Heart to paper
The power of written words
How motherhood unleashes creative forces to become the woman you want to be from the bottom of your heart
Portrait: Mother and author from Australia
A book for mothers
We stroll through the alternative Australian town of Brunswick on a sunny spring afternoon. A beautiful, expansive river runs through the charming little town, which is lined with boutiques, cafés and lots of small hippy stores. Live music can be heard from corners here and there, carried by a light breeze and adding to the promising atmosphere. My husband, our 10-month-old baby and I end up in a small bookshop by chance. As soon as I step inside, a book on a revolving stand immediately jumps into my field of vision – it seems to stand out from the rest of the books in a peculiar way thanks to its sandy pink cover. It shows a sketch of a woman with flowers growing on her head, as if from the earth. Like a magnet, I head for the book, flick through the pages and at the same time sit down on a large sofa in the middle of the bookshop.
It seems to me as if I am sinking into my own diary: loose thoughts that are woven together lyrically. Like individual puzzle pieces, an overall picture emerges at the end: MOTHER MUSINGS is the title. I buy the book, which is to accompany me on the rest of my journey.
We spend several months of parental leave on the red continent. This time marks an already special phase in which, as a new family with a new earthly being, you reflect on everything, explore new territory and try to freeze every moment that lasts just the blink of an eye. It is a short, even fragile, period of time together that seems infinitely precious, like a diamond. You want to protect it, marvel at it and cherish it.
The book helps me in my own journey of being and becoming a mother to organize my own thoughts and to perceive certain aspects from different angles: not only to honor the heart overflowing moments of happiness with your child, but also to look at the energy-sapping moments as a ladder to become the person you ultimately want to be. For example, one chapter under the title Teachings reads as follows:
I understand now
That it was never intended to be comfortable
Because it was intended to push me out, far beyond what I once knew,
So that I could let go of the things that were holding me back;
So that I could expand and grow in into the woman needed to mother you
It was all for my expansion and evolution.
And here I am,
STRONGER,
WISER,
AND MORE ABLE TO LOVE
Than ever before.
MOTHER MUSINGS inspires me and I feel connected to other mothers in a peculiar way. The author shares her experiences and thoughts on motherhood – with all the challenges as well as blissful moments that come with this new stage of life. The polarities of this instructive and magical time are wonderfully transformed into poetry. A work of art that has sprung from the heart of a mother and takes other mothers by the hand – because in the end, everyone is in the same boat. Her lines resonated with me so strongly that I contacted the author.
“I've always felt a strong connection to the land here, where the First Nation people lived. I feel the spirit of my ancestors in my blood and in all living organisms and listen to the wisdom of nature.”
Laura Wighton
Laura has long blonde hair and light blue eyes, is thirty years old and lives with her husband and four-year-old daughter near the coast in the hinterland of Byron Bay. Surrounded by green hills, fields and numerous streams, she lives an exceptionally close-to-nature life in the green Bundjalung Country. She has lived here for a whole decade. She grew up in a small town in New South Wales. Her father is of indigenous descent. "I've always felt a strong connection to the land here, where the First Nation people lived. I feel the spirit of my ancestors in my blood and in all living organisms and listen to the wisdom of nature," says Laura, describing her feelings about her homeland. She discovered her love of writing as a child by putting her thoughts down on paper. She "enjoys words", as she says herself. She browses through her mother's poetry books and has always been drawn to the mysterious power of words. She wrote her first poems at the age of 7. Laura is inspired by the Aboriginal stories of her father, who is always talking about the Dreamtime.
“Sometimes I receive words and I don't know where they actually come from.
But I write these things down because I know it could be medicine for others.”
