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POETRY PARTNERS:
Their Stories and Work
for Your Inspiration and Application
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Summer, 2010
Dear
Friends,
Featured
in what follows are four stories by IPM "Poetry Partners" Merna Ann Hecht, Brian Moore, Annie Holden, and Jim Hornsby. They write about their experience of bringing poetry as
healer into their communities.
Each
program received recent funding from The Institute for Poetic Medicine - and in the
case of Merna, for last year as well. This funding may have been helped by your donation to IPM! Without the support of people
interested in advancing the work of The Institute, this outreach would not be
possible. Our gratitude for any
support is deep.
These
are general ways to describe the kind of "populations" we had the privilege to work with:
. . . teenagers
who, along with their families, are refugees from countries like Afghanistan,
Iraq, Berundi, Nepal, Somalia and many other places on our planet that have had
great trauma;
. . . women
in recovery from alcoholism and addiction;
. . . people
with mental health challenges making a connection with trees through poetry -
to find deeper balance and self-respect within themselves;
. . . men
across generations who are homeless, and all of the ways that experience impacts
their lives.
These
stories from our Poetry Partners go far beyond such flat descriptions! They show you that:
. . . creative,
passionate, skilled, empathic and talented individuals can make a difference in
the lives of others through the sensitive sharing of poetry as healer;
. . . every
person involved can discover and express more of their unique wholeness; giving
voice to body, mind, heart and soul;
. . . unexpected
blessings and genuine support are found in community when people begin to speak
up for what matters to them and also make the sacred choice to deeply
listen to one another;
. . . financial
support for these projects changes lives, creates a world of people who breathe with honesty and
beauty, even when that beauty and honesty are most fierce;
And
here's the simple truth:
When a Poetry Partner brings the right spirit and
skills to apply poetic medicine,
it brings good benefit anywhere
and
with all people.
When
I founded IPM in late 2005, my motivation came from a deep desire to do more
than I could do myself to fulfill these kinds of change. I needed friends across the country and
around the planet who shared in the understanding of what the popular novelist
John Grisham recently described so well:
"In life, finding a voice is speaking and living the
truth. Each of you is an
original. Each of you has a
distinctive voice. When you find
it, your story will be told. You
will be heard."
John Grisham, Commencement Address 2010,
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Through
the help of unsung and dedicated people, the commitment of the IPM Board of
Directors, the help of generous foundations and people like you, and these
wonderful Poetry Partners, we are pleased to present the following report.
I
have asked each person to describe their experience and gave them wide latitude
to express it in their unique voice. You'll learn how they made their programs work to optimum capacity; you'll learn how they, themselves, were changed; and I hope you'll get a sense for
how you might also use "poetic medicine" in your work and/or bring it into your
community.
These are full stories. They can't be rushed! I hope you will set aside some time over the next few days to read and consider them.
We
not only welcome but invite your comments.
Following the Poetry Partner stories, please check out my upcoming schedule.
Sincerely,
John
Fox
President,
The Institute for Poetic Medicine
P.S. For information about making a donation
to IPM, which is a
tax
deductible nonprofit entity, please see the end of this Constant Contact.
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A Community of Poets
Foster High School
Seattle, WA
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STORIES OF
ARRIVAL: YOUTH VOICES
A COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP POETRY PROJECT
Foster High School
Tukwila, WA
Observations by
Merna Ann Hecht
Project Director & Teaching Artist for Poetry
This is the second year that the Stories of Arrival: Youth Voices
Project has partnered with The Institute for Poetic Medicine. The project is a
community collaboration that takes place at Foster High School in Tukwila, WA. The New York Times lists Foster High School as the most language diverse high
school in the country. The students in this year's project have journeyed to
the USA from Afghanistan, Bhutan, Bosnia, Burma, Ethiopia, Haiti, India, Kenya,
Laos, Mexico, Nepal, Romania, Russia, Somalia, Sudan, Thailand, Tonga, other
parts of the U.S. and Vietnam.
When I work as a poet with young people, as I have for both this year's and last year's project at Foster High School, I enter into an agreement that we will get to know each other as deeply and authentically as time and thinking and creating and writing will allow. During my 2 years of working with these students the words that have come to me repeatedly are "heartbreak" and "love." The poems they have created pour forth from these two words.
 Merna Ann Hecht (middle) with two Foster High students
Nearly half of the students in this year's project have
experienced the effects of war and ethnic conflict. Many of them have lived in
refugee camps for years; their families having been displaced by war and
violent conflict. Some of the students wrote in depth about the violence they had witnessed first hand. Bior from Sudan wrote of his grandmother's death from gun-shots. In his poem, he speaks directly to his beloved grandmother, asking her "to rest in peace." And he laments that she is not here to see him grow and learn. Zakaryia from Somalia wrote of witnessing the rape of one woman by a number of soldiers. Helbor, who is Karen from Burma, told of soliders entering the villages of her people and of the overwhelming destruction and loss of life that resulted from their invasion.
 Even as the students wrote of the effects of war, they did so with a stunning sense of hope. In both last year's and this year's project, I felt immense gratitude for being able to help the students find words for their important stories and for being present to witness their courage and strength in the face of the many losses they have experienced.
This year and last, as the students wrote poetry about their personal experiences with loss, with war and ethnic conflicts, and many other difficult situations, I observed how they also discovered important things about themselves and about each other. I noted how they began to take pride in their creative work and how their excitement grew as they tapped into the strength of their voices, and their gifts for using beautiful and powerful language. As their admiration for each others' work grew, they supported each other in writing about courage in the face of loss and about their faith in their families and in the hope that they will help bring about a safer and more just world. They became a community of poets who embraced a deep vulnerability with each other, and with mutual support they became proud of publishing their poems and of bringing their voices into public arenas.
For example, last year Huong Vo, from Vietnam wrote:
"I
like to enjoy the poetry that our class has made. We can share our
cultures and feelings with each other. I like to understand more about
the life that our friends in the class have suffered before coming to
the U.S. I also want to tell about my beautiful country. When I write
poems, anything that begins appearing deep in my heart helps bring my
childhood memories back to life."
And Seth Vyamungu, who is from Congo wrote:
"My dream is to become a poet and to publish a book or books of my own poems."
For the past two years, a central feature of this project
has been
working with one of Seattle's most long-standing and well respected
community media arts organizations, Jack Straw Production Studio. Toward the end of the project the Jack Straw voice coaches visit the classroom and work with the students on preparing them
to record one of their poems. We take two field trips to Jack Straw Production Studio, where each student records his or her poem on state of the art equipment
for broadcast on KBCS 91.3 radio, a community public broadcast station,
committed to bringing diverse voices to public awareness.
 Jack Straw also creates a CD of all of the recorded poems
for each student. The students
love this experience. Most all of them have not before written poetry. At the
beginning of the project they expressed considerable concern about jumping into writing poetry while facing the challenges of learning a new language. Many
of them spoke of their shyness and could not imagine reading a poem in front of
an audience or recording a poem for the radio. Yet, by the end of the project
the students' pride in their work, their enthusiasm for the ability of poetry
to allow them to express themselves and their delight in the confidence they
gained in bringing their voices to the community was whole-heartedly positive.
Bakhtli, who is Turkish from Russia, wrote:
"Writing
poetry is not easy. The first time I started to write a poem I was so nervous.
