Volume III, Issue 46
December 15, 2014
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Word of the Week: direction |
Dear ,
This is a time of year many of us spend a fair amount of time looking for things. The perfect gift, say, or, if you're like me, that perfect gift for someone you love you bought in June and put in a perfectly logical place -- if only you could remember where that was! Maybe what you're looking for is a quiet hour or two to call your own; maybe you're looking for the way home, like
Dorothy, and some companions along the way.
Sometimes though, like U2, no matter how hard we try, we still can't find what we're looking for. And that's when the smart thing to do is to look for direction(s), geographical, spiritual, and/or
otherwise.
Today's featured WordPlayer, Lloyd Edwards, whom you'll meet below, knows a lot about how to find what one is looking for through seeking direction. I'm so glad he is willing to share an illuminating story on the process. His "Brother Blunt" made me chuckle, and taught me something too. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did! And, of course, there's a
prompt about "direction" below too. (Dorothy's ruby slippers just might be a part of it.)
Love and light,
Maureen
Upcoming WordPlay
WordPlay WINTER WRITING RETREAT (Writing — and More — as Renewal / Creating New Writing) Renew and delight yourself. The Winter Writing Retreat is an opportunity to create new pieces of writing and/or new possibilities for our lives. Enjoy various seasonal prompts; they have not failed to elicit beautiful material that can be shaped into essays, poems, stories, or articles. After a communal lunch, you’ll have private time which can be used to collage, work with a piece of writing from the
morning, or play with a number of other writing prompts and methods. You’ll take home new ideas, new drafts, and new possibilities. $97 includes lunch and supplies.WHERE: South Charlotte area. Details will be provided upon registration.
WHEN: Saturday, December 20, 2014, 10 am – 5 pm TO REGISTER: Register online here. Or email info@wordplaynow.com for details on registering via mail.
CHECK OUT THIS UPCOMING OPPORTUNITY, TAUGHT BY WORDPLAY CREATIVE CONSULTANT WENDY GILL*. THE ARTIST'S WAY:
A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity
(Expanding Our Creativity; Creating Joy and Fulfillment in Our Lives) Are you ready to discover
the joy of creativity? Using the proven tools and structure of Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way, this course will spur your imagination and guide your journey toward creative self-expression.
Our 2-hour sessions include weekly check-ins, hands-on activities, and creativity exercises. The encouragement and support of this small in-person community (what Julia Cameron calls a “creative
cluster”) will help you fully experience the power of The Artist’s Way.
COST: $195 for 13 two-hour sessions over 13 weeks WHERE: Downtown Matthews, NC WHEN:
Thursday evenings, 7-9 PM, January 8 – April 2, 2015
*Wendy H. Gill was a special education teacher for 22 years. One of her greatest joys as an educator was adapting stories, rhymes and songs to engage her students and instill a love of books. She left full-time teaching in 2000 to create a literacy enrichment program for young children. She is currently a writer, producer, and the owner of Professional Communications, a creative video production agency. Her poems and essays have appeared in a variety of regional and national publications.
More WordPlay opportunities here. WordPlay Success Story
"Maureen's reminder to take writing lightly as well as seriously, her writing prompts for getting started, and her book Spinning Words into Gold were invaluable. I continue to return to what I learned from Maureen, whether writing fiction or non-fiction. She is a superb teacher, and her acceptance of our work
encouraged us to do more."
Meet Lloyd Edwards
Lloyd Edwards is an Episcopal Priest, recently retired from parish ministry. He teaches religion courses at a local college and sees people in spiritual direction. Before ordination, he earned a Ph.D. in
physics and did research and taught. He is married, with three adult children, six grandchildren, and two above-average dogs (but don't tell them he told you – they're full enough of themselves already).
What Lloyd says about WordPlay
I've always been an avid reader and writer, and when I retired from parish ministry two years ago, I
thought, “Now I have time to write. I want to be able to call myself a writer.” I had two published non-fiction books under my belt, but wanted to begin to write fiction. I was on Maureen's email list, and when I saw that she was offering an evening workshop in Charlotte, I went. What I discovered there
was the fun, light, creative side of writing. Later I attended one of her Saturday morning workshops and it re-charged my batteries for writing. She is a superb teacher, and her acceptance of our work encouraged us to do more. Still later, I was stuck on a novel I was attempting, and she generously read
my treatment and met with me to offer comments. That meeting made all the difference, and got me unstuck. I continue to work on the novel, but had already started a non-fiction book, A Place to Breathe: Creating the World that God Intended –- and Still Does. Maureen's reminder to take writing lightly as well as seriously, her writing prompts for getting started, and her book Spinning Words into Gold were invaluable. I continue to return to what I learned from Maureen, whether writing fiction or non-fiction. Featured Writing Lloyd's has been doing spiritual direction and training other spiritual directors for years, and he has been
impressed at the rich variety of places where people find spiritual help. Once he took a kitchen drawer full of utensils to a training and let the utensils “guide” the trainees! He's in great company in this regard -- the renowned writer Fr. Matthew Fox has said that his dog is his spiritual director.
