Wo r d s t o l i v e b y
Love activated
B y S unday L arson
As writers, we have words
we can spare. Words that arise
from the wellspring of our love of,
in service of our love for. Words
that bring our inner light to the
outer life.
“I have some food I can spare,”
is a phrase used in gift economies
when a person offers a gift with-
out the expectation of a reciprocal
gesture. However, according to
4 IMAGINE l spring 2017
Lewis Hyde, author of The Gift, the
gift is made with the understanding
that the recipient will share the gift
with yet another person. In other
words, the spirit of the gift lives on
through the relationships developed
by its constant donation.
To write is to see our love in
motion. To write is to dig into depths
beyond ourselves. Our pen touch-
ing page is the convergence of many
forces; a coming together of circum-
stances we created and those we
acquired via blood, history, culture,
imagination, or fate.
As writers we’re the keepers of a
powerful digging stick. This digging
tool is our pen, pencil, or the modern
equivalent of our computer. A digging
stick reveals, as does a pen. It pen-
etrates. Tills. Stirs. Stimulates. Carves.
Arranges. Yields. It breaks up clumps
of concealed potential. It exposes the
underworld to light. It aerates, makes
space for new growth. It pokes us into
motion. It prods others into taking
action. It stirs twenty-six magical
symbols into words, sentences, para-