Nature Writing: A Deep Dive

This series of three 3-hour workshops (taken alone or together) is designed to awaken your connection with nature as a source of inspiration, creativity, and belonging. You may purchase one session individually or all three for a discount. All workshops will be held outside, weather permitting. We will meet at Inspirations Gallery and will walk together to an outdoor area to write. Be ready for all weather and bring a hat!

1. Learning How to See: The Practice of Observing | Saturday, June 17
This workshop will be held outdoors, where we are invited to bear witness to the great unfolding of life. Spending time in the natural world is one way to sharpen our skills of observation and become the hollow bone. After taking time to go within and ground ourselves to the earth herself, we will open our awareness outward, igniting our senses and taking in all that is open to us in the moment. We will invite our imaginations to translate what we sense and intuit in both the seen and unseen worlds. Our writing will be inspired by authors Robin Wall Kimmerer, Jon Young, Sharon Blackie, N. Scott Momaday, Joy Harjo, and others. In this supportive container, you’ll have time to share ideas and writing. All levels are welcome. You are invited to write in whichever genre calls to you.

2. Composite Beings: The Elements as Our Guides | Saturday, July 29
This workshop will be held outdoors so that we can consider the four elements as a framework for thinking about the borderless nature of awareness and life. When we notice one thing, it is likely that it raises our attention to other things previously unseen. The elements intermix and reflect our dynamic and interrelated nature. Rain works with Wind. Fire can be doused by Rain. Earth sustains us all. We are 70% water; we push and pull air through our lungs, and the fire in our belly helps digest the Earth’s bounty. Our writing will be inspired by the work of Merlin Sheldrake, David Lukas, Theodore Schwenk, Joanna Macy and others. There will be time to share ideas and writing in this supportive container. All levels are welcome. You are invited to write in whichever genre calls you.

3. Kincentricity: Animals as Teachers | Saturday, August 26
This workshop will be held outdoors so that we can extend our awareness to the animal world while considering how our kinship makes up the constellation of life on Earth. As we examine our relationship with the animal realm, we will consider these questions: Who keeps showing up in your life from the animal world? Do they appear when you need support, a lesson, or a friend? Is there an animal encounter from your past that has left an indelible mark? What animal in particular pulls at your heartstrings and asks for you to represent them through your artistic expression? Our writing, or illustrating, will be inspired by the work of Anna Breytenbach, Mary Rose O’Rielley, Carl Sandburg, John Muir Laws, and more. There will be time to share ideas and writing in this supportive container. All levels are welcome. You are invited to write in whichever genre calls you.