I met an alien, a white satin moth, guardian of eternity, promising the wisdom of stardust.
I’ll report back when the wisdom arrives.
My weekend was filled with inspiration, us older folk playing host to the younger generation. We were introduced to ways they are pro-active in virtual and real spaces. We had guests from Holland too, Melissa, Joachim and Anne. Among the young ones were ambassadors to a much larger, international group, who as children had the benefit of attending summer programmes filled with Magic Theatre and formative experiences at Four Winds, a place which, though lost to us, is held in fond memory.
Hestia asked the question: ‘How do we stay connected? One of the ways we are staying connected, it seems to me, is through stories.
We compared notes. Where were we in our late twenties and early thirties?
Stories are wonderful, stories change and transform perception … stories live on.
My son, Yeshen, involved us in experimenting with the art of observing nature. I chose a patch of ground in the driveway that leads to the lovely cottage/studio we rent once a month for our creative gatherings. I looked for patterns, textures, stress marks, scale … here some of my observations:
Car wheels formed the track, compacting sand and stones. The larger stones cluster together, interlocked, embedded, not moved about as easily as the little ones. Sparse grass fights in isolation at the middle of the track. From the grass verge five-leaved creepers invade the open space, a colony that spreads by rooting every inch, like wild strawberries do. I ponder … what has the edge on survival? … small things can move and overcome the stationary …
The gist – the closer I look the more I appreciate that nature is the manuscript that teaches everything I need to know about life.
We sat round a hearth under the stars with baked potatoes, yummy marshmallows, manna – and shared more stories …
Brigit brought her children to visit.
The next day, Tasha and Hestia introduced us to various skills the young people present had studied for years – one way or another – interactive media.
We were challenged to create quick life sketches and later played with stop-motion animation using world objects from my sandtray boxes – FUN!
And Tasha shared the short animation that earned her merits for a post graduation project, based on hundreds of drawings. A revelation to some.
There will be some follow up of our play and what was created, on-line, probably on the archventures website.
A great weekend where everyone did their share and was nourished.
The video from the animation workshop
Course of Mirrors 
By chance created another page, this entry should have been on the home page.
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what a wonderful time you had, I felt very envious. I was struck also by an overwhelming feeling of love that permeated the post, drawn in I should think from the experiences of the weekend. thank you for this glimpse of something wonderful
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Thank you, Diane. One of the things we looked at: SPACES, virtual and actual, where people can meet and be creative. A real place needs maintenance, time and resources, all difficult to achieve these days. Hot subject, which will invite more discussions, I hope.
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What a fantastic way to spend a weekend, so creative and lots of fun too, by the look of it.
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Thanks, Kate. You and Diane could join us some time, maybe offer a creative writing afternoon. We survive via donations, and all facilitation is therefore voluntary, but we could arrange an overnight stay. Just a thought.
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You’ve captured the experiences of the weekend beautifully – thank you! I really enjoyed sharing some of my ideas and stories with the rest of the group and it was stimulating and inspiring to hear other stories, from ‘then’ and ‘now’. Storytelling is a great way of understanding how the world works.
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Thanks Tasha, you gave generously – insight as well as fun.
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This was most inspiring – there is so much to be gained by sharing.
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Thanks, Lilian. Had you been there, I imagine you would have led us into a delightful dance of rhyme and laughter.
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A fulfilling time, indeed! Such an enriching experience when one sees how creativity sprouts from different souls. To me, the key is finding the seed of what they already care about, and then planting it where they might not have planted it themselves. Praying it works! xxxxxx
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‘Nature is the manuscript …’ fabulous image.
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Thank you. ☼
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