I had no idea how to write a poem. It is not easy to write what is in your
mind. But now, I have been writing
a lot of poems. It is very delightful for me to write or read a poem. It also
encourages me to have an opportunity to raise my voice to other people.
I learned how to write a poem in stanzas, like a song. In
addition I learned that you can write your secrets as a poem. It means you
share your feelings with others. ...I learned how people shared their happiness,
sadness and love. ...I also want to say that I feel comfortable about reading my
poem for the first time to the radio or in front of people. It also was very
exciting for me because it was my first time on the radio. I was so excited
writing my feelings because I opened my heart."
At the culmination of this year's project we created a
beautiful anthology titled Many Voices with One Heart: Voices of Global Youth.
We are donating the proceeds from the sale of the anthology to the Refugee
Women's Alliance.
Quite a few of the young women and their families in our
project are served by this organization, as are refugee women and their families
in the larger Tukwila community - a community with the highest percentage of
immigrants and refugees in the greater Seattle area.
Within the pages of our anthology many voices have spoken
with one heart. While each young poet has told part of his or her unique story
based on specific experiences and memories, there are commonalities among the
students that do create "one heart." In some poems there are expressions of a
heart full of memories and longing for friends, houses, gardens, and relatives
that had to be left behind.
Last year, when thinking about the Baghdad of her childhood before the war began Monia Haman from Iraq wrote:
MY LIFE
My life is like a diary
book
like a big piece of paper
you can write anything on
it
you can draw many things
too.
My life is like pencil
colors,
there are hot colors,
there are cold colors,
in Iraq we have two seasons
Summer, so hot
Winter, so cold
there are light colors, the
bright morning
there are dark colors, the
beautiful nights
with a big white moon
shimmering
from the far sky,
with bright stars waving to
us with a big smile.
I remember when I was
young, Baghdad at night
was like a big golden box
full of colorful jewels
like a mother trying to
protect her children each moment
like a source of love,
safety and fun.
But, now she is old,
exhausted
vulnerable, dismayed,
grieving for losing
thousands
of her strong children.
All because of what?
Because of the Iraqi war.
And this year Fatima Sami from Afghanistan wrote of her love for her country and her memories of it before the violence killed her father and forced her family to leave:
Memories of My Country
... I remember my country, Afghanistan
Beautiful like a flower in a green garden.
I remember my school.
I remember my friends and teachers
Having fun together.
I remember when I was young
Going shopping with my parents
Eating strawberry ice cream and lamb kabobs.
I remember my house, big and beautiful
My room full of colorful toys.
I remember the huge parks
Running around with my friends Nabila, Masooda and
Roya.
I remember the blue sky with the sun
Smiling on us like a mother.
I remember when the sky became cloudy and dark,
The war started in my country.
Destroyed everything.
I remember the sound of screaming
When we five daughters lost our dear father.
I remember my green land
That became red from the blood of the people.
I remember when I was leaving my country
With tears in my eyes.
 In many of the other poems from both this year and last, there are deep heart's longings for celebrations,
colors, smells, sounds and foods of a motherland - village, small town, or city.
Still other poems tell of hearts that are filled with loneliness and longing
living in a refugee camp, or, hearts that have kept hold of strength, hope and
resiliency, even as war, violence, and loss of loved ones have been part of a
young life.
For example, Bior Duot from Sudan, who I mentioned earlier, wrote:
My life is like a wounded soldier in a battle field crying
out for help, but no help arrives; looking for a place to
hide
but no place for hiding. I am just a fallen victim who falls
and gets up even though a terrible war surrounds me.
My heart cries, but I do not show my emotion,
for a warrior
like me, my courage,
my strength, tell me I have to encourage
the orphans and widows of my country
to hold their heads up for better days.
My lovely country where hatred and jealousy
create a state of war
that made me a refugee
and left me with nothing
but bad memories.
Many years of my life have passed
and I am still nothing but a refugee
who had to stand tall on the tough roads
of his neighboring countries.
My life has changed from walking long distances
of the same bleak color.
Now it is another journey filled with multi-colors - black,
white
and colors that my grandmother would not recognize
even if she had not been hit with that bullet.
"Rest in peace." I miss her. I wish she was here
in my life now to see me grow.
It is bad enough and yet I don't hate anything,
hatred in my life goes only to the reign of terror
and those who did not let my grandma live her life
to the end.
I can honestly say that I have been more deeply touched by
the outpouring of poetry from both years of working on this poetry project than in any other work I have done
to date. One of the students wrote to me that this project has allowed her to
speak from her "internal heart" and I treasure those words as a touchstone for representing the essence of this project.
Not only do the poems from this project bring the reader or
listener into an intimate and often heart-breaking arena of the experiences of
leave-taking and arrival; they also speak to the dreams of a
group of courageous young people from around the world.
Some wish to become doctors or nurses in order to help others. Some want to work to help eradicate
poverty. Others want to bring peace and equality to their own countries and by
extension they long to help bring about a more peaceful world.
Yosef from Ethiopia wrote:
My dream is not having a huge amount of money
My dream is not having a company
My dream is not having a striking car
And not having an attractive house.
My dream is following my heart and achieving my goal
My dream is making my African brothers and sisters
smile and
laugh by giving them pure water to drink
and food to eat.
I am sure first things should come first
My dream is caring about peoples'
lives
Giving them hope and inspiring them to live,
My dream is helping people who need my hand.
And Ai from Vietnam wrote of his dream of becoming a doctor:
I want to be a doctor
A doctor can help the people,
Save peoples' lives,
Help the elderly,
And treat babies
I want to prepare medicine to help the people
Who are getting dangerous diseases,
I want to go to the poor countries,
To help poor people,
And treat them for free.
Give them food, water and medicine,
To give them a better life.
I could not agree more with the sentiments my partner
teacher, Carrie Stradley expressed in her introduction to our anthology:
For many of these students, the poems capture memories they
have left buried or "un-translated." They have shown us all another side of who
they are and where they come from, with pride. Through poetry, they've
painted pictures of their homes and the circumstances which brought them
here. Enclosed in this anthology is not merely a unit on poetry, but their
most personal stories and memories.
 It has been a great privilege for me to get to know these young
people and to witness the way that poetry has allowed them to give expression and
voice to what and who they love and to the memories of places and people they
miss.
Their vulnerability in writing about the violence they have
seen, their refugee experiences, the many layers of what they have lost all
enfold into a poetics of hope, of beauty and of courage.
At this point in time, just as the project has come to a
close, culminating with a spirited and celebratory anthology release party, I
have begun to receive letters from the poets. Each letter that I have received
so far is a treasure to me. I love what Yvner from Haiti wrote to me:
"Since my childhood I heard talking about writing poetry but I didn't know
exactly how to write or what to do to start writing a poem....you showed me the
importance of it, you completely made me feel proud about myself because as an
immigrant in the United States, I thought that Americans didn't care about us
but I was wrong. You came up with a project for us to write our memories from
our homeland. Thank you for that. My advice to you is to keep on doing that
beautiful work because it helps the refugee students feel they are not alone
and people want to hear from them."
I will take Yvner's advice and "keep on doing this
beautiful work"; it is an honor to do so.
