FOREWORD
This project hit me like a colossal rock. I did not know where it came from but all I know is that, it is here, crushing me whole. I did not even have the time to dodge or think – which is amazing because doubts, fear, and questions were easily shut out. The ideas were like flood that just swept me upside down even before I can swim my way up to the surface. Even now, I am still drowning with all the thoughts of what to write.
At the start of this year, God impressed in my heart to write, with Him. The past few years that I started writing free verse poetry, it is always centered on my failures and emotional distress as writing is my coping mechanism. Please do not get me wrong. In saying this, I do not mean to discourage writing about what we experience, about our pain, and most especially about what we feel. There should be no shame or guilt in barring ourselves with words and being vulnerable and raw and honest with our paper and pens. In that season, I, too, was writing about those things and I am so grateful for those people who understood my nuances. I know that even in those moments, God was with me.
However, this year, I feel like God is inviting me in a deeper level of writing with Him. He invites me to remember where He was in the moments when all my words scream of anxiety and pain. He wants me to understand that He was there and He carried me. He was the first one to understand. He knew every stroke laced with pain, every dot of frustration even before I can form words and verses. He was in the voices of the people who encouraged and strengthened me in the trying times.
There was fear, of course, for I do not intend to write poetry that sugar coats or romanticizes. The presence of God never gaslights or invalidates our situations. But we can always choose between magnifying the dark and seeking the light. I feel like this is a season where I can highlight the faithfulness and goodness of God because I found Him when I am trapped on the darkest parts of myself.
The idea of creating verses that encourage and strengthen thrills me. The idea of sharing it with other people delights me even more. The idea of crafting them personally to people excites me the most. It has been years and years of praying and asking God what I should do to honor Him with this passion He has given me. I cannot believe that He answered me through this project: WOE Poetry Shop.
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