and life. The challenges that Vocal provides have provided me with both a new and exciting challenge to both grow and expand my talent and excitement at trying something new. I haven't won a challenge yet but I plan to keep trying as that is one of my goals for this year. I did recently have my first Top Story which I was extraordinarily excited about...https://vocal.media/families/fort-mother. Finally creating a story that achieved Top Story on Vocal seriously made my week and I can only imagine what winning a challenge would do for my excitement levels. I am simply a struggling single mother of two like many others who is just trying to achieve my dreams for both myself and my children. This year I have already enrolled in college and am taking an English Comp class to start with so I can better hone my writing skills, I've joined a domestic violence survivors group which I am so thrilled about and I have several plans for here on Vocal as well. This year I have a couple of stories still lingering in my Drafts folder that I plan to finish. One is about a girl who is just trying to broaden her horizons by moving from California to Arizona and in doing so she finds herself on a journey that she did not expect nor did she invite, she almost dies and the other is about a woman in a domestic violence situation who fled and in doing so killed her husband or so she thinks and now she has to start over in a brand new town that she knows nothing about and everyone is suspicious of her. I also hope within this year to keep writing on this platform as much as possible as my schedule is very full and to take what I can from the writings of others. If I were to win this challenge or any other challenge I enter I would use that money to go towards a better future for myself and my children. I would use the money to pay off some debts, put food in my children's bellies, and save some if I could. I hope to one day be able to use my writing as a side job/passion to be able to make money from my writings and save that money so my children can go to college or wherever they want to go in life and live a brighter life than I have at times. I have made mistakes as we all have but I am trying and learning every day. I hope to one day live a life of comfort and travel. No, I do not want to live lavishly only comfortably and I believe that I can achieve some of these dreams through Vocal. Vocal has been such an inspiration to me as you can tell and I'm not just saying this, it truly has...so thank you for reading this and any other of my work that you've read.
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Comments (2)
Thank you so much for participating in the challenge, Lindsey :) This felt just like we've been pen pals, and you were sharing life. I'm not sure if all of this true or there are bits of fiction woven in, but I definitely know the family struggles. Setting healthy boundaries is essential but definitely not easy. Sending big hugs that things get better for you. That you get a chance to take air deep in your lungs and breathe out the bad. That you know how much I appreciate your thoughts. And I loved that quote!! Wonderful piece :) (PS...I think you may be missing a Z. But that could be my eyes failing as well, lol)
Loved your thoughts and words