Panning for Gold
Purpose: A periodic review of your writing.
Most of us have had the experience of sifting through rocks and debris, allowing the detritus fall away through the grates of our fingers or sifter, to collect the keepers. Panning for Gold invites you to sift through your writing for your inner gold, a way of collecting the nuggets of your journaling.
You might decide to do this exercise once a week or once a month, or simply when you want to know what you’ve been writing about. What speaks to you now? What sings out? Shouts or burns? These are what we want to hold onto, where the energy is, to lead us further down our path.
Inspiration:
Listening back with the Ear of the Heart
by Joe Zarantonello
Technique
Write down these four headings, allowing space underneath where you will write: Images, Insights, Questions, Leads. As you read through your writing and something grabs you, you are going to write it down under one of these headings.
Read through your gathered writing. Take your time.
Images
Search for any single word, phrase or image that resonates in you. This indicates there is more to learn from it.
Insights
There will be those aha! moments when something makes sense that hasn’t before. Write down a full sentence describing it.
Questions
Write down any questions that arise, either from your journal or, that comes to you as you are reviewing your work.
Leads
This is where you put down anything that you think you need to pursue further or follow up on. Keep asking yourself: Where does this lead?
Example