Merna Ann Hecht
Merna Ann Hecht is a poet, storyteller, and teaching artist. She received a National
Storytelling Network 2008 Brimstone Award for Applied Storytelling for a
project using storytelling, poetry, and art in working
with children at BRIDGES: A Center for Grieving Children, in Tacoma, WA
. Merna has worked as an artist in residence
at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center School
, detention centers, and facilities for homeless youth. She teaches arts
and poetry classes for Portland State University
and the University of Washington and also
presents a course for educators on Teaching for Global Compassion
using poetry and integrated arts. She is
currently the project director for the Stories of Arrival: Youth Voices project, a community
partnership project with IPM and other organizations. In this project,
immigrant and refugee high school students, many
from war-torn countries, learn to use poetry in order to give voice to their
personal stories of leave-taking and arrival. Merna's poetry and essays are
published in numerous books and journals.
See Our Special Offerings Below!
CLICK HERE
To Hear Ten of These Youth Voices
Reading Their Poems!
Order Your Copy of
Many Voices from One Heart:
Voices of Global Youth
Help Support the Refuge Women's Alliance
On June 9th we held a culminating event
for the Stories of Arrival project. The occasion was the release of our poetry
anthology. A spirit of generosity has shaped the entire project and it shone
brightly at this event. After a poetry reading highlighting work from the
anthology, the students mingled with the audience. Characteristic of their
open-hearted goodness, the students not only signed books on their poetry pages,
but asked audience members to sign their books! The celebration was a warm and
inspiring event and all who attended have expressed a deep appreciation for
being able to listen to and meet the poets.
We
decided to extend the largesse of the project into the community by selling the
anthology and donating the proceeds to the Refugee Women's Alliance, (ReWA). This
organization serves many of the young women and their families in the project. It
is a multi-ethnic, community-based organization that provides comprehensive
services in response to the complex needs of refugee and immigrant women and
families.
ReWA advocates for social justice, public policy changes, and equal
access to services while respecting cultural values. ReWA's success has been
due in large part to the contributions of individual donors. ReWA was the first
organization to receive the Distinguished Citizen Award for Human Rights. To
date we have raised over $500 and we hope to more than match that amount!
Please make a donation by ordering your copy of Many Voices from One Heart:
Voices of Global Youth. Each copy costs $24. ($10 for printing costs, a
$10 donation to the Refugee Women's Alliance and $4 for mailing).
Please make your check for $24.00 payable to
The Institute for Poetic Medicine and mail to:
The Institute for Poetic Medicine
P.O. Box 60189
Palo Alto, CA 94306
(Please indicate "Voices From One Heart"
in the notation area of your check)
Thank You for Your Support!
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Writing Our Relationship with Trees
Cascadia Arts and Healing Center
Willamette Valley, Oregon
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Our Branches Stretch to Sky:
The Story of Writing Our Relationship with Trees
CASCADIA ARTS & HEALING CENTER
In Collaboration with Laurel Hill Center
Willamette
Valley, OR
Observations by Brian
W.S. MooreListen
with your heart and soul.
Read
from your past to show what you really are.
I'm
a tree. Hear what I say.
Hear
what I am.
Hear
what I'm about.
~ Goddess F., workshop participant
It
was out of my desire to cultivate deeper connections between human beings and
other living things that I conceived the workshop Writing Our Relationship with
Trees. I also wanted to provide an
ecological-oriented expressive arts experience to individuals often
under-served on the personal-growth workshop circuit.
My goal was not to facilitate an intellectual discussion of
trees, as one might do in a science class, but to provide a context in which to
consider the possibility that trees, as well as other living things, have their
own way of being in the world and have something valuable to share with us when
we make the time to listen.
Some
people might feel uncomfortable with the notion that we can listen to trees in
the same way that we listen to human beings. But listening may be more than hearing with the ears. It may be running your hand over the
bark of a tree and feeling its texture. It may be hearing the sound of the leaves as the wind brushes through
them. It may be noticing the tree's
limbs - the way they crisscross and intersect, or embrace the sky. Or it might be sitting silently at the
foot of a tree paying attention to the thoughts, words, and images arising in
your mind. We listen with our
whole being.
Branches
stretch to sky
Tree
of life
Pulling
heaven down
Your
roots grasp earth
Feel
the pulse
Everlasting
rhythm.
~ Cathy B., workshop participant
Writing
Our Relationship with Trees participants were adults diagnosed with psychiatric
disabilities, including depression, PTSD, and schizophrenia, who were
interested in exploring personal growth opportunities through poetry as well as
their connections with trees. The
workshop took place at Pathways Learning Center, part of Laurel Hill Center,
which is a non-profit organization "committed to helping people with
psychiatric disabilities make choices and acquire skills that increase their
self-reliance and ability to live and work in the community." (From the Laurel Hill Center vision
and mission statement. To read more about the Laurel Hill Center, CLICK HERE).
Brian Moore positioning tree
Pathways Learning Center offers a variety
of health and wellness classes as well as job skills training and activities
designed to enhance people's leisure, creativity, and spirituality. My trees workshop consisted of nine
two-hour sessions, plus a culminating reading and tree planting ceremony. There were an average of ten
participants per session.
To
my knowledge, there is currently no writing workshop similar to Writing Our
Relationship with Trees. Other
workshops exist in which participants write about trees from an objective
perspective, consider their symbolic value, or share memories of them. In our workshop, we did approach trees
from these perspectives, but we took it one step further, moving from an
objective-symbolic way of way of relating to a way of mutual respect, in which other beings
are recognized for their inherent worth and value and are approached in this
fashion.
In other words, we do
not approach Trees as objective other, upon whom we seek to impose our own
agenda, but as honored other, to whom we offer dignity and respect, allowing
them to exist purely and simply as they are. It was also the way we sought to treat other workshop
participants.
I'm
a Mighty Douglas Fir...
I
feel rain drops gently touching my branches
The
sun rays make the rain glisten like tear drops
on
my branches
I'm
a Mighty Douglas Fir...
I
feel the birds building their nests
As
they sing out their beautiful songs..
I'm
a Mighty Douglas Fir...
The
crows bark...
The
squirrels scamper about
Tickling
my roots and making me happy...
I'm
a Mighty Douglas Fir...
I
live through winter after winter...
When
the wind howls and bends my branches
And
the snow fall weighs me down...
Yet
I Live on...
~ Karen J., workshop participant
In
Writing Our
Relationship with Trees,
one of my main goals was to use poetry as a pathway to help people explore the
possibility that we can relate with trees as sacred beings in and of
themselves. Processes supporting
this goal included great and liberal use of the imagination. Participants
could, for example, step into the "bark" of a tree and write a poem describing
the world from its perspective.
In
tree adoption, participants were to select a tree, with whom they would spend
time on a regular basis throughout the duration of the workshop. As part of this process, they were to
observe it, listen to it, "speak to it" through the imagination, reflect upon
their connection with it, and write poems reflecting upon that connection. Participants selected a variety of
trees for this task. Trees
included an ash tree near a bus stop; an oak tree outside an apartment window;
and a magnolia tree in a back yard:
from
The Magnolia Tree
I'm
not sure when I planted my roots here.
I'm
guessing thirty or so years ago.
In
the Spring I have such beautiful large blossoms
that
are so fragrant.
The
smell kisses you in the face when you get near.
When
the blossoms fall, the leaves remain,
covering
the naked arms and fingers
protruding
from my body...
