An anniversary with Dana.
The night she had me over for the Phantom BBQ was the night I surrendered my heart to her. I made a conscious choice, there, as I listen to her talk in her lower-level bar / Studio / living area at Cliff View. A fairy tale. Fairy tales, though, are decorated with moments of personal and professional peril just the same. These tumultuous moments are made oh so real by our insistence on clinging to old belief systems, forgetting our Source materials, and our reluctance to release that which no longer serves our Enlightenment. Sure, monsters lurk and jump from our dark subterranean dungeons, but they only show themselves for us to allow them their expression. We need have little or no attachment to them at all. These Phantoms serve only to exhibit a contrast to our higher, true selves, and / or what we may otherwise prefer. They are not to be slain, struggled against, or fought. We need not even banish them. On the contrary, with steadfast love and gratitude – viewing said monsters as all of our creation, as opportunities for clarity, we allow. With great excitement, to the best of our abilities, and with no expectations on an outcome from our demons; henceforth, they may release or banish themselves! After their performance I liken said phantoms to minor or major characters, following the drawing of the theater curtain at the end of a play, making their way down corridors to their allotted dressing rooms, content with having served the audience, us, with the cathartic emotional aspect we attended to experience, willfully suspending our disbelief and allow excitement and imagination to work their synchronistic energy and abundantly serve our needs at that moment.
writing
Notes and Thoughts About Wokshop # 2: A JOURNEY TOWARD FRUITION
Now that I have worked with three groups, conducting Workshop #2, I have discovered a delightful pattern: no one is at the same place in the process as they progress through it. Like a long hike or race, everyone stands at the starting line together, but then they move at their own pace, meandering to and fro. This is the way my classroom ran, a true studio, full of many works at various stages of development, all occupying the same space. It’s a beautiful thing to behold; it’s real. Imagine a creative space of learning where everyone is on the same page, imagine parenting a home this way. I can’t.
WRITING WORKSHOP ONE: Companion Book
What Are the Companion Books? Each Writing Workshop, in addition to the class guide, will have a companion book. These will serve as spiritual companions rather than academic guides while the student takes their journey through the series of five workshops.