Little Bites & E-Mail by Bobbi Junior

Writing in the midst of certain seasons of life can be overwhelming.

Writing about life-changing events can be overwhelming. 

Writing when you have a busy family, a full time job, and ongoing demands on your time can be... .  

Well, you get the picture.

Several years ago our daughter was disabled in a car accident. Lately I’ve felt the need to document the story, but the story is huge. In prayer, I asked the Lord for direction, and a simple thought came to mind. Little bites. Little bites? I gave it a try. That morning I quickly described one scene midway through her hospitalization. It filled half a page. It brought tears to my eyes. I named it, dated it, and saved it in a folder called ‘Draya’s Story’. Since then, I’ve added several more vignettes. Documenting one will often trigger another as I let stream of consciousness take over. Bit by bit I’m creating the skeleton of my daughter’s story, bones that will be ready for a season when God gives me time to flesh it out.

I also have a file called, ‘Mom’. In addition to working full time, I am part of the Sandwich Generation of caregivers, with an independent daughter who is disabled, and an increasingly dependent mother who has dementia. As my mother's story unfolds, I don’t want to lose the pieces of this part of her journey: hospitalization, working with the health care system, entry to the nursing home, her reactions, my reactions.

How do I keep track of a story that’s evolving day by day?  Again, I prayed in frustration, and received another nudge from the Lord. As I whipped off an e-mail to my friend, describing Mom’s latest catastrophe, I realized I’d just told the story. In writing. A quick copy-and-paste and the e-mail was saved in my ‘Mom’ file. Today I have several pages of e-mails detailing events as they occur. Once again, when the season is right, I’ll have all I need to tell this part of my mother’s journey, and my learning as I walk alongside her.

Small bites in the form of vignettes, and saving e-mail updates are two simple ways to be assured you’ll have what you need to tell the full story, when the time is right. 

www.bobbijunior.com