Every moment in life brings with it something new. Sometimes, the everyday rush makes us move away from who we are, preventing us from becoming instruments of our own creation: the person at work, the role we have at home, and many more functions in which we risk getting lost.
Claudia Maria Udrescu, the creator of the ‘imperfect autobiographical writing course’, as she calls it, comes with an idea in this context, at this time for those born in ’74. Stories from ’74 is her latest project. Where did the idea come from? Here is Claudia Maria Udrescu:
“The idea came because for about three years I have been doing autobiographical writing, which means that, for example, you can write about yourself when you need to introduce yourself for a blog, for a website, for a project, or when you are faced with a change, a transition, either professional or personal. And the idea with the stories from ’74 comes from the fact that it is somehow my generation, and I know that, at least for me and certainly for others, these 50 years that we celebrate this year are somehow a gateway. There comes a moment when we ask ourselves ‘who am I, what else do I want to do, what do I no longer want to do’. It is a gate through which we enter and we are different from who we were before, that it is more than the middle of life, as an average, it is more than the midlife crisis. I saw a lot of questions now: What is my role, what is my purpose?”
Claudia Maria Udrescu also spoke to us about the healing role of autobiographical writing:
“It helped me a lot in a moment of transition, which is where the autobiographical writing project came from, after which I saw that at the moment in which people get down to writing, maybe someone wants to write a book, maybe you need to write about yourself for the website you put up, because you want to communicate your experience to others. The problem is that, at that moment, the impostor syndrome intervenes, which says, ‘Who are you to write and who are you, since so much has been written. Shakespeare, or anyone else who wrote. And that’s exactly when we need to write, because each of us has an invisible story, that becomes visible the moment we put it on paper. We see it first, and that’s why I highly recommend handwriting, we clarify it. Writing for me is autobiographical writing, it’s about clarity and a lot of creativity, because we reconnect to ourselves. I really like what an Italian philosopher, Ducio Demetrio, who has written many books related to this process of autobiographical writing, says. He says that each of us has ‘lo tessitore’ inside us, ‘the self that weaves stories’, which weaves our story that is somehow between past, present, and future. For me, this is primarily what autobiographical writing is about, and it primarily helps us to clear our path from now on as well. Or if we need to see where to head out from now on. And it also helps us to have a calm mind. It helps a lot for peace of mind.”
We asked Claudia Maria Udrescu if writing is better than a discussion, perhaps, with a friend.
“I always recommend handwriting, and writing is recognized as therapeutic. I think it’s good as it suits each person. Unfortunately, a lot of people come and say ‘I don’t write anymore, I wrote a diary in high school, I wrote in college, someone told me at some point that I don’t write well, so I don’t write anymore.’ And it’s a shame. But it’s a wonderful time when someone starts writing again. I think that writing, and especially handwriting, is better because you stay with yourself. It’s a moment of reflection, of peace with yourself, and that helps a lot. When you talk you can be distracted, it’s different. But that moment when you sit with yourself is somehow sacred: you sit down and write.”
Claudia Maria Udrescu made a statement of intent:
“I want us to write our stories, to find people who are open to writing the story of who they are. People like me, like you, because we are in a world already dominated by AI, and the fact that Chat GPT can write anything, but as we know we connect through stories and we connect through my story or yours, which resonates with her or his story. Maybe we can make a platform through which we can pass on our stories.”
Claudia Maria Udrescu also told us about the stage in which the Stories from ’74 project is now.
“I thought about the structure part, and now I’m looking for people. I found a few, but I’m looking for people who are willing to write first, and then pass on the stories. Or just write them, let’s create this gate, let’s pass through this gate together.”
You can find Claudia Maria Udrescu at her ‘imperfect autobiographical writing’ course, where, regardless of your age, you can join and discover new valences of your own personality, as it is revealed in writing. If you were also born in ’74, let’s complete this story of the core of life, a story with an unexpected ending!