I Miss Having A Flat White

And space to think

Photo by Pete Willis on Unsplash

You know how it is as a writer. Every now and then you have a panic about your writing, whether it’s worth the bother, what to write next. And you need to find a way of answering those questions and calming yourself down.

For me, after my Friday 9.30am Pilates class, I used to go to the local Costa coffee shop, order a flat white, and sit down and journal.

But I can’t do that anymore and my head feels like it is going to explode.

I used to do an exercise that I learned on a Big Magic workshop given by Elizabeth Gilbert. You write yourself a letter from these personalities, which are all within you: Fear, Enchantment, Permission, Persistence, Trust and Divinity. By the time I got to Divinity all the rubbish was out on the page and Divinity would give me incredibly wise answers to my conundrums and dilemmas. I would leave the coffee shop with a spring in my step and a plan that felt doable.

But I can’t do that anymore and my head feels like it is going to explode.

I can’t go anywhere with my journal and write. I haven’t had a coffee with steamy, frothy milk for nearly a month.

I can only journal at the dining room table, in a home I share with my husband. It’s just not the same.