Something Happened
August 27, 2012 § 86 Comments
A little more than four months ago I began writing this blog. All to pre-promote a book project. Instrumental. Means to an end. Nothing more than that.
Something happened. I found myself drawn to this writing. Drawn like never before. I felt what every writer feels- the thirst for the work. The writing itself. Not a means to anything.
Something else happened. People. People came and read what I wrote. Many of them left messages. Many of them came back, again and again. They brought me energy and strength, filled my pages with their kind and thoughtful responses. They let me see their work- their amazing, stunning work.
Generous, brilliant, loving people. Great, great writers. People struggling with illness, depression. Artists of every medium- the camera, pen and ink, the canvas. Exceptional athletes seeking outer and inner fitness. Wanderers. Mothers and fathers. Buddhists, Christians, Pagans. Beautiful, romantic voices. Flowing, rhythmic poets.
Their voices sometimes filled with joy, sometimes with anger, sometimes with aching, nearly unbearable, pain. But always real, always present.
My work is intertwined now with theirs. I feel surrounded by their spirit. Not alone.
They are with me now. And I am with them.
only here only now 
Thomas – I have found this post and felt that I just had to say something to you. You have voiced what I feel, the pull and the desire and the absolute need to write knowing that one’s words are forever intertwined with the presence of others. Your words, my words, their words create bonds of presence and intimate relationship. Regardless of what the future might bring, these intimate relationships are real and the ripples of these will endure forever. Thank you.
Robert,
So happy you found my writing and that it resonated with your own experience. It is an amazing thing- this sense of community and connection that arises.
Thank you.
Tom
Thank you so much for this, Tom! You are too kind! I know I am a tad bit too late but I had to tell you how glad I am that we connected 🙂
This is so beautifully written, I just had to scroll my way past all the 81 others to find a place for my little comment… 🙂 Have a blessed journey Tom, and no, I do not believe in any spesific God…, but I do believe that humans are meant to be the hearts of gods, on earth. Best, Vibeke
Vibeke,
I’m so sorry that it’s taken me a bit to respond. Especially because you left me such a kind and thoughtful reply.
Thank you so much. And wishing you a blessed journey as well.
Tom
These thoughts were in my head. How was it you knew?
Elizabeth,
Not sure. I feel that this post- perhaps more than any other I have written- triggered an emotional connection. I know that’s true for me.
Glad for our connection.
Tom
What a wonderful blog you have. No wonder people keep coming back. I am a follower now. Happy Blogging cheers Judy 🙂
judysp.wordpress.com
Judy,
Well, what a wonderful thing for you to say.
Happy we are now following each other’s work.
Tom
🙂
Once again Tom, you’ve gently captured and reflected back our thoughts and feelings. I couldn’t share your view more. Thanks!
Chris,
Thanks.
I’m struck of course by the response to this post. These ideas are clearly shared within the larger community- and clearly mean a lot to each of us.
Tom
I feel the same thing as you – blogging has changed my life. I have not only deepened my love for writing, but I have discovered so many wonderful people from all over the world, who have inspired me in many ways.
Isn’t it amazing?
Lucky us.
Thanks for the response- and happy we are connected.
Tom
Thank you Tom, good thoughts are like fresh air. cheers.
Cheers back.
Your photo art continues to knock me over with its artistry.
Tom
Tom,
I wanted you to check out this blog, as I believe you will like it as well. When I awarded your blog, his was also on the list, so you may have checked him out. But in case you hadn’t I thought you would be interested. Here is his latest post:
http://dilipnaidu.wordpress.com/2012/08/26/bliss-in-the-form-of-a-flower-the-brahma-kamal/#comment-3655
I know, and admire, Dilip’s blog. Still, thanks, Bethany, for thinking of me and suggesting this connection.
Tom
Oh man, I love this. What gorgeous, expansive energy you are holding here, for so many people. And a beautiful example of what happens when we follow a passion simply because it calls to us. I am so honored to have been a part of your path from early on. You do indeed have a gift, and I’m glad you’re hearing that message reflected back to you from so many wonderful followers. So totally excellent… (doing the inner Happy Dance!)…
Julianna,
“So many wonderful followers.” So many great writers, so many kind souls, artists, people of great gifts.
Happy you’re dancing.
