Spotlight On......
JUDY SMOOT
Expressive Arts Florida Institute Level 2 Certificate Student
Judy Smoot and her husband live in the rolling hills of Southeastern Ohio. She is a Benedictine Oblate with Mount Saint Benedict in Erie, PA, a spiritual director/retreat leader, and founder of the non-profit ministry Always We Begin Again ("AWBA") www.myawba.org that provides spiritual care for people living with a chronic diagnosis and those who support them on their journey. Judy is a 2007 graduate of Wellstreams Ecumenical Program for Spiritual Direction in Columbus, Ohio, and is currently a Level Two student at Expressive Arts Florida Institute. Previously, she served for two years as a listening companion for women at a family homeless shelter and for 15 years as a hospice volunteer. This month, Judy will receive the 2014 Living Faith Hope for Tomorrow Award that recognizes an individual who "lives their life balanced with action that serves as a model for the spiritual needs of others."
 "As I have moved more deeply into the art of weaving together my training as a spiritual director and my studies with Expressive Arts, I find myself in many different venues. I am not a professionally trained "artist" and it was a process for me to claim the word for myself. I deeply believe in the power of creative expression to heal the spirit and, in some circumstances, to calm the physical self. Healing takes many forms. In my work as a spiritual director and artist, my focus is on healing of the spirit.
In 2013 I was asked to provide a creative experience at a church women's conference on human trafficking. I brought the "Imagine Project" to this group of women as a way to help them process the stories they heard from a survivor of human trafficking at their morning session before attending an afternoon business session of their church denomination charged with creating a unified response to this very real issue. The women were invited to create a mandala in which to hold their own emotions and response from the morning session, then to create an "Imagine" banner of healing to be incorporated into the larger Imagine Project in Sarasota.
 I incorporate expressive arts in the work I do through AWBA to serve those impacted by a chronic diagnosis - either as the one diagnosed, as a support person (including professionals), and, sometimes, as one who carries both roles. Through AWBA, we have offered Soul Collage workshops. This simple form of expression helps people process emotions, feelings and hopes in a non-threatening way. The group sharing that follows allows participants to have their stories heard and to be affirmed for what they have created. Many have continued this practice on their own.
AWBA has also partnered with professionals trained in equine-assisted learning. All work is done on the ground in a safe environment with a horse handler assigned to each person. Through grooming the horses and simple exercises, participants gain personal insight about their experience with a chronic illness. We share stories with one another and have fun in the midst of hard life challenges. Many have reported a diminishing of symptoms while engaged in this work and a sense of momentary freedom from the burdens they carry.
 
Through The Spirituality Network in Columbus, Ohio, I have facilitated two Internet retreats, "Creativity as a Spiritual Practice", based on the book, The Creative Call by Janice Elsheimer. These eight-week programs incorporate visual art with different media, poetry, journaling, and invitation to movement. A blog is created to invite participants to share with one another throughout the eight weeks. The programs begin and conclude with an in-person retreat that expands on the material by offering participants opportunities for personal time together, to engage all their senses in nature while creating art, and to have their experiences witnessed by another.
 | | Photographer: Barb Fox |
 | | Photographer: Barb Fox |
 | | Artist: John Habela |
As a spiritual director, I invite directees into creative exploration of experiences that are beneath words. Most often, we have dialogued with images and mandalas, and created personal altars.
Through my work with faith communities, participants have created prayer beads, worked with clay and watercolor, learned a movement process to "Amazing Grace", and written poetry. One church desired an experience to dedicate a piece of art created from an ancient and beloved tree that had to be cut down on their property. After a guided meditation, journal prompts and group sharing, they were invited into a poetry-writing experience. Most had never written a poem, and were so excited about what came from them that they were the first to share their words with the group.
As I continue in Level Two training, I am eager to blend together all that I am learning and experiencing. I have been offering art-based opportunities for spiritual expression for 10 years. The training is helping me expand and deepen my resources and to be more intentional about the intermodal part of the process. AWBA is launching a Touch Drawing pilot program late this summer, and we will be expanding our programming with the horses to include Touch Drawing or another creative expression that takes place alongside the horses. My husband and I recently took up permanent residence at a small cottage in the woods that we have had for weekend respite. We have remodeled and built an addition that includes a guest apartment for those seeking a retreat experience. There is also an art studio with ample space for small groups. I look forward to creating programs that offer access to art materials in a natural setting that invites rest, reflection and healing in nature." ......Judy Smoot
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