New Podcast: Letters to the Listener

Hi everyone!

I am SO excited to announce that I will be reviving "The Shrug" podcast spirit, the one where I find poems from authors and writers like you and read them out loud. You may find comments from me asking if I can read your poems on my podcast, asking for consent, of course! This will include an article I write about my finds for the week, and then link your poem there!

I have some names for the podcast, and the one that really sticks with me is "Letters to the Listener". The idea is that these poems are speaking to me, and I find that they feel like letters to me, the listener. I hope to share that feeling with anyone who listens!

I tend to take things personally and lose the fun. I am starting to learn that maybe none of it is personal at all.

Per my husband, "we are all trying our best, myself included, we are all idiots.

I can't help but laugh as I realize how little I know for sure.

I hope that you decide to let me read your poems...I appreciate all the support and care you have shown me now that I am back on Vocal. I was worried I would be a leper to the site; however, I believe we have all grown, more specifically, I have grown. I have found myself again, a girl who was unafraid to try new things, unafraid of failing, and would keep trying regardless, just because she wanted to do it. I found that over time, I had felt parts of me dying with every patient that died during and after COVID; I have never recovered from those losses. I still think of some of them to this day, and how I have changed due to having known them and their families. I think of how young I was, even though I had so much responsibility and this pressure that I put on my own shoulders. I had forgotten the whole point of life is to laugh, love, and create. I am so excited to have her back in my heart. I am so glad to finally know exactly who I want to be, and I am so excited to take this adventure head-on with you all again!

I need more words; the next half is more of a stream of consciousness.

I am also open to ideas you may have about things you would want me to talk about or questions you may have-please feel free to create your own letters to the listener, and I would LOVE to read them and give my thoughts! I am so happy for this chance, once again, to do exactly what I want to do; I want to create. I can't get out of my head the poem a creator wrote on here about how the meaning of life was to create. That is what I will do, despite everything happening in the world, I will continue to create. The room is leaking honey around me, and I am finally ready to become unstuck. We are not alone; we are all in this together, and in our little corner of the internet, we are creating a place for those who wish to create despite having fears and reservations. I have a hard time accepting and receiving praise and love from others that I feel I have not earned it from and for that reason, I tend to run; I tend to look for issues so I can tell myself I can leave. I don't want to be like that anymore; I want to accept and give love and support freely. Thank you for reading!