Thanks so much, Julianna.
Tom
I wrote this for you
http://julienmatei.com/2012/08/28/a-word-to-tom/
Julien,
You have such a clear sense of what I’m seeking to do in the work. And I am thinking of the novel.
Your “a word to Tom” piece is as insightful as it is kind and generous.
Thank you.
Tom
You see Tom,
You mirror me and I mirror you. I give you back what you give.
In this cosiderate reciprocity, we kind of build a strong sense of “WE” where each “I” can unfold freely.
I am so glad in two ways:
First, for serving you back what you give, and for the second,
that you confirm that I see through things clearly – indeed I made the right” guess”. I seem to have this uncommon ability to grasp things intuitively, and even if I sometimes can be “wrong”, I can read behind the lines with sharp precission…
Another thing:
Generosity is not obvious in a competition oriented society. More often than not, people are rather stingy when it comes to giving right feed back – at least, in my experience.
As for me, when I encounter quality, I rejoice. It means that I have smth to learn.
You see, I am a big egoist: I want people to be happy
Cause if people around are happy, their happiness will benefit me as well.
Tom — so much inspiration going around. I feel blessed, flattered and my heart just wants to spill onto the page. So I did. I know you will connect with my latest post – well, in the vulnerability of it — skinny girl with a whole lotta body image and baggage – unloaded.
Thanks again for being you and for inspiring me to reach deeper!
Heather,
Your “skinny girl” post was a powerful and beautifully composed work. Showing again your willingness to make yourself vulnerable in the writing. Great strength there.
I agree- “so much inspiration going around.” In both directions.
Thank you.
Tom
Hehe, you know what they say of “great minds”… 😉 But if seriously, i am a pro writer – and regular writing is a monastic and tedious work, it’s ages before it sees the light of the day and at the time you are due to launch the book – you have hard time remembering why you wrote it in the first place… Like this, you get people who are on the same wavelength replying asap and connecting ❤
Lena,
Yes, part of what makes all this so wonderful is the immediacy and the intimacy of the response. And I do feel surrounded by good, caring people.
I’m glad we connected.
Tom
That “something that happened” was YOU. You have an incredible gift Tom. Keep it rollin’
David,
Generous and kind- as always.
I’ll keep rolling. But you too.
Thanks.
Tom
This is beautiful Tom. I am glad that this experience has become much more than you ever thought it would be… as it was for me too. I always appreciate your thoughts and love visiting yours as well…
Thank you for sharing this with us. It means very much to me. ♥
Muse,
What can I say? Your writing, your presence, is so powerful, so beautiful.
How did I come to this wonderful place where we are connected?
Thank you.
Tom
Awe, that is such a beautiful compliment to me and my blog. Thank you so very much. ♥ This blog world can be a place of great friendships and transformation… personally speaking of course. 😛
You know, Tom, there are many blogs I read. But there are few blogs where I come to read not only what the writer has written, but what his readers have responded with to the writer, and how that writer responds back. The interaction that is on your blog is always so touching and so interesting, and it reminds me of how much we truly are the same at the heart and soul of us.
Thank you Thomas, for creating this community, and letting me be a part of it as you have. Thank you for letting us all into your life. Something, surely, did happen.
Bethany,
The connection that we have is special to me. You have such a spirit, such a great heart, and you write with honesty, openness, and sensitivity. You are so real, and so present. You are a treasure.
Tom
I love this, thank you Tom
Missy,
I am so happy that I found your blog and its beautiful and warm messages.
Thank you.
Tom
Dear Tom, a wonderful post that expresses so powerfully the experience of finding a blogging family … yes we love you and look forward to your writings and their fine work in our lives … it is life we share, the life that is us and together it is magnified so that we almost see that we are all the one being, our streams of connection thickening as the radiance of oneness grows and the myth of separation dissolves ,,, blessings, Christine xx
Christine,
This “blogging family”- of which you are such an important part- is a great and unexpected blessing. “The life that is us…”.
I am so, so grateful that you have been with me in this- as I am with you.
Tom
Your words could have so easily been my own. I am not sure it was ever their intention but WP is changing lives, enriching lives. Thank you so much for expressing so beautifully, what I think so many of us feel inside.
Tracie,
You are an artist of immense talent and a person of great heart.
I’m richer for our connection.