Lloyd wondered how far he could push this idea of the seemingly unlikely places spiritual guidance can show up, and his funny and insightful fable “Brother Blunt” is the result.
Brother Blunt
by
Lloyd Edwards
Brother Blunt matched his name – brusque, plainspoken, often abrasive. The other members of the monastery understood that he didn’t like people to get too close and that he distrusted feelings, his and everyone else’s. But he showed no malice, and they let him alone. One day the Abbot of the monastery got a call from the Bishop’s secretary. The Bishop planned to visit the monastery
for lunch, and he sought a spiritual director among the brothers. Everyone assumed that he would ask the Abbot to be his director, for the Abbot was widely known for his wisdom and compassion.
While the Bishop ate lunch, he spoke with every one of the brothers during the meal, weighing their value as his director. After the final blessing, the Bishop turned to Brother Blunt and asked him if he
would be his director. Everyone was astounded. They had been so certain.
The Abbot was especially concerned, not that he had not been chosen, but that Brother Blunt would say something so offensive to the Bishop that he would never return to the monastery. The Abbot knew the value of staying on the good side of the local Bishop.
As soon as the Bishop asked Brother Blunt to be his director, Brother Blunt walked out the door without a word, the Bishop following. They walked into the woods, and only a few moments passed before the Bishop returned, climbed in his car, and drove away.
Six weeks later he returned. He arrived in time for lunch, and after the final
blessing, Brother Blunt again walked out the door and the Bishop followed. Only a few minutes passed before he returned, climbed into his car, and drove away.
Another six weeks passed and the Bishop again came for lunch. He and Brother Blunt repeated their prior actions.
A few weeks later, the
Abbot and Bishop were together at a meeting of the Diocesan Task Force on Spirituality. After the meeting, when all the others had left the room, the Abbot asked the Bishop, “How are you and Brother Blunt getting along?”
The Bishop’s face lit up. “He is the best, the wisest, the most insightful spiritual director I have ever had! Even more than that, he is the best spiritual director I have ever
heard of!”
The Abbot was relieved but his discretion kept him from inquiring further. The Bishop, however, was not finished.
“The first time I met with him, the day I asked him to be my director, he walked with me into the woods. I came with eager expectation, after the manner of the Desert
Fathers, where one would go to one of the old holy men and ask, ‘Father, give me a word,’ and then he would go away with the word and chew on it for months.
“We walked only a short way into the woods when he said, “I don’t know what I’m doing. I wish you would go away.” I drove back to town, chewing on what he had said. What was the Holy Spirit saying to me through his words?” The Bishop paused
for breath.
Finish reading the rest of "Brother Blunt" here.
WordPlay Now! Writing Prompt This is WordPlay -- so why not revel in the power and potential of one good word after another? This week, it's "direction." |
Yes, here are the ruby slippers. Because Dorothy learned, through them
that the power to go home was inside her all along. Often, as in Lloyd's story of the Bishop and Brother Blunt, we seek direction outside of ourselves when the answer is within us. Today, use the tool of dialogue to find direction in whatever area you're looking for.
PROMPT: Set a timer for 7 minutes. Write out an imaginary dialogue between you and any other person, real or imaginary, dead or alive. Pick someone you will enjoy talking to. (Always wished you could know what Winston
Churchill would advise you to do? Create a dialogue, and ask him.) You can dialogue with Glinda the Good Witch, with your dog, with your beloved grandmother who passed away when you were nine, with the Divine... the possibilities are endless. Trust that this exercise can help you tap into a wiser part of yourself that dwells below your everyday tasks and concerns.
Use screenplay style:
Me: Hello, Mr. Churchill, would you mind having a little chat with me?
W.C. Happy to oblige. What's on your mind?
Me: I've been having this problem with indecisiveness...What can you tell me about making decisions quickly, without agonizing about them? I know you've had lots of experience with that...
W.C.: Jolly right I have!
You get it, I'm sure. Be sure to start with questions that really matter to you. You can be light as well as serious. Truth often hides in laughter. Most important, be willing to surprise yourself.
When your timer goes off, read what you wrote. What didn't you know you already knew?
(You can find more about the Dialogue, and many other tips, tools, and resources, in Spinning Words into Gold. Would a copy make a nice gift for someone you
know?)
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MAUREEN RYAN GRIFFIN, an award-winning poetry and nonfiction writer, is the author of Spinning Words into Gold, a Hands-On Guide to the Craft of Writing, a grief workbook entitled I Will Never Forget You, and two collections of poetry, This Scatter of Blossoms and When the Leaves Are in the Water. She believes, as author Julia Cameron says, "We are meant to midwife dreams for one another."
Maureen also believes that serious "word work" requires serious WordPlay, as play is how we humans best learn -- and perform. What she loves best is witnessing all the other dreams that come true for her clients along the way. Language, when used with intentionality and focus, is, after all, serious fuel for joy. Here's to yours! |
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