Breaking the Silence: Why I’ve Been AWOL for the Past 3 Months
It’s been 3 months since I lost my job.
I stopped tweeting.
I stopped responding to emails, DMs, and Slack messages from readers, friends, and strangers alike.
I sent a couple of newsletters, promised to keep writing, then fell silent.
In today’s post, I’m finally ready to talk about the last 3 months, beginning with a timeline of events:
July ’21
Suddenly lost my job on July 6th
Told my readers about it, disappeared, then felt guilty for disappearing
Committed to doing only 2 things for the rest of the month:
Write my morning pages — 3 pages on whatever’s bothering me — every day
Spend time with friends and family
August ’21
Started The Artist’s Way, and rediscovered the joy of doing things by myself, with myself — like going to the movies, late night dinners
Kept writing morning pages. Still struggled to get up in the morning, felt slightly better about writing. Still felt guilty about newsletter.
Went on a family vacation and applied for the Creator Cabins Residency
September ’21
Found out I’d been accepted to the residency!!
Still kinda didn’t want to write, but felt more excited after restarting Write of Passage and reconnecting with the community
Jet to Austin for Creator Cabins and launched The Anne-Laure Challenge
So, what’s next?
My recovery has been more difficult than I expected, because I was more drained than I thought. I won’t go into it in today’s post, but way before my most recent job loss, the exhaustion had been building up for years.
These days, I’m thankful my recovery is coming along at a brisk pace. I’m doing well and I’m grateful for the little things:
For energy to write every day
For confidence and excitement to learn new skills
For family and friends who support me as I chart my own path
And honestly? That’s all I want and that’s all I can ask of myself.
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