Thank you.
Tom
Tom, in reading this post and the many heartfelt responses to it. I am struck by the similarity of feelings we all share, as we read your work.
You have the great talent, fearlessness and ability to honestly…. open your your heart and soul….examine the contents and articulate so eloquently the experience…
You write of the emotions, feelings and the experiences,….most of us have had and pushed down or locked away out of fear, your writings open our own closed doors. We are touched by these feelings and thoughts you describe, in part, because we relate and discover through them…we are not alone, these are the very human experiences, we all share.
“Something Happened” is one more, great example, of an experience so many of us have had in this community of shared talents…..and once again, you have expressed so well, our commonality of appreciation, to the people we have met here.
Thank you Tom for sharing your remarkable talent with us.
Kirsten,
It is difficult for me to find the words to describe the feelings I have as I read your so thoughtful and so generous response.
When I said that our work is now intertwined in this post, I meant it. My capacity to express these thoughts has come in part from the examples of great writing and honest, open sharing from you and others here.
I never imagined that I would be in this place- doing the work that I love and surrounded by a supportive and caring community of fellow writers and artists.
Lucky, lucky me.
Thank you.
Tom
I completely agree!! Blogging has been a way for me to heal as well as an avenue to connect with so many beautiful souls around me. I am grateful for your work and I thank you!
Jennifer,
You have been with me almost from the beginning. I treasure our relationship. Your beautiful voice has made my life richer.
Thank you.
Tom
i started with similar motives and now have similar sentiments. well put tom! keep posting…
David,
My surfer buddy.
Thanks.
Tom
I agree with everything you say here. Blogging has opened up an avenue for creative minds of every type the like of which our society has not seen before. Like you, I began blogging as a precursor to writing a book. Well perhaps the book will still happen as an when it is meant to be; but for now I blog for the sake of blogging itself. And instead of being a lonely writer I find myself part of a thriving community. We write for the purity of writing and the joy of self expression and in doing so we become entwined in the creativity and lives of others. It has become an enriching and enlightening activity that has connected me with amazing souls I might otherwise never have known. I thank you so much personally for the many ways in which your words continue to inspire me and remind me that we are all part of something much bigger and more profound than ourselves.
Cassie, Cassie,
Among this group of “amazing souls” you were surely in my thoughts as I wrote this post. Your courageous and honest writing inspires and provokes. I admire your work and treasure our connection.
Tom
Well, I read this early morning on my iPhone and just smiled knowing so much of what you were expressing ~ having gone through a similar epiphany with my blogging project (initially only thinking of the blog as a place to share my photos, with no real intention of sharing my soul;) . It is so incredible to consider how through these electronic waves of cyberspace so much heartfelt emotion, wisdom, beauty, sorrow, growth, comfort ~ I can go on~ can be shared and by sensitive wonderful people who might otherwise have remaomed perfect strangers. I am still in awe, and have a difficult time expressing just how powerful this medium can truly be in the realm of our Blog World. Your post says it all so perfectly Tom, and like you, I am very grateful for this home we have found, where we can write from a place of pure inspiration and spirit. What a wonderful post – and I share your sentiments, it’s a whole new level of connectedness… unique and purely amazing to me. Much Love to you Tom ~ and so much appreciate your articulating this today dear friend! ~Robyn Lee
Robyn,
Sensitive, wonderful, courageous, artistic. You are a source of strength and inspiration to me.
Thanks for this message- another gift you have given me.
Tom
A post for you!
http://alifesoluminous.wordpress.com/2012/08/28/a-day-in-my-life/
Cara,
Your art and your messages of gratitude and kindness are an absolute treasure.
Thanks so much for thinking of me in your beautiful post.
Tom
Yes! When you put love, beauty and light into the universe, it comes flooding back to you. 🙂
Emma,
A beautifully expressed- and generous- thought. I do feel the love, beauty, and light coming back to me.
Thank you.
Tom
Tom what a beautiful post. I have only been following your Blog for a few months, maybes not even that, but it feels like a part of a great community to me, and I am so blessed to be a part of it. Keep writing from your heart, your spirit soars each time you write.
Namaste
Anne
Anne,
You say “your spirit soars each time you write.” That is how I feel- alive and fully present in those moments.
You are so kind and generous, always.
