Starting to Let That Sh*t Go

[“honestly, this is a really dark time for me - I’m going through a lot…”] // (“by a lot, you mean drugs?”)

I don’t remember when I bought Eden Sher/Julia Wertz’s book The Emotionary; I just know it was one of the (too many) books that made the move from Indy to Charlotte. And one day while I was scrolling Pinterest, this paper bag “scrapbook” pops up, and I suddenly remember Jerry Springer’s old show. Not the self-titled, the one with the suitcases. Emotional Baggage.

The Lord, The Universe, my angels, they’ll tell y’all that the total weight of my books was a mere pound to the shame, anger, disappointment - the feels forreal - I’d brought as well. I vowed before I even graduated high school that I wouldn’t move back home. But there I was, facing the hard truth and swallowing those hard pills (sour memories we sometimes regret, and the overwhelming feelings from said “regrets” that I could no longer numb with weed).

I knew I wasn’t weak, but I didn’t see how much strength I could gain by letting go of the weight of my “what-ifs”.

The paper bags quickly resembled suitcases [to me], so I wanted to exaggerate the idea with travelling items, then put the reader on a metaphorical journey to the healed version of themselves. Here the project begins to lend itself to the Loaded Chamber of Reflection, both being tools to study & settle one’s emotions. (If you’d like to see what I unpacked in my personal journal and how, head to Human Resources.)

I asked myself, “What do you normally pack in a suitcase?” and then once I had that list, I thought of each item as a symbol for an emotional “booger” that picks you, not the other way around. Paring down was a slight challenge (as well as pairing up) but EB has easily become my most prized zine for its popularity as much as its interactive intention.

Pro-tip: Master template. Master template. Master template. (See its importance in a separate ramble in Human Resources.)