My Best of 2020
A 20 of 2020 writing tour
I feel like the only person who didn’t start baking this year.
If your newsfeeds looked anything like mine in 2020, every soul across the globe seems to have started baking from sourdough to cookies to every variety imaginable and beyond of challah; sesame, cinnamon, chocolate, rainbow-colored, you name it! With restaurants at limited capacity or closed and people at home with way too much time on their hands, ovens have gotten their spotlight in 2020.
I, however, channeled my creative energy outside the kitchen and onto a keyboard; bringing my insides out and giving my words wings.
Writing became my baking; my outlet, my thing that I looked forward to, my contribution to mankind — my covid passion project. And with far fewer calories than sourdough!
As I reflect on my passion project, which I began post-breakup and mid-lockdown, I am present to the gift that this endeavor has been for me; the gift that keeps on giving.
Not only did writing on Medium serve as a powerful outlet for my strong emotions as I navigated a difficult breakup during a global pandemic as a single mom of two school-aged kids (suddenly virtual-schooling) while working full time from home, it also gave me a new supportive community to step into and a new set of friends across the globe.
Writing on Medium has stretched me and challenged me and expected progress of me and I have loved every bit of it for it helps me grow not just as a writer, but as a human connected to other humans through shared stories.
As I have published 280 pieces on Medium to date with 41.5K views collectively, and 30K reads overall, choosing my favorite pieces will be challenging. I will however try to highlight pieces/genres that have been extra meaningful to me in some way.
Allow me to take you on a journey of my Medium writing adventure of 2020.
- It all began with this piece below as I tried to give words to my experience of isolation as an extrovert who typically derives her energy from others.
2. Shortly thereafter I was dared (on social media) to write a poem and posted this haiku-series, which has since launched my love-affair with haiku. I have written over 200 poems since this dare.
3. As I attempted to process my pandemic-breakup and heal my broken heart, I wrote the following piece, which was my first-ever to be curated and gave me a boost of confidence.
4. Next up was my ‘coming-out’ piece, as a writer that is, which I shouted from my social media pages to anyone who would listen, giving my words wings.
5. Next up were a series of empowerment pieces; Doors In My Face, Life as a Series of Next Steps, Finding Independence, and Date Yourself First — the latter of which got me invited to speak to a local news channel — LIVE on TV!
6. Perhaps one of my very favorite pieces to date is the one I first wrote to the man who broke my heart during the pandemic; the one I thought I would grow old with, the one who shattered my heart and set it on fire — fueling my writing. I later wrote a follow-up to this piece, taking some more ownership for my part in our demise, recognizing my own faulty patterns. This piece was also the beginning of my weekly contribution to PSILY’s Poetry Sunday.
7. I continued to write about the breakup as I processed and healed and rose and sank again; grief is unfortunately non-linear. I wrote poems of heartache and stories of self-discovery and vice versa. This was a quick fun-one I always liked and which generated some momentum too.
8. As I continued healing I began to also find my voice as it related to my former marriage; the one where I lost my voice and eventually lost myself. I began to speak out and to speak my truth in poetry about narcissism, kids of divorce and rediscovering myself (below).
9. One of my favorite haiku-series initially written for my children, turned out to appeal to the inner-child within me, within us all. This is one of my very favorite poems to date.
10. As I began to challenge myself more, I tried new types of poetry. Below are two of my favorite abecedarian poems, an ancient poetic form guided by alphabetical order.
11. I also experimented with 50 and 100-word microfiction. I found that I needed to challenge myself in order to maintain momentum, so I invited discomfort and stepped right out of that comfort zone!
12. The more grounded I felt and the more I was willing and yearning to be known, the more voice I courageously unearthed. As I found my footing I wrote about mental health — trauma, body-image, burnout, covid-fatigue, and depression (below).
13. While enrolled in my Couples Counseling course (I am a soon-to-be therapist), I wrote two of my most successful pieces to date, sprinkling in many personal experiences from my two failed marriages.
14. In September I took my yearning to be known to another level as I launched my own publication by that name. By the way, we just started accepting new writers — so please do join us if you dare to write from the heart.
15. Another favorite poem, still pinned/featured on my profile today:
16. In month seven post-breakup I have finally adjusted my focus and turned it onto myself; healing through deep self-inquiry, insight, and self-love (below) on my ongoing journey of becoming.
17. My favorite tanka poem on relationships, heartbreak, and mental health.
18. This summer I was a victim of cyber-bullying here on the platform. Once again I spoke up and used my voice to give truth to my experience — to rise up against injustice, bullying, and harassment and to protect my happy and safe space that is Medium — home to the inner spaces of my heart — home to my lived experiences.
19. As I wrap up 2020, I want to take this piece into 2021 and beyond with me and invite you to share in it as well — let’s live our best lives!
20. Last but not least, though certainly most ironic, the below is one of my favorite haikus and my best-performing poem (100% reads/views) to date:
Thank you to all who have journeyed through this piece and this life-experience with me and here’s to an uplifting 2021!
Thank you to Sarene B. Arias for the idea and invitation to write our best-of lists.
Thank you to all of the writers/editors who contribute to Being Known — thank you for stepping courageously out into the world and sharing your truth with us.
Galit Birk, PhD is a life coach and a soon-to-be-therapist. She has a PhD in Psychology and a Master’s in Counseling. She is a writer, an editor, and a poet. She is a single mom. She is a deep-feeler who is passionate about people having it all, and living a life they love! Follow her on Twitter and Instagram, and use her referral link to sign up for Medium membership.