Well, yes, and it's perfect.
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Yesterday I took a trip to the redwoods. Okay, not the "real" redwoods. But they were russet and gleaming, stately and towering, oxygenating my dry, stymied dreams. This was a quick trip to Portland's Hoyt Arboretum to hang out on the Redwood Deck.
Here is the lesson: see what is available. Use that. Fill up with that.
A California Redwoods visit is not feasible because of pandemic logistics, travel issues, finances, and my shoulder injury. But I can sit under these trees and feel their heavenward stretch, their sheltering hearts. There is so much joy in the version of whatever-is-here.
I don't have to pine for the pines when these beautiful friends are steps away (about three and a half miles from my door - lucky me!).
But this would all pass me by if my brain were dead set on the Other Thing, the Best Version, the Way it Used to Be, or the "Real" Redwoods.
As the nine-year-old boy on the bus said to me, "Seeking perfection is the enemy of what couldn't be more perfect."
This year was a series of dashed hopes. Travel plans? Cancelled. Ability to focus? Fogged up. Conferences? Shrunk to a computer screen.
But with an open heart comes imagination, and with imagination comes delight. And then I see what is available to me - oh, such wide-open thought, story, energy, collaboration, peace, and ease.
Let us become intrepid explorers of what is all around us. And in and through us. The creativity, the wonder, the presence--too often ignored for something that isn't here.
--Christi
P.S. New 2021 classes are here! I can give a free scholarship to the Clark College Wildfire Writing class below. Also, the Q-Fire class deeply nurtures the soul.
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Q-Fire (via distance learning)
"I am so thankful for the light and connection this group has brought into my life these past few weeks," said writer B. And writer N said, "What an awesome class! Thanks to Christi's careful combining of spirits!" I put extra thought into how well the writers fit together. Q (for Quarantine)-Fire is designed for sensitives who are willing to explore and deeply listen. Group values are authenticity, safety and community.
Tuesday mornings, 10:15 to 11:30 a.m. January 5 through Feb 23.
Wildfire Writing, Clark College (via distance learning) Did you know this class is designed to be taken again and again? Each class presents new strategies and exercises based on the classic model of transformative writing brought to students 23 years ago. Tap into the process that replaces internal criticism
with achievement. Cultivate your natural instincts for storytelling while you develop confidence in your unique, creative, powerful voice. Compose pieces to start a book, launch a blog, or build into a short story collection. Class values: ingenuity, freedom, support, commitment, showing up, overcoming fear, being seen and heard.
Wednesday evenings, 6:30 - 7:45 pm. January 6 through March 10
Wildfire Writing Master Class for Novelists (via distance learning)
Sci-fi, fantasy, contemporary, and YA novelists who listen to each other and add to the creative synergy in the writing process. This class is designed to be an anchor, to offer real, solid support for those writing a novel. Values: caring, accountability, excellence, dedication, passion for writing.
Thursday evenings, 6:30 to 8:30 pm, January 7 - 28
Send an email to learn more.
Coaching (virtual and phone meetings)
Find the centeredness that writing brings. With a coach all the focus is on you, and the learning is exponential. In pandemic times, some clients use the coaching as a life-affirming boost rather than a focal point on their goals. "Where would I be without you?" wrote Mary. "I hope I never have to find out. I have come so far as a writer in the past year and a half working with you. I look forward to your weekly inspiration for my life as well as my writing." Values: learning, achievement, exploration, being heard, growth, the thrill of showing up for yourself and being met where you are.
Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays in January and February
Send an email.
Be inspired by a video.
Yoga, storytelling, notes on writing, and notes on life - these are all video offerings I've created for you on YouTube.
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