Showcase: The Choice Of Moving + To Divorce? Or Not…? + Creating Outside My Comfort Zone

Edited by Nick Burdett

Hello. Nick here, with my fourth March Showcase page.

We’re taking our last gasps of the choices theme and this week, I’d like to leave you with an important message on choices: choosing yourself. You should always be your own number one fan. There are plenty of people out in the world who would drag you down and say you can’t do something, but though vocal, they are in the minority. Find a community, a group of friendly voices, be a friendly voice for others – but always trust that you can do this. Whatever this is for you.

It’s the last of my Showcase pages for now. I’ll be back to take over the first quarter of the Thursday Connectors page at the start of 2027. This seems a long way off, so maybe I’ll pick up some other duties with Write On! in the meantime. It’s been good fun and a great learning experience. Taking the time out of an otherwise busy lifestyle has been a treat. I’ll certainly be contributing more, and encouraging my new writer friends to do the same. I was hesitant to volunteer in the first place; this wasn’t something I’d done before, but I decided to take a leap. It was, I can see now, a choice in itself, the choice to put myself out there and learn to do something new.

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For our first piece, we have a poem by Tavinder about moving on and choosing a new location – which took courage, but seems to have turned out well.

The Choice Of Moving

Uproot to another place
to be closer to family
towards the hustle and bustle
to the seaside of calm
Fifteen years have passed
time for a change
to be close to family
to slow down the pace, the space for oneself
to the seaside of calm
time to move on
pack away the pieces of the old
to make the way towards the new
time for a change
leap towards the unknown of tomorrow
time to move on
to make space for other opportunities to come along
Say goodbye to the house that we built piece by piece by piece
holding back the tears of the memories
time to move on
to the seaside of calm
towards another horizon of change
away from the hustle and bustle
to a slower pace and space for each other
time to move on,
it is goodbye to our home
to say hello to our new house
Face the fear and take the plunge
towards the sea, away from the rat race of London
time to move on,
Say goodbye to the house that we built piece by piece
Look forward to what is to come, the sunshine of tomorrow

© Tavinder Kaur New, 2026

Connect with Tavinder on Instagram: @Tav_inderknew or on her WordPress at tavindernew.wordpress.com

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Next, we hear from David. It’s a hard place to be in, but being open and talking about the situation will help with the road ahead.

To Divorce? Or Not..?

Feeling like a steam train
Has rolled over my heart
I didn’t think at this time in life
That I’d be torn and ripped apart

Who’s getting the cat?
Who’s getting the dog?
I can’t concentrate on that now
My brain is all a-fog

‘Sorry you’re divorcing’ we hear
When we tell people, they say
No, not consciously uncoupling
Like Gwyneth and the guy from Coldplay

It’s been mainly good times, I guess
But recently it’s all been bad
Not sure how I feel about it
But I know they feel glad

So it’s time for a brave face
You know the show must go on
How will I ever feel love again?
Marriage? It’s just one big con

© David Hooper, 2026

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Our final piece comes from Destiny. As soon as I read this, I knew I wanted to put it at the end of my ‘Choosing yourself’ week. It sums up my new-found approach to my writing life and even other creative endeavours. Always aim to try something new!

Creating Outside My Comfort Zone

In today’s world, it takes courage to create outside of your comfort zone. We live in a time where people can instantly judge one another without knowing the full story behind a person’s actions. For artists, this can be challenging because, although we must have freedom to create from our hearts, we fear the judgment, disapproval, or even condemnation of others.

I’ve gone through these fears myself. There are times when I hold back or self-censor, because I worry people might  judge me for saying or doing the wrong thing. And I feel I’m not alone in having these worries. Although it’s good we’re more considerate of how we approach sensitive subjects, we sometimes hold ourselves back because we’re afraid to offend someone.

But what I’ve learned is that we must have the courage to free ourselves. As artists, we must challenge the idea that we should fit into a box. Great artists throughout history challenged our society and world. They pushed past their own discomfort and others’ judgment to innovate and create. And they inspire me to create outside of my comfort zone, even when it’s scary sometimes. I would rather express myself while I can instead of hiding away out of fear. Someone in the world may need the very words I’m afraid to say.

© Destiny Hankerson, 2026

Connect with Destiny via her website: Destinyhankerson.carrd.com

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You can hear great new ideas, creative work and writing tips on Write On! Audio. Find us on all major podcast platforms, including Apple and Google Podcasts and Spotify. Type Pen to Print into your browser and look for our logo, or find us on Podcasters.Spotify.com.

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If you or someone you know has been affected by issues covered in our pages, please see the relevant link below for ​information, advice and support​: https://pentoprint.org/about/advice-support/