Diana Kurniawan

The past four weeks has been a hectic spot in my life, and now it is plateauing to a steady uphill to an improvement. Several family emergencies ensued and I couldn't help but to be fearful of what tomorrow will bring. All I could do was breathe at the time and cried. It was so devastating that I couldn't put things into words. But, I held on to the emotion and expressed it on paper.

As I finished one of my dear friend's book, Kidnapped by the Taliban, by Dr. Dilip Joseph, and also Kullervo by J.R.R. Tolkien this past week, I became inspired to blog. I may not be able to flesh out the details and indulge on my emotions on this blog, but now that things have settled, I have nothing but words to write and to express in my reality.

The emotions were held under the table at the time and I held it as if I was holding something in secret. I wrote things down slowly and the expression of writing things down now, during, and after the emergencies helped me cope. I calmed down with writing and I found this was as common as breathing... for a lot of people. 

I have been grateful for my ability to express emotions into words as a writer, and now as a human being. Writing was my coping and it has been and will always be. There was nothing in the past that could destroy it and nothing in the future will ever deter me.

Just write. 

It has been a long week, aside from my family's own bouts of influenza, but also from being inside too much that makes my own conscience tired. The news has been full of tragedies, but being in a community of writers heals me as I keep in touch with other writers. 

A friend, Julie Rowan-Zoch, is our local delegate for the Society for Childrens Books Writers and Illustrators, and she sends me lovely messages to encourage our local groups to stay inspired during this self-quarantine times. 

"An object in motion, tends to stay in motion," is the saying goes by Newton, the Mathematician, and this stays true to writers as well. Being in seclusion for self-quarantine doesn't mean complete isolation. I plan to immerse myself in inspiration by reading and continuing to write with my fellow writers and listening to their stories on Instagrams or Twitter or if you have a Facebook account as well. 

Writing doesn't have to be a lonely sport, because there are communities around the world and in your local groups who loves to connect and communicate about writing. This helps tremendously. But never forget that even during self-quarantine, writing is as easy as picking up a pencil or a pen and just writing on your own. Then sharing it through the world online to create connection.

Just write.