Being a lapsed botanist (I have a degree in it but from a loooong time ago and didn't pursue a career in that discipline), I loved the letter from your plant - thanks for the idea.
It reminded me of an exercise I did as the pandemic unfolded. An art student I know asked people to help her with a project as part of her degree. She wanted to explore how our thinking and outlook changes as we stop using digital means of communicating, as she thought they isolate us at the same time as connecting. The idea was for people to write a letter using pen and paper from a future version of themselves back to the current self from a year in the future. She suggested it could outline how things had turned out, a very topical concept given the uncertainties we faced in lockdown in March 2020.
I did that, and then put it away until the requisite year had passed. On re-reading it then, I was struck by how most of the "good" things I had hoped for had been realised. When writing the letter these were little more than faint hopes which I didn't expect to come true. But the effect on my mood, my positivity and self confidence from seeing that my hopes gad turned into predictions then reality, was quite palpable.
It didn't last forever, but I never went back to quite the same starting low point.... so its effect was enduring in a way.
I am now contemplating writing a letter to myself from my plant 1 year in the future, combining the two ideas. 🤗
Hi Jeff, I love your story and how these ideas and hopes came true! I wonder if writing them down had anything to do with it; did making it explicit set the intention in some way?
The combination of your letter sounds so fun!
Now I kinda want some of us to do it together and open them together in a year! That would be wild!
Did you know you can use a service to send emails to your future self?
I'm curious how you're going about writing from intuition vs. your analytical mind? It sounds so good and I guess I'm wondering what helps you tap into your intuition and ask the analytical mind to take a seat? Have you found a specific ritual that works or are you simply being mindful which voice to bring forward as you write?
And yes, I have heard of these, but you know, the things is: I don't even want those (anymore). I just had to go back to find it, because I have written about another in-the-shower moment before (https://purposefulconnection.substack.com/p/how-to-nurture-new-beliefs). Looking back, I didn't articulate it quite clearly, but one thing I have been practicing and embracing is allowing thoughts and ideas to just.. come and be.. without the need to capture them. I try to give them space and let them float away, knowing that not all will make it back around to me. I find that sometimes when I try to grasp them and write them down too quickly, they become very specific when what they might need is a bit more... expansion and play.
And the shower is my favorite place where that happens. It's interesting to reflect back on this now (also because I had written this piece quite a while ago and it had been hanging out in my draft folder), so - thank you very much for that suggestion, Sarah!
One trick I am finding is working in the dark at night really seems to help. Mornings might too which is probably why so many people suggest writing first thing. That doesn’t work well for a kid, but after their bedtime does. 🕯️
That makes complete sense (about ideas & showers.)
How exactly to engage the intuition is what I am trying to figure out. Because I’m a very analytical person. 😂
Basically, I’ve been trying to write a fantasy novel for the last few Novembers. I find NaNoWriMo really good for getting words on a page. Last year I found one evening the story completely changed from plans and was suddenly MUCH MUCH better.
I was writing from my soul and not my brain. I’ve also heard this called day brain vs. night brain.
But am finding it hard to replicate so I read a book about it. (I promise I don’t just come here to plug my own blog posts.) 😂
Basically he suggests letting yourself daydream the story fully before you ever write. But I may find it easier to enter dreamspace WHILE writing. I’ve also been trying to return to the practice of imagining stories before bed which I did growing up and lost the habit of. But I also think creating the white space is really important and I’ve been redesigning my website which has drained a lot of creative energy into that space.
Tomorrow I’m making the mood board for my novel! I think I’d like to include more interdisciplinary practices in my writing (drawing, collage, etc.) and maybe this can be a fresh start. 💫
Your letter from your plant was so lovely! It felt really tender and kind. 🧡
I apparently missed a bunch of comments. I appreciate this reflection - tender and kind. I do need to listen to that voice more often :)
Being a lapsed botanist (I have a degree in it but from a loooong time ago and didn't pursue a career in that discipline), I loved the letter from your plant - thanks for the idea.