~ Rebecca L., workshop participant
Another
process that I found to be quite useful was what I call tree movements. This process developed as an outgrowth
of one participant's outpouring of emotion. Expressing extreme frustration about the ill treatment of
trees by human beings, the participant, whom I shall call "Lydia," leaped up
from her chair during the second workshop session and cried, "Why are we
treating trees this way? What can
we do to help them?" She began moving her
arms as she imagined the tree might do if given the opportunity to defend
itself from people seeking to harm it.
Acting
on instinct, when Lydia had finished moving like her tree, I invited the other
group members to stand up, and with Lydia's permission, I invited them to
imitate her tree movements. Then I
asked if anyone else had a tree movement they wanted the group to imitate. Many people took the opportunity, and
in subsequent sessions it became part of our opening ritual to imitate the
movements of trees. I have since
employed this practice in other writing groups that I facilitate. It is a wonderful way to release
tension; to encourage spontaneity; to build a sense of openness and trust
amongst group members; and help people identify in a sensuous way with the
branchy beings whom we call Trees.
Transparent
blue
topaz
the sky
against
whispers
of your skin
O
holder
of the ethereal ocean
O
keeper
of the deepest soil
O
transformer
of unknown
dreams.
The goddess
of
furrowed
burls
the fingers
unfolding
~ Karen D., workshop participant
Benefits
to participants were numerous. For
example, over the nine weeks of the workshop, people began opening up more;
sharing more honestly and authentically, listening more attentively; and caring
more deeply for one another. A
beautiful example of the latter benefit occurred during the celebratory reading
and tree planting ceremony. One
participant, whom I shall call "Val" was anxious about reading her poem in
public. When it came her turn to
read, she began having problems with her glasses, making it difficult to share
her poems. Visibly frustrated, she
said, "Oh, I don't think I can do this!"
Perceiving
Val's frustration, another workshop participant stood up, walked up beside her,
and asked, "Would it help if I stood up here with you while you read your
poems?" "Yes it would," said Val, immediately
more relaxed. Then she read her
beautiful poems before the audience. This exchange was an outgrowth of our effort to make building community part
of the group writing process.
Reflecting
upon the benefits of the workshop, another participant said, "Writing Our
Relationship with Trees... continues to be beneficial to me. It's helped me at
times to get out of myself - and my head - and to look around me. I started
noticing things more. The more I
look outside of myself, the less I get lost in my symptoms of depression..."
Another
participant shared that the workshop had given her the motivation to explore
her thoughts and feelings about trees while listening to other peoples'
beautiful poetry.
Goddess
F., a workshop participant who has a deep and abiding reverence for the earth,
writes in one of her poems, Trees are Magical to Me:
 "...You are magical to me in every way possible
When I'm near you
You cure me of my depression
You turn my frown into a bright glowing smile
You give me hope in every way possible
You give me the courage not to give up on life
Because you are here with me..."
Participation
in Writing Our Relationship with Trees was not a magic cure for people, nor was
it intended to be. Many of those
who participated will go on living with their afflictions for the remainder of
their lives. But if through
participation in this workshop people learned to better express feelings and
emotions; if they learned to express themselves more authentically, honestly,
and boldly; if they learned to appreciate themselves more deeply, not only as
people connected with their peers as part of a writing community, but as part
of a broader, ecological community of life on earth, then I think we have
accomplished something.
I hug the green leaf
tree and feel
a newness in me.
~Lynne S., workshop participant
Brian Moore holds an MA in Transformative Language Arts from Goddard College, in VT, and a
certification in poetry therapy. Rooted in Oregon's Willamette Valley, he
facilitates Healing Landscapes, Writing Our Relationship
with Trees, and other groups exploring the connections between the
expressive arts and deep ecology. He also facilitates Poetic
Pathways and Journal to Wholeness at the
Pathways Learning Center, in Eugene, and developmental writing groups at the
University District, Johnson Unit, of Eugene's Sacred Heart Medical Center.
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2100 LAKESIDE SHELTER
Cleveland, OH
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FINDING VOICE
At 2100 Lakeside Shelter
Cleveland, Ohio
Observations by
Annie
Holden
The Place Where We Begin
It is a small band of us involved in a poetry workshop at a local
men's shelter in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. A fledgling enterprise, we are
learning how to choose poems and how to help varying groups of men engage with
the material and each other.
It is an activity loaded with surprise, possibility and wonder. As
John Fox's poetry workshops have taught me before - never underestimate the
power of words and those who give them voice.
2100 Lakeside is the largest men's shelter between New York City
and Chicago. At first glance, it is a maze of hallways and doorways. I felt I
needed breadcrumbs to find my way back to the entrance! Cinder block walls are covered in
brightly colored posters and flyers, directing men to workshops, activities and events.
Everyone greets us, offers to help carry bags, give us directions.
We feel welcomed.
Recently we've begun the habit of touring the facility and
personally inviting the men we meet to the workshops. Gathering in the
cafeteria during the lunch breaks and talking to men at each table has also
proven effective. We try to reach out to every resident.
Our group has doubled in size from the first spring session last
May - from 14 to 28 participants so far. Because the nature of the facility is
to move men on to independence, we cannot count on seeing the same participants
from session to session.
Words You Can Live In
In a recent session, we worked on a poem by Susan Windle:
Words So Large There are words so largeyou can live in them.Isn't it a comfort to knowyour fearis not th biggest thing?Always, always, if you listen,a sound will formaround your fragile life.You can move and breathewithin the dark, expansivewalls of this world.You can feedon the juice of its sound.
We asked for words in response to Windle's poem. The following words were spoken out loud by the men and written on a dry erase board:
Hate, miracles, individual, philosophy, overwhelming,
inspiring, overcome, humble, power, resistance, no, fragile, please, together,
independence, believe, freedom, faith, hero, desire, lies, enjoy, perception,
miracles, influence, escape, homelessness, peace, money, mobility, compassion,
oppression, balance, perspective, respect, nurturing, unconditional, joy, if,
midnight, retaliation, but, mistakes, space, love, change, permanent, truth.
The men were then invited to write their own poems based on these words.
Sam wrote:
It's a word that was not
mentioned in this session. We all
know it, the word is depression.
I do live and move in its sound,
a surge.
The sound I hear is the sound
of a dirge.
Roosevelt
wrote:
Responsibility
thick overwhelming
overcome Hate no lies
believe Freedom faith peace
miracles
together please enjoy Love
escape homelessness oppression
mistakes
midnight.
David
wrote: In retaliation of the darkness at
midnight
The sun brought us joy with its
light.
In our fragility of the darkness
at midnight
The sun brought us the freedom of
sight.
In the oppression of the darkness
at midnight
The sun brought us the desire to
fight.
And with influence of the sun's
miraculous might
There was no more fear in the
darkness at midnight.
In the last
few minutes of the workshop, a man raised his hand and asked, "What does this
have to do with recovery?" We learned, to our chagrin, that some of the men had
been "required" to attend by their group leader and this man had assumed that
the workshop was specifically related to his recovery process.
Before we could
collect ourselves to respond, a previous participant, Kenny, pointed to the dry
erase board in the front of the room and said emphatically, "Every word on that
board has to do with recovery, man."
We couldn't have wished for a more perfect response.
