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So, its been a week now since I landed back here in Vancouver after an amazing adventure on the Oregon Coast.
In the week since I’ve been home I think I’ve written about 10 draft posts, none of which felt right to press publish on. I’ve been to enough gatherings and retreats before that I know one often needs a week or so to simply digest the experience and let all that happened soak in. I have also been putting a lot of thought into how to share this incredible experience…in a way that doesn’t invite people to have feelings of being left out, but rather to share a bit about this experience in a way that I hope makes you want to start connecting and cultivating creative community for yourself.
Because we are all deserving and oh so worthy of being encircled by creative comrades.
I was gathered there with some fellow creative entrepreneurs. We came from a variety of mediums (product designers, painters, coaches and photographers) and many of us didn’t know each other before the weekend, gathered together by our connectress Kelly Rae.
I’ve journaled so much about this experience on the coast since I’ve been home. Of feelings of possibility and hope, of dreaming big. I came home from this gathering feeling widely inspired and more clear than ever about my purpose and my passion.
There are a few stories I’d love to share with you about this gathering (more to come).
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One of the most powerful parts of the gathering for me was the idea of the ‘Radiate Sessions’. Kelly Rae brought forth this idea as something we could offer each other during the weekend. The idea being that for that each person would have a chance to be the focus of a Radiate Session and for that time we would all focus our support and listening on that one person.
It is really actually a simple idea, but how often do we really get the chance to do this? For so many of us creative types our brainstorming is in our head or in our journals. But for this half hour, we had 9 other creatives listening intently, ready to offer us guidance or support (or whatever we needed).
It was incredibly powerful to have that space to ask for support and encouragement. I was surrounded by incredible women, most of whom are a few years ahead of me on their creative business journey. I ended my session feeling SO believed in. SO standing in my personal power. SO filled up with possibility and hope.
It was amazing.
The thing is, we can do this for each other. All of us. Anywhere, anytime. In person or on skype too.
Separate from this event I’m also a part of a different lovely collection of women (from a variety of mediums as well) who gather twice a month on skype and create this space for one another where we each take 20 minutes and focus on that one person, offering them support, feedback and encouragement (or whatever they need that week).
We have been doing these calls all fall and it is absolutely transformative to have this space to listen as well as be heard.
“We are all longing to go home to some place we have never been – a place half-remembered and half-envisioned we can only catch glimpses of from time to time. Community. Somewhere, there are people to whom we can speak with passion without having the words catch in our throats. Somewhere a circle of hands will open to receive us, eyes will light up as we enter, voices will celebrate with us whenever we come into our own power. Community means strength that joins our strength to do the work that needs to be done. Arms to hold us when we falter. A circle of healing. A circle of friends. Someplace where we can be free.” –Starhawk
So this is one of the stories I was craving to share with you as it has been really transformative for me this year….both at this gathering and with my online collective.
Ever since I’ve been home I’ve been talking to friends about it. So many of us have a business idea, a creative passion or a project we are working on and the idea of being encircled by people you trust to give you encouragement is a pretty powerful force. I’m so hoping to do this activity with creative friends in Vancouver as well as my online creative cohorts.
So, if you are craving community…it is really powerful to make that happen for ourselves, online or in person. Retreats like the Be Present Retreats have also been an amazing way to find creative community in person (and there are some amazing retreats coming this spring). Or you can create your own gathering and get inspired to do that by checking out Kelly Rae’s post filled with great ideas for creating a gathering. I really wanted to mention the online experience too as it truly has been transformative and is something that we can create just by reaching out to a few folks we’d like to get to know better!
Create a gathering, gift yourself with the experience of a retreat or email a few creative comrades and start a support circle!
Lets let ourselves be encircled, be radiated, be supported!