Jo Elliott

Taking the first step... There are many variations of the word hedge, although today I am using it for the purpose of it being unique and solitary; even to the point of being assumed insignificant as it has no particular following. I write, as any other person can or does, I use a pen or pencil or I use a keyboard; I have written on paper and when inspiration hits and nothing is to hand I have written on a tea bag box or the back of an invoice and even a tissue. One thing is for certain though, no matter how hard I try or no matter how many workshops I attend, I follow no norm. I write as my hand deems fit. So, I have decided to share this with you... These pages will contain the niggles of my noggin, the scribblings of my soul, the transcripts of my ticker and quite possibly a few dossiers from my derriere. Of those I will share, some I may have already written and either hidden away or previously shared and some may be in the moment, although all will be from within me. Here we go... Thank you for joining me! 💖

What's Going On? Up until now I have shied somewhat with sharing my poetry. I have posted some in places and shared some when I consider my words link in some way with what someone is saying. I have self-published 2 books and so far only passed on 5 copies outside of my family. I keep using the excuse they need editing 😐 Although, now, I am biting the bullet! I'm coming away from trying to get my book to feel right before I put it out into the world and using each poem to build my blog. This feels much better to me. It ties in with me being a writer much better than putting a book together to share my poems. I have now fully edited my first book and have a copy to check through before setting it to being marketed and distributed, so I will always have a book form, I will be doing the same with the second one and then putting together the 3rd one, although I'm hoping writing here will help me with these processes in a much nicer, more relaxed way. I'm not a pushy, look at what I have done person and this could be my downfall when trying to market and distribute my books, I can only go with letting my writing speak for itself, as it has always done. Doing it this way seems to have dissolved the stomach knotting doubt that I get when I share my poems in public, even when they are enjoyed. This still feels private and this suits me. It will only become less private as people stumble across it or if I decide to let people know. In the mean time it's my space. I'm writing from within me. Thank you for reading 💖

Where it all began Well, there's only one place to start and that's at the beginning. Originally, I was 8 years old and we were set the task of writing a poem with 8 lines and 8 syllables. (Are the 8s significant, who knows?) I don't remember the poem, other than it was about a monkey, what I do remember is seeing my poem up on the wall, with a frame round it, for all the world to see. I loved this! I don't physically remember writing any more poems following this (my school years are pretty much a blur) until I was in my teens and then again in my 20s, all of which I have none of. If I had the chance to use a time machine I would most definitely go back to those points in my life to retrieve them. My writing finally took off in my 30s when I started with a journal. I scribbled and scribbled at the start of each day, pouring my head and heart onto paper, closed the book and carried on, only to return at the end of each day and pour some more. It seems this release brought forth my poetry and before long I had wads of scribbles that I started sharing with people. The effect of this was I was transported back to that 8 year old who had her poem displayed for all to see and I was elated again. Apart from the very first book I started writing my journal in (this, I therapeutically burned) and some stuff I lost when my computer crashed, I have all of this and although some of it makes me wonder what on this very earth I was thinking about when I wrote it, a massive amount brings me inspiration and keeps me motivated. One of the weirdest and most wonderful things is I can go through a drawer or a box or a cupboard and come across a scribbling that I wrote and placed in there at the time and it's at that very moment that I need to read those words. It's like my past self placed it there knowing when I would need it in the future. The first poem I will share is called The Beginning, called so because it was the first poem I wrote at the beginning of a new chapter in my life, one that I grew to love and still do to this day. That deserves a page of its own though...

Such is Life! What is life? Breath, feelings, emotions, being, doing, inspiring, creating, giving, discovering, enjoying, loving. Poems Where am I now? Look at your life! What can you change? What do you want to change? Can you change it? Accepting what you cannot change! Knowing what to accept! Life is a journey! I felt my fears going from my head at the beginning of my journey, then I felt them leaving my heart. My heart feels lighter! It was the like fears were being removed, like they were flying away, creating an empty space, ready to be filled with love! I felt the love enter. I felt it overwhelm, almost to the point of pain. I felt the love over-spill, I felt the love disperse outwards, I felt the love refill and disperse in a constant. Breathe in through your nose for a count to 10 and out through your mouth for a count to 10. How do you feel? What's on your mind? I learnt this very easily, while concentrating on counting to 10 on the intake and 10 on the out-take I realised that my mind cleared and I felt at peace no matter what was going on around me. I felt the vibrations of my body change, I felt my body relax instantly; I didn't need to concentrate on helping it to relax. I felt at peace, I felt warmth and that whatever guidance I needed at the time I would get. I accepted the guidance, I listened, sometimes I argued if I didn't agree with the guidance, I questioned, I knew I was in my own space and able to be me within this space. I breathed in and out to a count of 10 to enable me to be at the vibration required for whatever happened. I learned not to expect things, I learned that to expect led to disappointment! I just went about with a peaceful outlook and that whatever I went into I was ready for and ready to learn! Sometimes lifting my vibration enabled me to get a feel of what might happen, sometimes it highlighted my fears of what might happen, at these times I was able to acknowledge them and let them go, deal with it beforehand then not be that disappointed. With my mind at peace and open to receive I was amazed and still am at the insight I can tune into. My life was once plagued with doubts and fears of what I'd felt and known, my own doubts were often enhanced by other people's doubts. I can still encounter difficulties in this area, although with the work I have done on myself I am more able to trust my instincts and myself. I have worked hard on myself! Sometimes I have been extremely hard on myself! This has helped me gain an enormous wealth of self-worth, faith in myself and trust in myself. I can handle other people's criticism. I can re-buff it, I can acknowledge it if I want to, yet I couldn't block my own, I didn't actually need others to criticise, I did a really good job on myself! My journey towards loving myself was long and arduous, I was my own worst enemy, yet I managed it! At times it seemed painstakingly slow, at others I look back and think it didn't take long. From the first step, it was forward all the way, the only thing was sometimes my steps just sidestepped, like a resting period. I don't recall any backward steps. Thank you for reading 💖