Kindred Spirits with Various Gifts and Skills
Three of us
formed the nucleus of Finding Voice (a name brainstormed at our first meeting...after all,
aren't we all seeking our inner voice?). We were students of John Fox, as
workshop participants. He brought us to the shelter in late May where we were
scribes in his one-day poetry program. We were so profoundly moved by the experience
that we agreed on the spot to continue poetry writing at the shelter on a bi-monthly basis.
The Institute for Poetic Medicine, with support from The Kalliopeia Foundation (CLICK HERE to learn more about Kalliopeia), provides funding for our program. We are a combination of volunteers and funded facilitators. Some funding goes toward refreshments and snacks for the men - an important element!
 Pictured Left to Right:
Jack Schierloh - Listener & scribe for poetry project;
Lydia Bailey - Volunteer Coordinator at 2100 Lakeside;
John Fox - President of The Institute for Poetic Medicine
Julie, a
part-time children's therapist; Jack, a retired pastor, and I, a recently
unemployed bookstore manager and lover of words, met several times to formulate our approach. At a
downtown café, we took turns reading poems aloud to each other and discussed
their viability for homeless men.
The biggest challenge was to choose poetry
that would relate to the men's experiences, and at the same time challenge
them, interest them, bring them fresh perspectives and ideally some
solace. A tall order-- and where
to start? There is a vast ocean of
poetry available and we could drown in it, but we discovered that everyone has favorite poets and
a treasure-trove of poems stored up, so that's where we started, along with the
assistance of a collection of poetry John had assembled for some of his
workshops.
We next
added to the group a woman experienced in teaching English in diverse settings,
who has a profound love and knowledge of poetry. Martha started as a scribe, but
quickly became instrumental in the process of selecting works and providing
dynamic exercises to draw the men more easily into the process of writing. Martha introduced the concept of choral reading which has been very powerful. And
Eileen, an art therapist and nurse, and keen observer and thoughtful
commentator, rounds out the group at five.
From Left to Right:
Lynne Albert (student volunteer); Annie Holden, leader of Finding Voice; Julie Michaelson, leader of Finding Voice; Lydia Bailey, Volunteer Coord. at 2100; Jack Schierloh, leader of Finding Voice.
Behind Lydia is Michael Sering, Director of 2100 Lakeside.
Behind Jack is Mike Green, part of administrative staff at 2100
I Know Exactly How You Feel, Man
Like
tightrope walkers, we approach the process with caution and care to find the
"right" poems for this special group of men. On one hand, it is easy enough to
find poems about loneliness, suffering, and hardship and we felt it was
important to acknowledge this aspect of their lives and yet, we also wanted to
explore imaginative, hope-filled, creative possibilities with them.
Self-esteem
is a thorny issue. In the case of men at low points in their lives - being
homeless, frequently jobless, mostly without family or friends nearby - to
provide a forum for speaking and listening to each other was our main
objective.
We have set
few restrictions for ourselves on the poetry we review for presentation to the
men. We do not let age, gender, historical period, or nationality determine
what we select. We try to keep them a manageable length, never more than a
page. So far we've used the poems of Rumi, Robert Frost, Maya Angelou, a third
grader, Langston Hughes, teenage boys, Mary Oliver, Carl Sandburg, Denise
Levertov and William Stafford, very successfully.
The "class"
is diverse-in age, birthplace, race, education, religion and life experience. I am
surprised by the number of young men who show up, somehow expecting only
middle-aged and older men to be homeless. Veterans from the Vietnam War and the
Gulf War attend. Many parts of the country are represented, especially the deep
South.
A few are regular writers and have poems committed to memory. There are
those who deeply and quickly engage. Some sit quietly and only observe, never
saying a word, but may take with them the copies of the poems we've provided.
At our
first workshop, I witnessed a man who stated at the start that he wasn't the
type to share or reveal himself but wanted to see what the workshop was like.
Midway through the morning, he not only shared a poem he had written but broke
down during his reading of it. Immediately, another man in the room responded
with words like "I know exactly how you feel, man. I hear you. I got nobody
too."
 The connection was instantaneous and profound. Everyone in the room sat
silent and full of feeling. For men who may have nothing else in their lives
for the moment, the importance of communication provides a connection. In the
words of Czeslaw Milosz, "Language is the only homeland." The workshop men speak
and are heard. This is the heart of the process.
Kevin is a young man who has been writing since he was 12.
When we introduced Carl Sandburg's poem, Wilderness
(CLICK HERE to read it) we spent time talking about
animals and how they can represent feelings and then invited the men to write
poems about animals they personally identified with.
Writing in a New Voice, Talking to Grief, Don't Ever Give Up on Living
Kevin wrote the following
poem and was very excited by the experience of writing in a new voice. He declared
that all of his previous writing had been in the first person because he was
mainly journaling and writing poems about his feelings and hadn't tried writing
from an "outside perspective".
I AM THE LEOPARD
I am the leopard
Walking on the grass
With soft paws
Smelling the smells with my nose
Managing the sounds with my
pointing ears
With my spots you can tell my
years.
I am the leopard
Hiding in the trees in the
daylight
Biding my time for the night
light
Staying away from the prying eyes
They say I'm soft but they're
telling lies.
I am the leopard
Roaming free by myself
I must take my feed high in the
trees
For the bigger cats will not
climb towards the leaves
Hiding in the forest they could
be worse.
I am the leopard
My coat is salt and pepper
Teeth and tongue even as a cub
I've clawed and purred with soft
fur
I could be cute or I could be a
brute
Only time will tell and bear
fruit.
In a recent workshop, we began with Denise Levertov's Talking
to Grief (CLICK HERE) in which
she describes grief as a stray dog. It so immediately resonated with the group
that the men shared their interpretations, reactions and feelings for an hour
without pause. Using a dry erase board at the front of the room, Martha
recorded phrases and ideas the men voiced. For example:
It = a life lesson.
What = lurking under your porch. Grief? Or...
Being alone, feeling rejected. Could be invisible but someone
opened the
door for me.
People come to me and it leads to a transformation, acceptance.
I think I am walking and no one sees me then maybe someone
discovers me.
Since we cannot predict what will invite deep interest, nor
for how long, we plan each session with what we hope are enough poems and
writing activities for each of the two hours set aside for the workshop, then
open ourselves up to whatever transpires. We have spent over an hour on one
poem, and, other times, three poems in one hour.
We carefully follow the flow of discussion so that we are appropriately
responsive to the men. Our efforts focus on the most valuable use of the time
at hand and our goal is meaningful, lively discussion. But it has become quite
clear that we are merely catalysts to the process of homeless men listening and
responding to each other.
The mutual respect that they exhibit towards each
other is extraordinarily beautiful. As Martha astutely observed following a recent workshop:
"Sometimes - actually, quite often - I wonder what it is we do
in that place and space. I truly do not believe that it is anything we DO.
Rather it is something that we try to set-up, scaffold, allow."
A Poem from Daryl, a Participant:
We all have bad days, and we
wonder how
We're going to make it through;
Well it starts with not what you
say,
But with what you do.
So don't sit and drown in your
own sorrow
And feeling blue.
Because no matter how worthless
or
Meaningless we think our life
is-there's always
Someone out there that needs you.
So don't ever give up on living.
Put down that gun and put down
that knife
Because you can still save
yourself along
With someone else's life.
Being Present With Each Other
There is
nothing more profound than being in a "safe place" where judgments are not
passed and one's thoughts and feelings can be expressed openly. It is not meant
to be a classroom situation and we restate that at the beginning of each
workshop. Our sole purpose is to explore, share and be present with each other.
