Our Rural Roots

Meredith Bernard, Contributor

I'll never forget the day I started writing. I came home from church, sat on my bed with my laptop and searched "how to start a blog." Somehow, I stumbled through creating a free account on WordPress, and the blinking cursor started to unravel a chain of words that felt like I had to get them out or I'd internally combust.

But, I wasn't a writer. I was a young mom who had quit her corporate job to stay at home, and in the transition, I'd lost my identity. What happened on that blank screen that day was the beginning of finding myself again, and in the 10 years since, writing has helped me continue that process.

As with any worthy walk in life, my writing journey hasn't been linear or necessarily easy. There have been seasons where the words have come as plentiful as spring rains, and there have been seasons where they've dried up like a summer drought. I've never been good at forcing them, but I've also learned that getting still enough to let them surface is important, too.

Proverbs tells us that "death and life are in the power of the tongue." So, I suppose it would be fair to say the same for the pen, as well. Words shape us, define us, humble us and, ultimately, I believe they can heal us. There is a writer in us all. We all have something to say. We all have a story uniquely our own. Maybe we share it with the world through a blog or a book. Or, maybe we keep our words in a private journal no eyes will ever see. But, I promise you that giving words life one way or the other will help you make more sense of the world.

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-- Meredith Bernard writes, photographs and tends to farm and family from North Carolina. Follow her on social media @thisfarmwife, and visit her website at https://thisfarmwife.com/…

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