It reminded me of an exercise I did as the pandemic unfolded. An art student I know asked people to help her with a project as part of her degree. She wanted to explore how our thinking and outlook changes as we stop using digital means of communicating, as she thought they isolate us at the same time as connecting. The idea was for people to write a letter using pen and paper from a future version of themselves back to the current self from a year in the future. She suggested it could outline how things had turned out, a very topical concept given the uncertainties we faced in lockdown in March 2020.
I did that, and then put it away until the requisite year had passed. On re-reading it then, I was struck by how most of the "good" things I had hoped for had been realised. When writing the letter these were little more than faint hopes which I didn't expect to come true. But the effect on my mood, my positivity and self confidence from seeing that my hopes gad turned into predictions then reality, was quite palpable.
It didn't last forever, but I never went back to quite the same starting low point.... so its effect was enduring in a way.
I am now contemplating writing a letter to myself from my plant 1 year in the future, combining the two ideas. 🤗
Hi Jeff, I love your story and how these ideas and hopes came true! I wonder if writing them down had anything to do with it; did making it explicit set the intention in some way?
The combination of your letter sounds so fun!
Now I kinda want some of us to do it together and open them together in a year! That would be wild!
Did you know you can use a service to send emails to your future self?
https://www.futureme.org for example (I haven’t used it)
This is beautiful!! I love the idea of a letter from your plant! Made me tear up reading it 💜
Oh thank you Jes! 🧡
These are great suggestions, Hannah!
Thank you!!
Love this. I’m working on writing from my intuition vs. my analytical mind when writing fiction. It’s a work in progress.
P.S. Have you heard of those waterproof notepads for showers? Maybe you need one.
I'm curious how you're going about writing from intuition vs. your analytical mind? It sounds so good and I guess I'm wondering what helps you tap into your intuition and ask the analytical mind to take a seat? Have you found a specific ritual that works or are you simply being mindful which voice to bring forward as you write?
And yes, I have heard of these, but you know, the things is: I don't even want those (anymore). I just had to go back to find it, because I have written about another in-the-shower moment before (https://purposefulconnection.substack.com/p/how-to-nurture-new-beliefs). Looking back, I didn't articulate it quite clearly, but one thing I have been practicing and embracing is allowing thoughts and ideas to just.. come and be.. without the need to capture them. I try to give them space and let them float away, knowing that not all will make it back around to me. I find that sometimes when I try to grasp them and write them down too quickly, they become very specific when what they might need is a bit more... expansion and play.
And the shower is my favorite place where that happens. It's interesting to reflect back on this now (also because I had written this piece quite a while ago and it had been hanging out in my draft folder), so - thank you very much for that suggestion, Sarah!
One trick I am finding is working in the dark at night really seems to help. Mornings might too which is probably why so many people suggest writing first thing. That doesn’t work well for a kid, but after their bedtime does. 🕯️
That makes complete sense (about ideas & showers.)
How exactly to engage the intuition is what I am trying to figure out. Because I’m a very analytical person. 😂
Basically, I’ve been trying to write a fantasy novel for the last few Novembers. I find NaNoWriMo really good for getting words on a page. Last year I found one evening the story completely changed from plans and was suddenly MUCH MUCH better.
I was writing from my soul and not my brain. I’ve also heard this called day brain vs. night brain.
But am finding it hard to replicate so I read a book about it. (I promise I don’t just come here to plug my own blog posts.) 😂
My notes on the book: https://sarahshotts.com/2025/03/from-where-you-dream/
Basically he suggests letting yourself daydream the story fully before you ever write. But I may find it easier to enter dreamspace WHILE writing. I’ve also been trying to return to the practice of imagining stories before bed which I did growing up and lost the habit of. But I also think creating the white space is really important and I’ve been redesigning my website which has drained a lot of creative energy into that space.
Tomorrow I’m making the mood board for my novel! I think I’d like to include more interdisciplinary practices in my writing (drawing, collage, etc.) and maybe this can be a fresh start. 💫