Friday Dispatch: Writing 11s (there are no rules)

From scarcity to abundance in 2.2 seconds

Friday greetings,

I wasn’t going to send anything out today because I thought I’d be away. But I’m home and I wrote 11 things, in no small part to move myself from groaning to gratitude. (It mostly worked!)

In case you’re wondering, “Why 11?”

The short answer is that my birth time is 11:11am, and this has always felt special to me. So about five years ago, I created this practice called the Sound of Real Life Happening, which consists of writing 11 things at a time. That is the whole form. (There are no rules.)

Part of its wonder if that it really is that simple. You will want to complicate it. You will want to know what kind of 11 things to write, or what I mean by that. And that’s all just part of it. It’s not meant to be enigmatic; it’s meant to help you drop into the moment and truly just move from one thought to another, attuning to the nature of your thoughts, or your senses, or your surroundings. (There are no rules.)

The more you do it, the more you loosen your grip on trying to do it right. You can look at writing 11s as a mindfulness practice, a way of generating writing material, or both. You can use it as a way of getting unstuck or grounding down. Your 11s can be short or long, boring or bursting. (There are no rules.)

Give it a try (see #10!).

Shabbat Shalom and love,

Jena

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1. Chalupa starts crying in her crate. I am deep in a dream about learning Biblical Hebrew. Glance at phone – it is 4:47am. Noooo.

2. After 30 more minutes of her fussing, I surrender. Throw on clothes and take her out to pee in the dark. She runs into the house eager for breakfast and a bone. She even gobbles up her anti-inflammatory pill.

3. I plug in the twinkle lights and pour coffee. A few days ago, I reached the last page in the journal I started using for morning pages in mid-November. Now using up the few pages left in the moleskin I've used as an intermittent journal this year. We have a nice credit at Amherst Books – I think they have journals and decide I'll go choose one as soon as my symptoms are completely gone.

4. I list some high points from yesterday. Suddenly, I'm awash in gratitude and perspective: Aviva playing me a new song. Pearl's 11:11 text. Sitting on the bed drawing while Mani tidies the bedroom. Chupie's loving gazes. Leftover beans and rice and lemon tart.

5. From scarcity to abundance in 2.2 seconds.

6. A few days ago, I put away the Hanukkah decorations. But I left some holiday cards on the mantel. I glance up. Various shades of blue. A dove. Peace, Shalom. If only.

7. Headache, runny nose, nausea, blech. So many people are sick – Covid, flu, colds, strep, RSV. Sending out all the care.

8. I wake to an unexpected contribution to the Kerri Grote Community Writers' Fund and a new registration for the 2024 Sound of Real Life Happening group, where we write 11s (just like this!) once a season. (See #5.)

9. We bought firewood but haven't yet made a fire. Maybe this weekend?

10. Have you ever written 11s? Give it a try. Don't overthink it. Tag or email me. Better yet, join me in the new year (we start January 11):
www.jenaschwartz.com/the-sound-of-real-life-happening

11. Imagining a world where no one feels abandoned.

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