The blessings are running both ways.
Thank you.
Tom
Love your post and think the same. 🙂
Tom ~ You send your gift of perception through perfectly distilled words into the universe. Your graceful and sincere acknowledgment is another gift that we receive from you. We are all connected. (And I remember with genuine wonder and awe that you found me, soon after my first post). Synchronicity, serendipity, synergy: all at work (or play).
Sharon,
“We are all connected.” It’s true. And it means more to me than I can express.
I was lucky to have found you. Blessed by our connection.
Tom
Sweet serendipity. It constantly surprises and amazes.
Janelle,
I am amazed- in the best possible way by these connections. Sweet serendipity for sure.
Thanks.
Tom
And, we love you Tom!
🙂
Archana, Archana.
What a blessing you are to all of us. Your words make us think and appreciate what is right in front of us. Continue to write!
BE ENCOURAGED! BE BLESSED!
Francine,
I am absolutely encouraged and blessed beyond any imagination.
Thanks for being a part of all this. Thanks very much.
Tom
You post so exemplifies the power, beauty and community of blogging. It’s was draws many as well as myself in the Blogosphere. :)))
Susan,
You must know that you are a big part of this web of caring and connection for me. Your continuing kindness and support for the work and for me means the world.
Thank you.
Tom
:), as is yours. 🙂
It is amazing, isn’t it? I feel the same way. Before blogging I was a passive user of the internet, and now … to my surprise… I feel connected. 🙂
Connected is the word. Not alone. Connected with generous and thoughtful folks. Lucky us.
Tom
Dear Tom,
Thank you so much for this post, it is exquisite. It is amazing what writing does for us. I am so looking forward to reading your book, but it is also clear that your blog has a life and a heart all its own which is truly beautiful — we, as your readers, are so blessed to be on this journey with you. I picked up the book “The Writer’s Way” several weeks ago and was inspired by this passage: “Why should we write? We should write because it is human nature to write. Writing claims our world. It makes it directly and specifically our own. We should write because humans are spiritual beings and writing is a powerful form of prayer and meditation, connecting us both to our own insights and to a higher and deeper level of inner guidance as well. . . . We should write, above all, because we are writers whether we call ourselves writers or not. . .”
Your writing is both inspiring, compelling and a compass for many I so look forward to your posts each week! Thank you so much! Many blessings to you, my writing friend! Sincerely, Elizabeth
Elizabeth,
Now I really am out of words. This is such a gracious, kind, and thoughtful response. I have no adequate way of saying how much this means to me.
Ours is a cherished connection for me.
Thank you.
Tom
Thank you Tom. I understand and feel the same way.
J.
Jonathan,
You’ve been a very important part of all this for me. Generous, attentive to my writing. I am so grateful. Thank you.
Tom
karmic connection 🙂
A connection that I treasure.
Tom
It’s a beautiful thing, isn’t it Tom? I, too, have found blogging to be immensely rewarding and the folks that I’ve met along the way an absolute joy and balm to my soul. Feel very fortunate to have found your site…. 🙂
Lori,
It’s the most beautiful thing. A great treasure. I really can’t tell you what it has meant to me.
The good fortune here runs both ways.
Tom
So beautifully said, and true… I too began my own blog as merely a documentation of sorts, but it evolved as I realized the amount of skill and support this forum offers; I am completely, daily amazed.
Amazed- and blessed- each and every day.
Thanks for being part of my circle of friends in all this. And thanks for the important work you’re doing to protect the sanctuary of the Everglades.
Tom
Things don’t always turn out according to plan – they turn out better than planned. I know this too.
Lesley,
So true.
I never saw this coming, this wonderful community of writers and artists, this web of support and caring.
Thanks for being a part of it for me.
Tom
When the Universe provides it is not always direct… 😀 yep my pleasure. I understand beyond my vocabulary some days.
How lucky for all of us that you decided to enter the blogosphere. It is truly amazing how writing can unleash emotions and simply make you feel better by writing them, or in many cases nowadays, typing them out. It has been wonderful to meet you here and I look forward to sharing more inspiring stories and messages. Have a wonderful Monday, Tom!
Laura,
I’m the one who has been so blessed. I can’t express adequately how much it’s meant to make a connection with you and with these other folks.
Thank you.
Tom