In her early twenties, she went to South India and accompanied an Ayurvedic medicine man for a while. This marked a milestone, as it was not only there that she discovered her love and passion for naturopathy and holistic health. With the help of an interpreter, she accompanies the medicine man and documents everything he does in writing and learns how body, mind and soul are in harmony with each other. Her diary is always at her side like a faithful friend. This experience opens the portal to her own spirituality. She uses writing to process and understand her experiences there. She develops a deeper awareness of her environment, the interaction with people and nature. She processes everything while writing in order to categorize and integrate new insights. She is training to become a naturopath and has always been fascinated by how energies in the body can influence the psyche and tap into the creative spirit. For several years, Laura has been practicing the universal healing energy Reiki, which she believes everyone can access. She uses this practice above all for her true passion: writing. In meditations, in which she consciously accesses her chakras and directs the energies there, helps her to stay connected and centered with her environment, especially with nature. "Sometimes I receive words and I don't know where they actually come from. But I write these things down because I know it could be medicine for others," explains Laura. A spiral tattoo adorns her wrist. It symbolizes what she deeply believes: everything is connected. Laura has always felt different from the people around her and started to question many things early on and approach things differently, which is exemplified by (patriarchal) society. Her unconventional approach is particularly evident in her decision to give birth for the first time.
“A lot has to do with social conditioning and negative beliefs within yourself.
The more I depend on the opinions and expertise of others, the less self-confidence and power I ultimately have.”
Free birth
I learn that Laura has already written a book about her first birth. The idea came to her all of a sudden at 4am when she was seven months pregnant with her first child. She only remembers getting out of bed and writing the word initiation on paper. This book deals with the very intimate experience of her completely intervention-free birth at the age of 26. Laura describes this borderline experience as an extremely sacred, very powerful and spiritual act. Self-determined and resolute, Laura went into her pregnancy and birth without any medical intervention right from the start. As if on a wave, she allows herself to be carried by the unpredictable storms that pregnancy brings with it, with unshakeable trust and confidence. She draws all this strength from her own resources and from nature. She never takes a pregnancy test, never once goes to the ultrasound examinations and is not looked after by a midwife either before or after the birth. She stays away from regular and standardized check-ups until the end. Her natural and non-invasive water birth takes place exclusively in the company of her mother and her partner.
Complete surrender and radical trust in her own body, as well as the knowledge that she is carried by something higher, are her anchors. "As a child, I saw a video of a woman giving birth to her child in a riverbed surrounded by the elements of nature and her family. Wow, that inspired me so much that I wanted to do that too," Laura answers my question about what made her choose this extreme path.
It is important to emphasize that this option is not suitable for every woman – especially if medical necessity is essential due to critical findings or medical history. Her example is merely another way to shape your own birth in a self-determined way that is absolutely individual. Her book is intended to make people think about why many pregnant women feel at the mercy of the standardized medical healthcare system and disempowered, allowing themselves to be guided by their fears instead of trusting it.
"A lot has to do with social conditioning and negative beliefs within yourself. The more I depend on the opinions and expertise of others, the less self-confidence and power I ultimately have," says Laura, explaining her path. She has dared to swim against the tide of our society, which has created medical standards that maneuver women into extreme insecurities, fears and powerlessness. With this book, Laura wants to offer a new perspective on pregnancy and birth, to remind women of their own inexhaustible source of power. It is a book that aims to contribute to the evolution of humanity's consciousness to consider new possibilities in which women find their way back to their natural, feminine essence and use their creative power. Laura wants to share this deep spiritual experience so that dysfunctional programming within society can be undone. In the book, she shares intimate self-care practices and provides tools to dissolve negative beliefs.
"It doesn't matter how many people read the book. I knew that this important message had to get out into the world. It's about taking back your own power. Nothing seemed more natural to me to choose this path, so I wrote Initiation," Laura unconditionally describes her motivation.
The number of women opting for a completely intervention-free birth is growing in Byron Bay: once a week there is a kind of women's circle led by two doulas, where women can empower each other on this path. On her blog, Laura openly and rawly shares her experiences on various topics related to her pregnancy. One post reads:
I chose love, nourishment and deep rest over anxiety and fear. Instead of having weekly checkups and monitoring with a midwife or a doctor, I was having deep checkups with myself, really getting to the bottom of my fears, and fears that society bombard us with.
