Hello Spring: A Mini Journal Prompt Zine
Gel Plate Ephemera + Seasonal Observations + Patience
Hi, friends.
What a ride I’ve been on. A year ago March, a tiny tornado uprooted my neighbor’s tree into the side of my house. Siding, gutters, roof, and the garage door were all in the path of the wrath.
That morning, I learned that the damage inflicted on your house by a neighbor’s tree is the responsibility of your insurance company to cover. Sure, their insurance company can offer photos and apologies, but liability is 100% yours.
I also learned a number of other lessons in this time frame:
Asking for help is uncomfortable, but struggling alone is impossible
Insurance companies want to wear you down so their bare minimum seems a satisfactory solution (which it never is)
A competent, patient contractor is worth twice their weight in gold.
A compassionate, competent insurance adjustor is worth their weight in gold.
There are very few of #3 in the world.
There are even fewer of #4 in the world.
Even professionals with an excellent track record can F* up your claim
HOAs are assholes (this is not breaking news)
Non-aware neighbors who report your errant trashcan in your driveway on the day your dad nearly died after anesthesia for an emergency surgery are bigger assholes, no matter how many times they smile and wave.
There are good people in the world. Don’t let the actions of one sour your interactions with others.
Most of all, patience is indeed a virtue that must be cultivated and intentionally nurtured.
Today, one full year plus later, the work is completed, the final two payments are traveling from the mortgage company to the contractor, and another spring has unfolded around the drama on a timeline of its own.
To carry that lesson of patience forward, I want to be sure that I take time to observe and honor the season through reflection. For this reason, the zine I shared with my yin students this week was one of journal prompts to consider while still in the energy of blossoming.
To start, I used the master board collage I created with my gel plate print ephemera last week. You can see how I did this here:
Here’s the background, in case you don’t want to read!
I had a bunch of spring-ish journal prompts floating about, so I got out my snap-together typewriter letters and brought them to life in words…
and the zine came to life:
Front and back cover:
Pages 2-3
Pages 4-5
Pages 6-7
Sometimes patience is worth the payoff. Patience is always worth the payoff.
Go enjoy spring.