It seems simple enough, and yet the turbulence and instability of everyday life (for homeless men in particular) rarely permits such moments.
As Rita Dove has observed: "By making us stop for a moment, poetry gives us an
opportunity to think about ourselves as human beings on this planet and what we
mean to each other."
How frequent are the opportunities
to be heard? Unfortunately, all too rare. Our mission as Finding Voice is to provide a forum where
homeless men can express themselves and be heard.
A Review of June, 2009 - June, 2010:
It's been a
year of reading, writing, sharing and discussing poetry at 2100 Lakeside Avenue
Men's Homeless Shelter. Finding Voice or "the Poetry Ladies" as we are more often
referred to, has built a niche, a following, in the large cement block
compound, a homeless shelter for men, in downtown Cleveland.
We have learned to relax a bit and trust the process more completely. Expanding
the repertoire of poems used in the workshops, we've experimented with Neruda, Naomi Shihab Nye, Lucille
Clifton, Hafiz and Rumi,
Elizabeth Bishop, Stevie
Smith. The men trust and respect us and respond willingly.
We've also adjusted to the fact that each group has some repeat
participants and a new crop of faces. The "regulars" help guide the new
folks (e.g. we have the "rule of two" which is that all writing has to be read
twice, and our repeat writers remind the new men of this in a humorous,
supportive way). They help pave the way to the sense of trust, mutual
respect and safety in the room.
A workshop rarely ends without someone commenting on the enjoyment and value of the two hours he has just spent in the company of the women and his
peers. And we all nod in agreement. We've all experienced something new as well
as a heightened sense of awareness of the world around us.
 Annie Holden was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, where childhood reading was her escape. She spent time on the east coast, as well as in Denmark and Britain before resettling in the Midwest. She wanted to be traveler, but discovered that the world presents itself to her every day through the people she meets, works with, reads about, and views online or at the movie theater. Reading and writing have always been a part of who Annie is. She came to poetry later in life while managing bookstores all around the city. Laid off from a bookstore managerial post last year, she agreed to be a scribe for John Fox's workshop at 2100 Lakeside Men's Emergency Homeless Shelter. She fell in love with the process, people and place, and has found where her heart meets her head. She has continued the poetry workshop, with no end in sight!
|
PROJECT STAR
San Diego, CA
|
Cultural Circle Poetry WorkshopsProject Star
San Diego, CA
Observations by Jim Hornsby, MA, LMFT
Cultural Circle PoetryWorkshops (CCPW) blend indigenous philosophies (more traits,
attitudes, and values than philosophies) with the learning theory of Kurt Lewin, and the Dunn & Dunn cross-cultural
theories of teaching and counseling.
In CCPW all students are welcome and equal no matter culture or color of skin
(inclusion). All students sit in the circle (the we vs. the I), and all students
regardless of sex, religion, or race have the right to tell their own story
(equality & tolerance).
When you, the artist, truly embrace the gift you were born with and live your
art, opportunities present themselves like no other. Opportunity knocks on
random doors. Answer the knock. It's the best thing that will ever happen to
you.
 Case in point: I went down to San Diego's World Beat Center, run by the
dynamic, effulgent Makeda Dread. I was looking for a conga class to indulge
myself in Afro-Cuban rhythms. I knew griot ancestors told stories to these
rhythms and I wanted to connect with the spirit of, as Malidome Somé might say,
the wood of the drum, the skin of the drum, and the song of the drummer.
There were a lot of women running around the center. They seemed to be excited
about something. Perhaps they were there for a conga class. Perhaps the
diversity of the building exterior and interior - wall to wall art, floor to
ceiling colors from a hundred cultures, added to their excitement. I flagged
down a young woman who was passing by like a low flying jet and asked if she
was there for a drumming class. She said no, she was there with a women's
recovery home, Project Star.
All the women were recovering from alcohol and drug addiction. I remembered my
25 years as an alcohol and drug counselor. I remembered my 9 years facilitating
mens groups in the Mytho-Poetic men's movement. I heard a knock on the door.
Is your manager here?
The young woman pointed
me to a table where a young, friendly looking black woman sat with some other
women. I walked up to her and asked if I could facilitate a pro bono poetry
workshop at Project Star once a month. She took my card and said she'd get back
to me after she talked to her board of directors. She called me two days later
and CCPW began at Project Star. It was the summer of 2008.
I found the model worked at the Indian Reservation Charter School (2002), in
the youth lockups (2005 to the present), and now at a women's recovery home. I
found giving my gift away made my presentations spiritual in nature, poetic in
heart, clear in consciousness. Then another knock was heard at the door.
 The women in Project Star are fresh out of prison. They are sick in body, mind,
emotion, and spirit as only a human being ill with addiction can be. They have
no money. The bed that shelters them is paid for in humanitarian funds. But
they have no necessities. No toothbrush. No toothpaste. No hairbrush. No
clothes. No feminine products. No amenities. About the time I became aware of
these poverties my e-mail account was pirated.
The pirates, ironically from the West Coast of Africa, tricked me into giving
up my password, then took over my account and e-mailed all my addresses saying I
was trapped in Africa and needed $1800 to escape. John Fox called me at home to
check up on my well-being and after I assured him I was in San Diego, I told him about my pro bono work with
Project Star. John insisted I should be paid and I resisted.
John was adamant that I be paid and persuaded me to wait until he talked to the board of The Institute for Poetic Medicine. After several months of donating my
time, I became the recipient of a stipend for each workshop.
The women took to the writing like the starving to a meal. The CCPW model
places the spirit of 15,000 years of indigenous wisdom in the room. The CCPW model places the spirits of Kurt Levin's learning theory, and the best of
cross-cultural, multi-cultural research in the room.
The women wrote about
losses, wounds, hopes, fears, broken hearts and healing hearts. The women wrote
about the extreme ups and downs of early sobriety. The women wrote about the
gorilla. You see, when anyone, male or female is trying to stop an addiction,
its like trying to stop making love to a 500 pound gorilla. You are not through
until the gorilla is through.
CCPW was a vehicle for the women to tell their stories about the gorilla and
the wreckage of their dis-ease. Project Star women alcoholics and addicts,
workshop after workshop, continued to produce strong poetry of recovery. As the
women moved through the workshops they grew as writers, as people recovering
language, recovering expression, recovering hope, recovering dignity.
As they began to make better decisions about writing, they began to make better
decisions about life. They were also receiving help from the supportive
structure and counseling of Project Star to grow as women of sobriety.
This writing that led to personal growth was accomplished in spite of clinical
evidence of early sobriety symptomatology that includes mood
swings, attention deficits, depression, confusion, sleep disturbance, low self-esteem, self-loathing,
despair, and, among a few, suicidal ideation. Most of the women wrote their
stories and wrote well. CCPW continually creates cohesion among the women, including
bonding around recovering from the above devastating symptoms.
When they were informed that an anthology was going to be published which would
provide necessities for new arrivals, they seemed to remember their own first
days fresh from prison with nothing but the clothes on their back They wanted
to help other women ease into the first days at Project Star. They seemed proud to
help another woman in this way. . . such a beautiful example of escaping the
selfishness of addiction and being of service to others. One of the secrets of
successful recovery.
In the
summer we sit on the front porch
The sun's last rays bright in the forest.
