A Note to Self

Honouring my two writing selves

“Las dos Fridas” by Frida Kahlo

“The work is to stay in relationship with the Self.” ~ Marion Woodman

Dear Reader,

Full Flower Moon and Beltane blessings to all!

Lately I’ve been thinking about where I write to be witnessed and where I write to be whole. Substack gives me connection and reflection; my journals give me myself. Two selves sitting side by side – the one who faces the world and the one who holds my heart.

This is a note to Self: remember to honour both and not to confuse the two.

A Note to Self

Substack is the place I come
to dress my words in light,
to let them stand up straight,
buttoned, ready to be seen.
I give them a name, a shape,
a small public life to hold.
They speak in steady voices,
carrying only what’s clear.
No ink spills across the page
and I’m so grateful for this –
for the circle of kindred souls,
for the delight of being seen.

But my journal is where I go
to let symmetry fall away,
where words arrive barefoot,
hardly knowing themselves.
There, voice opens and spills
past sense, shape or breath.
Nothing is stitched or hidden,
I sit in my own plain dress.
No performing, even for self –
only staying with what’s true.
These words are wild roses,
I won’t give them to the light.

Yours in words, Deborah

If my words strike a chord and you feel inspired to dive deeper into my poetry or explore my essays on Jungian thought, I invite you to visit: The Liberated Sheep