Getting Found + Lost in the Pacific Northwest

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry

For the first time, I joined the summer faculty of the Grunewald Guild to teach an 1-week course titled "Visual Poetry: Mixed Media + Encaustic." The course was a process-oriented class where for 5 days 9 participants + I explored the wonders of encaustic + allowed some of our favorite poets to rouse our creative flow. 

The Grunewald Guild is a special place. For over 30 years the Guild has made space for art, community + growth to happen. It was an honor to receive the invitation to join the staff + share in it's legacy-- which is is deep + wide. 

As a city girl who has grown accustomed to steady movement, it was a challenge to embrace a slower pace. It took a couple of days to settle into the rhythm + creative flow.  I was determined to lean in though, + not lean out. By Tuesday evening, my heart began to grieve our Saturday departure. The Guild had made its way into my heart.

I not only got my hand covered with warm wax + paper, but I also made my way to the Pottery Studio to throw on the potter's wheel for the first it in my life. I loved it!  I loved the attention it required, physicality of the process, + the feeling of the clay between my hands. 

One of the major highlights of the experience is that I got to share it with my partner, Cleve. It was a privilege to receive the gift of Grunewald Guild with him + even savor some moments in the beautiful emerald city- Seattle. 

It was a week of steady exhales + long deep inhales.
It was week of getting lost in the creative process + fully living into my gifts of teaching.
It was also a week of rich connection that I look forward to experiencing again at the Guild + at other art tables I will teach at in the future.

Click HERE to learn more about the history + work of the Grunewald Guild.
The Guild will provide a list of their Summer 2019 courses later this year.