Her comments make me reflect. Although I find her decision radical and I would not choose this path in this form, her story has inspired me to realize how fundamentally important your own inner attitude is. Birth and motherhood are the greatest forms of (spiritual) personal development because they show you where you are on the path of life and how far you are able to go in your own ability to overcome fears and obstacles. How do you want to be as a mother?
As I conduct this interview with Laura, she is pregnant for the second time – she is in her third trimester and more empowered and confident than ever. This time, too, she opts for an intervention-free pregnancy and birth. "It takes a lot of discipline and courage not to be influenced by birth stories or the opinions of others. But I trust my body and my intuition," says Laura, describing the challenge of making such a decision. She always withdraws into nature to ground herself and listen to her own voice.
“If you strive for perfection, you'll never do
anything or get anywhere. It's a process of becoming, a space in between.”
Heart to Paper
It seems to me that pregnancy has empowered her to come into her own creative power and go for who she wants to be. However, it was a long road before she dared to call herself an author. But pregnancy inspires her to realize her dreams, and she believes that creativity and motherhood go hand in hand. Although it is a challenge to be a mother and find the peace to write at the same time, Laura is relaxed and tries to co-create with creativity. It is like a seed that is constantly germinating in the ground and will one day be allowed to sprout. It's the same with her books. In motherhood, she has the same aspiration as in writing: "If you strive for perfection, you'll never do anything or get anywhere," she explains. It's a process of becoming, a space in between.
“Everyone can write their story and transform hidden feelings into art and influence people in the process. It's a real journey of healing and transformation.”
As she has already published two books and people are approaching her, one day she is asked to give a writing course. She is skeptical at first and doesn't want to create a theoretical framework. She wants to go straight to the heart and open up a safe and secure place where people can be vulnerable and honest with each other. With her Heart-to-Paper workshops, Laura wants to create a tangible meeting place where participants feel the energy to allow their inner emotions and have the courage to share their words with the community. The goal of these workshops is to teach people how powerful their own words can be. When you put lines on paper, it's an extremely personal dialog with your higher self. "It's like the indigenous people who told their own stories about the Dreamtime. This sharing is extremely valuable – there is so much wisdom and power in it," explains Laura. She emphasizes that her own written words are unique because every person has a multi-layered life that only exists in this form. "Everyone can write their story and transform hidden feelings into art and influence people in the process. It's a real journey of healing and transformation," Laura affirms the essence of her workshops, in which connection and ultimately unity are created.
"Why shouldn't someone write about their grandmother, who had a strong influence, or why shouldn't a mother write about the loss of her child," Laura describes her intention in detail. This is already her eighth workshop, each of which is dedicated to a specific topic. These are set up like healing circles, which are also attended by men. "It's usually the insecure and introverted ones who put their artistic essence on paper. The hidden feelings are expressed even more powerfully when you read them to each other," says Laura, describing her experiences and encouraging everyone to find their own narrative within themselves.
These powerful workshops are an alchemy of what characterizes her passion: writing, creating rituals and holding the space for people to come together, heal and be encouraged. While she is heavily pregnant when she leads the workshops, she is on a high. "I want to create these spiritual spaces all over the world – I feel called to do it," her eyes light up as she talks about her version. She wants to have the opportunity to offer these artistic oases of strength and experiential meeting places in retreats.
I am enchanted by what she does and it gives me confidence. I hear so often that having children is a turning point, especially for women, where their own passions and dreams are suffocated like germs and mothers sacrifice themselves unconditionally. But Laura lives the opposite. Her story shows wonderfully how pregnancy and motherhood enable you to tap into your own feminine and creative power even more and give you the necessary esprit to do exactly what makes you blossom from the inside out. Only through this powerful time you are more capable than ever of finding creative paths and becoming the woman you wish you were in your wildest dreams.
Text: Katharina Hahn
Photos: Provided by Laura Wighton
Publication: 19.07.2024
You can find more information about her books, workshops and mentoring here:
Instagram: @LauraWigthon
Contact: wightonlaura@gmail.com
The German text was published in the magazine The Mothering Journey (edition Summer 2024) and can be ordered here: themotheringjourney.de
