Write to Heal
Healing and Growth through the written word
Blue Healing Journeys: Write to Heal Program
The Write to Heal program offers a compassionate space for suicide loss survivors to explore the therapeutic power of creative writing and poetry. We understand that words can be a powerful tool for processing grief, expressing emotions, and finding new meaning.
Our weekend retreats, led by a sensitive and experienced creative writing professor, provide a nurturing environment for self-expression and emotional healing. Through guided exercises and supportive community, participants can explore their experiences, share their stories, and discover the solace that comes from creative expression.
Our inaugural Write to Heal retreat, held from Friday, April 24th to Sunday, April 26th, in the serene embrace of Saratoga Springs, offered a dedicated space for healing and remembrance for the suicide loss survivors who attended. Guided by our compassionate creative writing and poetry instructor, participants embarked on a gentle journey of self-expression and connection through the power of words.
The weekend unfolded with nurturing activities designed to soothe the heart and uplift the spirit. Delicious and healthy meals provided comfort, while gentle yoga sessions and a soothing sound bath offered deep peace. Participants also found solace in the natural beauty of Saratoga Springs with gentle hikes, inspiring moments of reflection that translated into meaningful and profound poetry, offering pathways to process grief and find moments of lightness.
Beyond the individual journeys, a powerful sense of understanding and solidarity blossomed among the group. Sharing their experiences in a supportive and compassionate atmosphere fostered deep bonding and a shared sense of healing. The retreat was a deeply meaningful experience, leaving participants feeling supported, seen, and empowered to continue navigating their healing journey.
Write to Heal - Retreat
Select poems and Haikus from participants…
Glued- Unglued
Shattered
And almost together again
Shattered
And almost together again
I am a human vase
I Fall
And have no arms to brace the impact
Reassembled
No longer fitting together so perfectly
So prettily
Yet here I am
Grateful
A day
Feeling the warmth of the sun
A week
Breathing in the smell of the sea
A month
Listening to the sound of the waves
A year
Tasting the salt water upon the wind
A decade
Living the hope of the sunrise
Healing
The purpose of time
-Avery
You and I reflect each other.
Days and nights; spiritual ease, innovations, change, bamboo grove.
Know where it is best to remain motionless in time.- Kelly
Collection of Haiku’s by John
Body in Motion
Casual conversation
Let’s always be friends
Pastures of emerald grass
Next to razed sugar cane fields
Grey skies turning black
Two blue jays fly north
While two wolves drink from the stream
Why not as simple for us?
Just sit and observe
As the lavender breeze kisses
Thank the Japanese
The depth
The chasm
The longing
We were never divided. We were joined together with our love and wounds
We both unknowingly needed to be seen and heard.
Knowing what it felt like, you and I made it our “mission” to see, hear, and love others unconditionally
We loved each other unconditionally, always listening and loving each other.
No one could love me the way you did, and you love me.
Without you by my side, I feel like a sailboat without wind. My sails are luffing with no direction.
I am consoled knowing that you are out of your pain, and yet at times, I feel you have transferred your pain to me.
I do not want to hold this pain
I want to feel the lightness of our love.
How can I when I walk this path alone?
I feel you in my heart. I see you in the morning sky and the evening moonlight.
I wake each morning with an ache in my heart.
Total acceptance, total understanding, total commitment to each other, that was our love.
No one knew me the way you did.
You have taught me so much and helped me become my own person.
I hope I did the same for you before you felt so weary and tired.
-Therese
Tattered wool sweater
Embrace my body with love
Hold me tightly, dear.
-Therese
Repeat the Order of the Constellations
Luminous Ceremonies
Days on Earth,
Nights in the Sky,
Reflect Celestial Phenomena
*
Spiritual Heaven,
Motionless in Time,
Dumbfounded,
A Toboggan Slide Among the Stars
Explosion, Expansion,
A Clockwork Spiral
-Debbie
Rusty’s Flannel Shirt
I can tell that Fall is coming
I envision Rusty wearing his plaid flannel shirt
This shirt is so familiar
And gives me such comfort seeing him wear it
His shirt has a crackly sound as I put it on,
And it feels so soft and cozy against my skin
It gives me such solace to wear it
As I think of him
It is so soft
that I imagine that it can even leave a
fuzzy taste on your tongue
And thinking of him
I don’t like to imagine that I might have washed this shirt
after the last time that he might have worn it
His essence and his muskiness are still on it
I can’t remember the last time I saw him wear this shirt
I try to remember
And envision him wearing it
And what we did that day
The conversations that we had
The plans that we made
If it was a good day ~
Did we laugh?
Did you wear it when we went to go see the Groundhog
in the freezing cold that day
To see if we were going to have an early Spring?
I can only imagine what we were doing
the last time that you wore this shirt
When I wear this shirt
It can transport me places
It is my own little time machine
I can feel your embrace and sense your presence
whenever I wear your magical shirt
-Debbie