About
About the Workshops
Things They Carry Project is designed to promote resilience, healing, and self-care. Our workshops offer participants the opportunity to write, to share their writing with others, to listen to others’ stories and to experience a sense of community. Recent research has shown that writing about distressing life events promotes emotional and physical health and fosters a sense of hope.
In a confidential, supportive environment we offer writing prompts that invite participants to put into words the troubling experiences they have had in the course of their work. The small groups provide the opportunity to explore the meaning of these experiences, to express their past and current feelings, and to record the insights they have gained through these challenging, distressing, and moving encounters.
Our aim, for all those who participate in Things They Carry Project, is to ignite a renewed sense of agency, determination and peace.
Who We Are
We are a group of trained psychotherapists and experienced writers. We have come together to offer free writing workshops for healthcare workers, teachers and school personnel. We have worked side by side and have experienced together the power of creating a shared narrative.
Our Founder:
Kerry Malawista, Ph.D., a writer and psychoanalyst and co-chair of The New Directions in Writing program. Her essays have appeared in The Baltimore Sun, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Zone 3, Washingtonian Magazine, The Huffington Post, Bethesda Magazine, Arlington Magazine, The Account Magazine, and Zone3. She was nominated for a Pushcart Prize and shortlisted for the Kraken Book Prize. She is co-author of four psychology books. Her novel, Meet the Moon, in press for 2022.
Our Steering Committees:
Frontline Workers Project
Anne Adelman
Kate Daniels
Sara Taber
School Project Steering Committee
Gail Boldt
Ruth Neubauer
Thank you to the following individuals who volunteered their time and expertise:
Alice Ashe of AVA Design
Lauren Colton of Hogan Lovells
Gary Stockman - Public Relations Consultant Lucy Scalzo - Administrative Assistant
How it Works
Small groups will meet for 3 workshops, 90 minutes each on Zoom led by expert therapists and writers. Each person will have time to share some of their experiences, offer one another support, and do some writing.
Why Write
Putting pen to page or fingers to keyboard is a transformative experience. Writing gives the opportunity to reflect on the past years. It is a way to imagine a more hopeful future. Many find meaning and solace in the process of writing, understanding that moving forward rests on an understanding of where we have been.