I used to write a LOT. I was most prolific in my early teens, whilst still at school. Then when I met my first love and throughout our time together. He was a passenger on the Herald of Free Enterprise and we had become engaged literally the day before he took the trip and was killed. I was devastated. I found that there was a release of grief through writing.
Where I was and what I was doing, even what I was wearing when the news item of the event hit the TV screen will stay with me forever. I imagine it is the same for people who say they remember where they were and what they were doing when they heard about the assassination of JFK .
He had not told me what time he was travelling, he had not told me the name of the vessel. But none-the-less, in the split second of seeing the newsflash and understanding what was on the screen I knew, without a doubt, that he had been on that ferry. I knew without a doubt that he was never, ever, coming home to me. Although I hoped beyond hope that he would. But this is another story, for another time perhaps.
In 2012 I started writing again, before my disintegration, more in 2014 and still more in 2015. I honestly believe this return to writing is an integral and crucial part of my recovery.
I was lucky enough to be asked to contribute to an e-magazine (SnowGlobe Poetry). My heartfelt thanks to Thomas Snow (Twitter @Snowglobeman, Instagram Thomassnowglobe) for believing in me and encouraging me to write.
My published work can be found here:
Work not previously published: