Monday 28 September 2009

The threads of our lives

Firstly, I want to say thank you to everyone who commented on my last post, and for the poems you shared. Sometimes, life seems to unravel -- in huge ways, and in small ones -- and the holes seem to be far too gaping for anything to be patched together again. And then there are the moments when it makes a kind of sense; when threads weave themselves together, rather than getting knotted up like the tangle of thoughts inside my head, or the dread that knots my stomach. I say 'my', but I mean 'our' -- because these are the things that we all of us share: love and loss; anxiety and hope; a kind of communality, even when we feel most alone.
So, in this spirit, I'd like to send you in the direction of a friend and fellow writer, Juliet Barker, who I met while researching the chapter about Charlotte Bronte's ring in My Mother's Wedding Dress. The former curator of the Bronte Parsonage Museum, and a distinguished historian, whose books bring the past alive in the most remarkable of ways, Juliet was also a wise and patient guide to me as I lost and found myself in My Mother's Wedding Dress, and in my subsequent novel, Daphne. If writing, like life, is sometimes a shadowy labyrinth, then one needs to know that someone will help you find your way out again, and back into the light.

10 comments:

GlassCurls said...

That notion of sharing, and the way we seem to connect over the things you write here, is called the connection of humanity. There is always something to say to kindred spirits, even if the emotion or event has not yet been experienced by the other person.

Thank you for the link to Juliet's blog too.

kairu said...

Thank you for the link. Thank you for your blog, and for responding to every comment we leave here. There is a constant sense of dialogue, of connection, of community, between all of us who meet here, even if we have never met, may never meet, in person. I find my life has changed and become enriched in so many ways since I found my way to these pages. Again and again I am reminded that so many things connect us all, literature and poetry and yes, red lipstick and the perfect pair of shoes. It tells me that none of us are alone.

enid said...

I too have been enriched by your blog and have found that I look forward to each new entry. You are the entangler of our threads and so I say a big big THANK YOU to you. May we all continue to share and care and let's hope we all get a chance to meet somewhere at one of your talks !!!!!!!!

Justine Picardie said...

The threads are woven together by all of us here, for which I am grateful to you -- enid, kairu, oxford-reader, and everyone else who reads and responds.

Lilacs said...

I love that Justine's threads - and those of all her erudite contributors are weaving together - not so life's rich tapestry, more an elegant, warm wrap.

Lazywell said...

Mm, and a stylish tweed coat for the men amongst us.

Justine Picardie said...

Elegant wraps and stylish tweed jackets -- what could be nicer? Although some of you know that I have a penchant for frayed tweed... something with a history.

Liza Campbell said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Justine Picardie said...

Better to eat Prestat chocolates than superglue. Tell me if you ever need an extra tester...

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