How a rewrite became a ‘Re-Right’

Families are complicated. People are complicated. Dealing with family members who are complicated people… can be downright messy.

………………………………………………………………………………..

One of the people I have a lot of complicated feelings about is my maternal grandfather. In many ways, he was larger than life and someone I loved very much for a majority of my life. However, no one is without flaws and some of his were dangerous. It became an emotional minefield, trying to reconcile all of the big emotions I had in regards to this man.

With some intentional journaling, I sat with a lot of these uncomfortable thoughts and realizations. Over time (and pages upon pages of journal entries), I found that while some of what he did was terrible, there was also parts of him that were absolutely beautiful. More importantly, I found the cusp of forgiveness— which was honestly just a better understanding of how he had turned to some of the demons he struggled with in his life. Inside of him was a damaged little boy and war veteran who had survived some terrible abuses and losses without a real support system.

Still, I struggled to find a way to move forward and let go of the hurt.

That’s when I wrote ‘Cornflower Blue.’ This short story was a fictional rewrite of two of the major pain points in my grandfather’s life: his abusive childhood and the trauma of war. I gave his fictional equivalent a good friend and a friend’s mother who loved and supported him through these hard things and helped him feel less alone. The story ends with hope for the future, without diving into what it actually looks like.

This process was sooo therapeutic. By rewriting his story, I was able to finally come to terms with how his damage had leaked out and damaged others. I was able to truly sympathize with his heartache. I was able to forgive him.

From this experience, ‘Re-righting the Story’ was born. This workshop opens with some Reiki to help get energy flowing through the participants. It creates a safe, healing space where people feel held and seen. From there, we dive into some intentional journaling, where participants identify stressors in their life that may be holding them back. This could look like a singular event that has caused trauma, complex relationships, generational issues, or even a societal crisis. After journaling through the problems and outcomes, we shift into creative writing mode. We go through the ins and outs of creative writing— so experience is NOT NECESSARY. Participants are coached through the writing process so they can write a short story about whatever has been holding them back. They get to rewrite whatever parts they need to get the ending they want to see. After we complete the creative writing portion of the workshop, we do close with some Reiki. It is important to clean up the energy field after so much emotional work.

This workshop has been a love letter to our community and I am so grateful to share this experience with anyone who has participated so far. The goal is always to encourage healing, growth, and a sense of security.