My great pyrenese & mastiff pup runs circles
amongst the trees, then tires on my feet.
Lemonade is served on ice very graciously.
~
Marcia T.
The women's poetry also
expresses existential themes of early recovery from addiction: the search for
identity without drugs or alcohol, the wish to repair the wreckage of the past;
regrets, hopes, dreams, and wishes for a positive chemical free, alcohol free
future; fear of failure; internal polarities of wishes for change and fear of
change, grief at the loss of the exciting life-style, or losses in
relationships, opportunities, and time.
The
Mask
My
hidden me
Lies deep beneath a mask
A mask of fake smiles
And real tears
She's lonely, confused, scared
Choices that were made
does not show
the kind, giving, kindred soul
who wished to emerge
If she knew who she was
The shattered mask would be painted
on the wall, not her face
~ Cristina R.
And then there's
iatrogenic (physician caused) relapse into addiction by inadequately trained
doctors. When a doctor has earned the Boards In Family Practice he or she has
an additional three months of training in addiction. Most physicians have about
two hours in med school regarding alcoholism and drug addiction.
Addiction treatment teams, at one time or another, encounter doctors who think
alcoholism or drug addiction is a Valium deficiency. The emotional swings of
the addict create anxiety in the physician who brings out the prescription pad
prematurely.
In the case of writing poetry, the mind and mood swings of early recovery are
diffused or ameliorated by the nonviolent expression of personal verse. The
writing of spoken word here-and-now shifts of mind and mood is a nonintrusive
vehicle for the brain and central nervous system rebounding from chronic use,
abuse, and, in the worst cases, polyabuse of mind-altering, mood-altering
substances.
 It follows that the writing of poetry for alcoholics and addicts addresses the
spiritual malady and remedy of the substance abusing sick: spiritus contra
spiritum, the dance of spiritual communion against the use of alcoholic
substances. The dance is transformational. Poetry is the dance. Poetry
transforms. Poetry transforms symptomatology in a manner sometimes predictably,
sometimes mysteriously. Enter the legacy of the griots and the powerful imagery
and language of topical and personal storytelling.
Poetry, and the writing of poetry, transforms the craving for beverage alcohol
and chemicals and substitutes a drive for meaning, a longing for clarity, for
dignity, for loyalty to a sober identity. As the pencil moves down the page
angst, anxiety, depression, etc., move down the continuum of power. A spirit of
change, of confidence, of health, of balance, infuses the zeitgeist of the
writing circle and the heart of the recovering poet.
THE
BEST THING ABOUT BEING CLEAN
Is
being clean
Being clean feels like a dream,
I'm running and running
to clean
But right now it feels like a dream
So keep me clean and let me sleep
For the thoughts I have are too deep,
The best thing about being clean
is waking up being me.
~ Karrie K.
 Grouchy
What I like
About staying sober
waking up
grouchy
drinking coffee
to stay awake
but not using
anything illicit
staying sober
is what I like
~ Debra C.
I've worked with women
during CCPW at Project Star that were so physically sick from withdrawals they
could barely stay awake. They could only write about being sleepy or tired.
I've also had to collaborate with women where they'd dictate a line of poetry
to me and then I'd write a line until we had four lines. The women were so sick
they couldn't hold the pencil or couldn't put a sentence together. Several
weeks later the woman would be writing her own poem unassisted and remembering
how much she had improved by her cognitive gains in writing skills.
In this way the women enter authorship of a complete personality change. They
are authors of poetry immersed in a new consciousness of self-respect. They,
therefore, begin authoring authentic clean and sober choices in daily living.
As they make better choices in stanza, language, line breaks, imagery, mood or
tone, etc., of their poetry, they make better life choices.
This is poetry of human beings in transformation, assisted by a process of
transformation in an art of transformation. It is also a process of entering
the sacred and learning to be comfortable there, if not to live there, in the
recovering dance with its sweet music of love for self and the other- Buber's I
- Thou.
THE WOMEN AROUND ME
The women around me have
come
back from death,
The women around me have been
knocked around,
The women around me have made
a decision not to go back to the nightmare,
The women around me don't know
there's a seed growing,
The women around me don't know
their seed will birth a baby named
Sobriety,
The baby is born from rain,
the baby is born from times
when there was only darkness,
The women don't know this uncertainty,
this newness that feels so shaky and raw
is back straight, look-her-in-the-eye
integrity,
The women can't see their new dignity,
But I see dignity's fire in newly sober eyes,
The women's new dignity
helps them flame the fires of abstinence,
Just for today...
~ Jim Hornsby Spring 2009
I thank John Fox and The
Institute for Poetic Medicine for funding this most rewarding project, the
Project Star Women's Poetry Anthology. The women of these poems are not only
clients. On account of the spiritual components inherent in writing verse, they
are also writing sisters, writing nieces, writing daughters; young and old
women of recovery rediscovering, relearning straight spine head-held-high
dignity. They have earned the title Artists of Transformation, women
poet/warriors dancing the clean and sober path of the heart.
 Jim Hornsby is a member of San Diego's Langston Hughes Poetry Circle and a past
board member of the African American Writers & Artists. He teaches
poetry workshops for gang youth in lockups, children in after school programs,
and adults who are beginning or practiced poets. Hornsby has been published in
City Works, The Langston Hughes Poetry Anthology, The Magee Park Poets
Anthology, the poetry conspiracy, Tidepools, and others. He performs with
The Three Deuces - jazz trumpet, dance, and spoken word ensemble with Mitch
Manker and Michael Tompkins. He was the director of the Encanto Boys
and Girls Club Children's Poetry Choir from September of 2004 to June of
2009. Hornsby is currently initiating a workshop after school program at the
Queen Bee Art & Cultural Center in the North Park section of San Diego,
California entitled "Bullets Outta Guns". Jim believes that when adults provide after school art or
sports programs and 10 children show up, 20 bullets are removed from guns:
10 bullets from police revolvers and 10 more from gang guns.
|
From East to West Coasts in America,
and From Bowen Island, B.C.
in Canada
to The Korean Institute for
Poetry Therapy
in Seoul, South Korea. . .
John's travels continue to unfold
in broad and diverse landscapes in 2010!
Many workshops are full at this time; however, there are several upcoming events where spaces remain (see below). We would welcome your attendance... and please don't hesitate to tell your friends and family too!
A full calendar listing of upcoming fall/winter workshops and presentations will be available later this summer.
July 23, 2010
Kaiser Permanente Town Hall
3704 N. Interstate Ave.
Portland, Oregon
Poetic Medicine: The Healing Art of
Poem-Making
(A talk and
mini-workshop)
Friday, July 23, 2010:
7:00 - 9:30pm
This healing art can act as buffer and companion, salve and source of resilience during illness. Whether it is your own illness or someone else's - friend, family member or a patient - this process of expression and being deeply listened to reminds us of our wholeness, our unique place in the world and our humanity.
In this presentation, John will share inspiring stories and specific ways you can make use of "poetic medicine": to heal, enhance wellness, and reclaim that creative spark which is essential to us as human beings. This is "whole personal healthcare" at its best!
Fee: $25.00
(Proceeds will go towards The Institute for Poetic Medicine
with a tithe to Write Around Portland - a community based writing cooperative)
No Registration Required! Please show up at the door.
To Download a PDF Flyer: CLICK HERE
Questions?
