If the thought of family gatherings sends you running for another helping of stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, consider writing to sort through emotions and uncover your stories. A great way to get started is with the "cluster" exercise.
In my writing class, to illustrate how it works, I wrote "Thanksgiving Dinner" in the center of a large piece of paper. From there, I free-associated with lines drawn out like spokes from that central word to topics that came to mind. (See example.)
Thanksgiving made me think of turducken, so I wrote that word down. My sister and I love the traditional turkey dinner, but one year my brother (the host) prepared an archaeological excavation - a deboned chicken inside a deboned duck inside a debonded turkey. Between each fowl, he layered homemade pate, prepared with fresh sausage shipped from Paul Prudhomme in New Orleans. The siblings' conflicting culinary desires were ripe for writing.
At the tip of another spoke I wrote "Shopping with Mom." On the day after Thanksgiving, Mom would take my sister and me to buy our back-to-school wardrobes. My mother sat in the dressing room commenting on everything from our fashion choices to various body parts. Hopefully, our skin will thicken by the time we reach 80.
Another topic: "Missing Dad." When I told my father I wasn't coming to New York for Thanksgiving in 1984, he said, "So, you'll come next year." But he died shortly after that. For us, there was no "next year."
From each of these spokes, more topics came to mind and I added each one on a spoke radiating from the word that triggered it. Turducken led to pate, which led to memories of a foie gras farm in southwest France.
When I do this exercise, I circle the words that evoke emotion or add a checkmark, because I know there's juice there. I end up writing about most topics that arise. All are healing, and some find their way into print.
Writing exercise: The holidays always bring up topics worth writing about. Try the cluster exercise with "Home for the Holidays" in the center and see what other topics follow. Choose one that draws you and do a 10-minute freewrite.
Copyright © 2011 by Laura Deutsch
