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WRITING EXERCISE
What does community mean to you? Words: Neda Tehrani In recent times, we have experienced the power of community like never before. In this new writing exercise, Pluto Press want to hear about your own experience of community and what being a part of a community means to you.
T
he repercussions of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic are still being felt as we reach the end of 2021. The crisis has had a significant impact on the mental and physical health of all of us. However, when faced with difficult times, our sense of community, generosity and support is what helps us all pull through. Since the pandemic began, we have seen communities support one another in a variety of ways, such as delivering food parcels, shopping for neighbours, and showing appreciation for NHS workers. Through your submissions in the last edition of this magazine, we heard about your experiences of lockdown and how a sense of community and hope prevailed during such a devastating and isolating year in prison. On the theme of community, we would like to invite you to take part in a new writing exercise to tell us what community
means to you. It could be about a community of like-minded people or the wider prison community; it could be about what makes for a positive community in the world; or it could be about your experience of being a part of a great community. Being part of a community can give us a sense of belonging and improve our wellbeing. It can help us to heal, which this edition has been all about, by coming together and experiencing our shared humanity. We might also realise that we don’t have to bear everything on our shoulders alone, and that many others are going through similar challenges to us. We want to hear your thoughts on these ideas about community, and more! You can tell us about your experiences and ideas in a variety of formats: it could be an essay, a diary entry, a poem, or a short story. We want you to be as imaginative and experimental as possible! We will be picking four winning entries that