Contact Marna Hauk:
deeperharmony@gmail.com
(503) 771-0711
______________________________________
August 9, 13 & 14, 2010
Cleveland, OH
Poetic Medicine Consultations
John will offer one hour poetic medicine consultations
to individuals in the Cleveland area with times available
on August 9, 13 & 14.
Fee: $60 per hour or sliding scale
For More Information or to Schedule a Time:
Please call: (530) 383-4668
Or E-Mail: JFoxCPT@aol.com
______________________________________
August 11-12, 2010The Gathering Place
(A caring community for those touched by cancer)
2330 Commerce Park
Beachwood, Ohio
Finding the Words to Say ItWednesday, August 11: 6:30 - 8:30pm
Thursday, August 12: 1:00 - 3:30pm
What do you want to say about your cancer experience? What do you want to say about what matters to you? What is it like for you to be deeply listened to? John will show how your own words can deepen feeling and understanding, provide comfort and bring relief.
Finding the words to say what is in your heart can lighten the load and bring a new sense of meaning, purpose and direction.
If you are new to writing, John creates a safe environment to explore this empowering process of self-expression. If you have attended workshops with in the past, this program will offer time to write and share in community. No prior experience necessary. You are invited to attend one or both sessions.
Advance Registration is Required!
Please Call For Information and to Register:
(216) 595-9546
______________________________________
August
27, 2010
Sponsored by the Sacramento Chapter of
The Institute of Noetic Sciences
Sacramento, CA
The Gifts of Wholeness
from the Particular to the Universal
...and Back Again
A Talk and Mini-Writing/Poetry Workshop
with John Fox, CPT
Friday, August 27, 2010
7:00 - 9:30pm
To see a world in a grain of sand,
And a heaven in a wild
flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
And eternity in an hour.
William Blake
from Auguries of Innocence
A gift of poetry is that it encourages
us to take our time to see. We can take our time not only to see
a small flower, but through that
flower, see and feel the richness of the whole world, through the person
whose shoulder is next to yours we can feel the throbbing heart of
humanity.
Poetry is a window to the particular, a path to this wholeness.
This evening, sponsored by IONS of Sacramento, will give you the
opportunity to experiment with these connections, to discover for
yourself such wholeness.
No previous experience with writing is necessary. Please bring your
curiosity and alert attention!
I
continued to look at the flowers, and
in their living light
I seemed to detect the qualitative equivalent of breathing -
but of a breathing without returns to a starting point,
with no recurrent ebbs but only a repeated flow from beauty
to heightened beauty, from deeper to ever deeper meaning.
Aldous Huxley
from The Doors of Perception
For More Information and Location, Please Contact:
Al
Jacobus E-Mail: energymaster@earthlink.net Phone: (916) 366-8540To Visit the Website of the Sacramento Community Group of The Institute of Noetic Science:
(CLICK HERE)
______________________________________ September 10-12, 2010
The Mercy Center
Burlingame, California
The Journey to the Undivided Life:
Reclaiming Your Hidden Wholeness
Though the Healing Power of Poetry
A Retreat Bringing Together Poetic Medicine
with the Circle of Trust Approach
with John Fox, CPT and Sally Hare, Ph.D.
In this unique retreat, poet John Fox and teacher Sally Z. Hare come together to explore the intersection of their work. They invite you to experience a circle of trust, grounded in Sally's many years of working with Parker Palmer's Circle of Trust theory, and the healing power of writing based in John's own work in poetry therapy.
The safe space of this retreat offers you the opportunity to glimpse your own hidden wholeness by welcoming shadow as well as light, pain as well as joy. Here is a chance to rejoin soul and role, to reconnect who you are with what you do.
In large and small groups, as well as solitary settings, we will explore the intersection of our personal and professional lives, making use of stories from our own journeys, as well as insights from poets and various wisdom traditions - and inviting our own writing and poetry to emerge
The internationally known Mercy Center in Burlingame is 10 minutes from the San Francisco airport. In addition to the natural sanctuary of mature oaks and flower gardens, the Center has a bookstore, hand-built labyrinth, and lovely walking paths. You may want to come early - or stay late to take advantage of the yoga, massage, and healing touch offered by appointment with their experienced bodywork practitioners.
To Download a PDF Flyer/Registration Form:
CLICK HERE
To Visit Sally Z. Hare's Website:
CLICK HERE
To Learn
More About Retreats at the Mercy Center:
CLICK HERE
______________________________________
September 22 & 23, 2010
The Wellness Community at Northside Hospital
5775
Peachtree Dunwoody Road
Building C-Suite 225
Atlanta, GA 30342
Finding the Words to Say It:
The Healing Power of Written Expression
Please see the description for the workshop
at The Gathering Place in Cleveland, Ohio
posted above.
Please call The Wellness Community
for exact times,
more information and to register:404-843-1880To Vist The Wellness Community Website:
(CLICK HERE)
______________________________________
September 24 & 25, 2010
Atlanta, Georgia
Poetic Medicine / Seeing Takes Time
John will also offer public programs in the Atlanta, Georgia area:
Poetic
Medicine:
Friday, September 24th
7pm-9:30pm
Seeing
Takes Time:
*Saturday, September 25th
10am-5pm
*(Note: The Satuday workshop is limited to 16 registrations).
For More Information Please Contact:
Agata Dichev
E-Mail: agdichev@gmail
Phone: (734) 904-8923
Locations to be Announced
Nobody sees a
flower-really-it is so small-we haven't time-
and to see takes time like to have a friend takes time.
~Georgia O'Keefe 
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WE NEED YOUR HELP!
Are you moved by these
Poetry Partner stories?
A donation to IPM assures we will
do more - and you will be a
"Friend of the Institute!"
"If ever there
were a time when connecting creativity and healing was meaningful on a
planetary scale, now is the time.
This is why I feel thankful to support the
work of The Institute for Poetic Medicine. Vitalizing, direct,
spirit-awakening...
so grateful for the work of IPM!"
~ Marna Hauk
Portland, Oregon
The
Institute for Poetic Medicine
is a tax deductible nonprofit 501(c)3.
Please advance our mission
to "awaken soulfulness in
the human voice"
by sending a check to:
The Institute for Poetic Medicine
P. O. Box 60189
Palo Alto,
CA 94306
Attn: John Fox
Thank you! |
Please... Share
this Constant
Contact With Family, Friends, and Co-Workers by Clicking the "Forward e-Mail" Link at the
Bottom of this Newsletter. Want to View Our Previous Constant
Contact Newsletters?Visit Our Archive By:(CLICKING HERE) "You led me to a place where my own 6 lines of
poetry would take me to, on the profound journey
to my lost friend. For that I will be forever grateful."
~ Tom Roberts, Moffett Cancer Center, Tampa, FL
|
It is my pleasure to design and send these
Constant Contact communications
to you. As a hospice grief counselor, my pilgrimage is one of deep
listening with the ears of my heart. I offer poetry as sweet balm for
the shattered places... the opening spaces.
With Gratitude for the Journey ~
Melissa Layer, Port Townsend, WA
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...Tolling for the aching whose wounds cannot be nursed
For the countless confused, accused, misused, strung-out ones an' worse
An' for every hung-up person in the whole wide universe
An' we gazed upon the chimes of freedom flashing
from The Chimes of Freedom
by Bob Dylan
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